Abu Dhabi: Another innocent animal fell victim to an apparent case of abuse in Abu Dhabi yesterday.
The two-year-old Saluki cross breed dog was found in Khalifa City, wagging his tail and not showing any signs of aggression. But the dog was so badly disfigured, the person who found him thought he had been shot.
"This does seem like a cruelty case," said Dr Jonathan Hale, veterinary surgeon at the British Veterinary Clinic where the dog was brought in for treatment. "His jaw was completely broken and he had been kicked out on the street. The injury is about five days old, and he hadn't eaten or drunk much, as he'd lost a lot of muscle and was very dehydrated. There was no way to help him, so we had to put him to sleep this morning."
Dr Hale added that this was a 'particularly sad case' as the dog did not demonstrate any signs of violent behaviour when he was found. "There was no excuse for someone to injure him," he said. "I want to make people aware of these things, so we don't become accepting and blasé about it all. It won't change anything for this dog, but maybe it will help avoid something like this in the future."
The dog was put to sleep using an overdose of anaesthetic, which combines a local anaesthetic with an older type of anaesthetic that stops the breathing and the heart. Dr Hale explained that the dog will be cremated in the next few days at an incineration facility at the Abu Dhabi Municipality.
Plea for unused or expired equipment
Dr Jonathan Hale, veterinary surgeon at the British Veterinary Clinic in Abu Dhabi, appealed to medical facilities to donate any unused or expired equipment to animal treatment facilities.
"Any equipment that is no longer used for human treatment can be donated to veterinary clinics for the care of stray animals. This includes syringes, anaesthetic units, X-ray developers or old microscopes."
