The Lutzville community is at odds on what to do next, following two incidents in which people were attacked by dogs there.

The small town was rocked by the death of a 47-year-old disabled man, who is said to have been beloved member of the community. He was sitting in the yard of his home in Wandel Street, when mauled to death by pitbull dogs. His incident came 30 minutes after another man was attacked by the same dogs. This 38-year-old man, however, managed to flee with his life.

The police’s Nowonga Sukwana says two dockets were opened, one relating to a charge of negligently allowing or failure to prevent an animal from causing injury to a person and the second is culpable homicide.

“No arrest has been made as yet. The dogs were taken to Darling VET on the day of the incidents. The two dockets were forwarded to the Senior Public Prosecutor [on] 21 November 2023 for a decision.”

Billy Claasen, of the Rural and Farmworkers Development, says the community has been experiencing ongoing issues with dangerous dogs. As an activist in the community, he says he’s often approached by residents, especially children, telling him that they are fearful of even walking in the street.

“Daars kinders wat vir my sê ‘uncle Billy, ons is so bly iets gaan nou gebeur – want ons kan nie in Wandelstraat stap nie, want daai honde pla ons’” (There are children who tell me ‘uncle Billy, we are so happy something’s going to happen now – because we can’t walk in Wandel Street, because those dogs keep bothering us.)

Claasen says some parts of the community want justice, but others are not open to speaking out – because of how tight-knit the community is.

“Sommige mense moet verantwoordelikheid aanvaar vir wat gebeur het, ongelukkig is dit die eienaars van die honde [wat] dit [moet] doen. Ons kan nie toelaat dat die een dood net so verby gaan nie.”

(Some people must take responsibility for what happened, unfortunately it is up to the owners of the dogs to do so. We cannot allow this one death to pass by just like that.)

Claasen says these issues are not related to the dogs, but rather dog owners – who treat the animals poorly. He believes the owners of the dogs involved in the incident, are taking part in illegal animal activities, like backyard dog breeding. Backyard breeding and dog fighting are among the most common issues surrounding the pitbull breed in the Western Cape and surrounding areas.

Jacques Peacock, of the National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, says pitbulls are too often acquired by irresponsible people for dog-fighting, breeding and otherwise security purposes.

“Dog breeds with the potential to be aggressive and cause harm to other animals and people are easily obtained. [Pitbulls] are incited and trained to become human-and-animal-aggressive and very quickly the animal becomes high-risk.”