Animal rescue
RESCUERS have been busy, busy, busy – from a puppy stuck in a drain to a young crocodile scaring passers-by in Tongaat.
Netcare 911 spokesman, Shawn Herbst said Phoenix resident Sherzana Osman was desperate when her 8-week-old Labrador puppy Leo got stuck in a pipe last Tuesday.
“The puppy had removed a plastic drain cover and while curiously investigating the hole, slipped into the pipe head-first and found himself stuck 3m down,” said Herbst.
Netcare 911’s Rapid Specialised Extrication Unit was called to assist and after hours of digging, using specialised equipment, the adventurous puppy was freed.
Osman said Leo was like her child and that she was completely distraught on discovering he had slipped down the pipe. “I was overwhelmed with emotion when he was freed,” she said.
Meanwhile, on the wild side, snake catcher Nick Evans was called out to rescue a young crocodile in a river along the main road into Tongaat on Thursday night. This was the second crocodile he had been called out to catch in as many weeks.
“It is very uncommon to find a crocodile in such built-up areas. The river is next to the main road, homes and buildings with lots of people going over the busy footbridge.
“We got there at about 7pm. We spent more than an hour looking for the croc and then he suddenly popped up right in front of us,” said Evans.
He had also been called out to catch a much larger crocodile two weeks ago in the early hours of the morning – also in Tongaat,
“He was about 2.5m long and much bigger than we expected, which was very tricky. We did not have the right equipment and so the police helped us,” said Evans.
While he is known as one of Durban’s snake catchers, Evans spent time volunteering on crocodile farms during his school days where he learned how to catch them humanely. The larger crocodile last week was his first croc call-out rescue. “It was great fun, although it’s very unusual to see crocodiles in any of Durban’s rivers. There’s no need to panic,” said Evans.