Animal abuse on the rise in Tauranga

Skip, after being rescued from a clothing bin where he was dumped at only six weeks old.

Animal cruelty in Tauranga is being described as a ‘major problem' by PETA, who say local vets have had to euthanise hedgehogs and birds attacked by children.

PETA Australia associate director Ashley Fruno says last year the Tauranga SPCA reported 431 complaints, over half of which involved cruelty to dogs.

Earlier this year, a six-week-old puppy called Skip was dumped in a clothing bin, severely underweight, dehydrated and suffering from a skin condition.

Those responsible have not been found.

Ashley says because animals cannot report abuse or fight back, they're often used as ‘practice victims' by those inclined towards violence.

'Research in psychology and criminology shows people who commit acts of cruelty to animals often go on to commit violent acts against their fellow humans. A study by Dr John Clarke, a lecturer in psychology at the University of Sydney and consultant to the New South Wales Police Force, used police data to demonstrate 61.5 per cent of convicted animal abuse offenders had also committed an assault, and 17 per cent were guilty of sexual abuse.

'Most disturbingly, animal abuse was a better predictor of sexual assault than previous convictions for homicide, arson, or firearms offences. Only one per cent of cruelty-to-animals offenders had no other convictions at all.”

Tauranga SPCA operations manager Margaret Rawiri says animal cruelty is a serious societal issue in Tauranga and across all of New Zealand.

'We have many improvements we need to make in this area. What the SPCA is noticing though is more people speaking out and being aware of what is not acceptable for pets.

'We have an education programme for New Zealand primary and intermediate schools, and many in Tauranga are using this. SPCA Education gives teachers resources to use in the classroom that teach normal curriculum lessons such as maths and English that weave in messages about animal care and animal welfare.

'For example, children can learn mathematics by calculating the costs of owning a pet, or write a persuasive speech on why pets should be desexed. We believe teaching the future generation of New Zealanders how to care for and respect animals will go a long way to address our rates of animal cruelty.”

In January, a tern chick was killed in its nest on the Hairini Bridge when a rock was deliberately thrown at it, while in October 2016, a pet lamb was kicked to death by a boy at a local school's calf club event.

If you see or suspect animal cruelty, contact the Tauranga SPCA on 07 578 0245.

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8 comments

A tangible guage of who we are

Posted on 03-08-2017 12:13 | By Papamoaner

And what we are too. It's our dark underbelly. You can measure the worth of a people by the way they treat animals, and that includes farmers as well as townies. This does not bode well for us, a community obsessed with the amount of rates we pay, and what we get back in return. We are like an ingrown toenail. We are parochial, self-centred, superficial, materialistic and mean. For all of this We are ashamed. Or are we? Regretfully not all of us. Will it get better in time? The outlook is not looking good short of shock treatment, and if we don't watch out, nature might just do that.


Can we fix this?

Posted on 03-08-2017 12:18 | By Papamoaner

Hug an animal every day and whisper a kind word. - A dog, a horse, a cow. Makes you feel better about life in general. Works for me, maybe for others as well.


PETA: Pot. Kettle.

Posted on 03-08-2017 12:32 | By APBTA

PETA can talk huh? Check them out. Google PETAkillsanimals


@APBTA

Posted on 03-08-2017 17:55 | By Papamoaner

I wouldn't believe that rubbish if I were you. Extremist sensationalist exaggeration! The kinds of people who want to set fire to butchers shops etc etc. Unbalanced propagandists! Sure, there are some organisations like SPCA, and dog council rangers who sometimes have little choice other than to destroy animals, but they are all well-intended, and by and large do a good job, albeit not always pleasant. They are usually staffed by genuine animal lovers, which is why they are attracted to the job. But animal loving people haters are no better than animal hurters. I hope you're not one of them. Not accusing, just disagreeing.


animals

Posted on 03-08-2017 18:25 | By gingerpussy

people are so cruel, they get a pet and then toss it away cos they cant be bothered, maybe this is why some parents cant be bothered with their own kids, cos they get bored with them....id rather have a pet that deal with humans....people caught being cruel to animals should be locked up....


Not surprising really

Posted on 03-08-2017 18:57 | By maildrop

When you consider that NZ has some of the worst records in the OECD in domestic abuse, child abuse, sexual assault and violent assault, it would be a surprise if animals weren't also the punchbag for kiwi men to display how tough they are.


Peta? Seriously?

Posted on 04-08-2017 08:08 | By Justlooking

Why on earth is anyone getting information from PETA. They are renowned for their incredibly high euthanasia rates in their "shelters". They kill anything they can get their hands on!!! Maybe speak to people who want to make a REAL difference, not kill to get the numbers down and look good.


Shameful

Posted on 04-08-2017 14:47 | By Tgaboy

Sometimes humans are more animal than the animals. Such a pity we have to put up with such maggot scum bag animal abusers in our communities. Wish we could euthanise them.


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