Once upon a time ago, in a land not very far away, an irresponsible dog owner moved out of his rental accommodation and left two starving German Shepherd mixes chained on the property.

These dogs were in an isolated area and though many neighbours had called the SPCA over and over again with barking complaints, no one ever came.

Approximately one month after the dogs were left on their own another person heard of the complaints and contacted this writer for help.

When we entered the property we found two emaciated dogs, one chained to a tree and one chained to a shed. Yes, they had been left to eat rocks, grass, tree bark and drink rain water for almost one month.

We released them from their chains and they came home with me to begin the process of healing, and just in time. One of the dogs began to bleed out during the night, he had lost control of his bowel and bladder, was vomiting and was cold to the touch.

He was rushed to the vets and stabilized through the night, with the vet suspecting the dog had been poisoned, most likely from an upset neighbour who could no longer stand the howling for help.

Why do women steal dogs? The answer is clear.

Gail Moerkerken