The Animal Anti-Cruelty League (AACL) has launched an investigation after a Beachview man was seen grabbing his small dog by the scruff of the neck and flinging it onto the back of his bakkie.
The nearly two-minute clip of the incident at the weekend has gone viral on social media.
In the clip, captured on CCTV outside SPAR Seaview on Sunday, the dog owner, Jacques Fleetwood, then gets into a spat with onlookers berating him over the alleged abuse.
First, he seemingly confronts a person standing at the top of a flight of stairs at a shop next to the parking lot.
The two remain out of view of the camera for about 25 seconds.
When the alleged aggressor emerges, he goes down the stairs and peeks at the driver of a VW Polo, who had pulled into the parking area to observe the fracas.
Though the verbal confrontations are inaudible, their movements can be observed.
The owner of the small crossbreed finally struts off towards SPAR.
Meanwhile, a couple preparing to drive out of the car park and their two young children, who were in the back of their bakkie, were among those who witnessed the incident.
The family, at the time, had got into their vehicle and were preparing to drive off when they saw the man allegedly become abusive towards the dog.
Concerned dog owners took to the AACL Facebook page to react angrily to the video.
However, an animal advocate who asked not to be named, said the backlash had been misdirected.
“Everybody is going after the owner of the car, who’d lent it to the person [seen in the video]. The elderly man who owns the car had nothing to do with it,” the source said.
The animal enthusiast, with the help of online users, was able to track Fleetwood to his home.
“I wanted to make sure the little dog was OK.
“As a community in this area, we do not tolerate [alleged] abusive behaviour towards animals.
“The matter was handed over to the ACCL.”
ACCL spokesperson Karien van Schalkwyk said the organisation had received the complaint and the footage.
She confirmed they were investigating the matter.
“As soon as we’re able, a press release will follow.
“The AACL is treating the matter as urgent,” Van Schalkwyk said.
“We plead with the public to stay calm as we deal with the matter, and to refrain from taking the law into their own hands or sharing private information or defamatory statements.”
Fleetwood said he became upset after the dog first jumped from the vehicle, nearly causing an accident.
He said his three-year-old dog, Benjamin, had misbehaved, prompting his reaction, though he claimed he had meant no harm.
“The same dog [a few minutes earlier] jumped off the bakkie and my child chased after him.
“The [car] missed my child by a centimetre,” Fleetwood said.
“So, when he jumped off again, the thing playing on my mind was that my child could’ve been dead because of the dog.
“The natural response was to get the dog back into the bakkie.”
Fleetwood said the first incident occurred after he left his house on the way to Seaview SPAR.
He claimed to pamper Benjamin, contrary to his actions in the clip, saying the dog had appeared to be fine afterwards.
“What you saw in the video isn’t a true reflection of the love I have for Benjamin.
“It was a wild swing because I’m naturally strong, but I saved him [from getting run over by a car] by getting him back in the bakkie,” Fleetwood said.
HeraldLIVE