Written by Stacey Wall, Committee Member and Volunteer: SPCA Amanzimtoti
Professional photography by Colette Baillie Photography
The brown Dachshund was found wandering along the freeway on Saturday the 29th of December 2018 and brought to the SPCA Amanzimtoti. This precious little dog was in a terrible way: scared, dejected and his coat covered in mange, he had bald patches all over and he was underweight.
We immediately scanned him for a microchip and, to our relief, up popped the number – someone, somewhere must be looking for him. On Monday morning, we retrieved his owner’s details and called her immediately.
It turned out that the Dachshund, named Choccie, had been missing since September. She burst into tears of relief.
Adele, his owner, rushed in to pick him up. It was both a heartwarming yet heartbreaking reunion – to be reunited was fantastic, but she was horrified to see her precious little dog in such a terrible way. Goodness only knows what he’d been through.
Thankfully, Choccie saw in the New Year safely in his mum’s arms and will heal in his loving home. And this is all thanks to him being microchipped!
Please let microchipping your pets be your Number 1 New Year’s resolution this year. It’s so important and means that you never have to give up hope if your pet ever goes missing. We offer microchipping for a once-off payment of R240, which is a small price to pay for a lifetime’s peace of mind.
Adele van den Bergh shares…
Choccie went missing during the long weekend in September 2018. We were away and had friends staying at our property to take care of our pet family.
The rain came pouring down, thunder and lightning shattered the air; Choccie got a fright, escaped and lost his way back home. Our friends went searching, driving up and down the area looking for him, but to no avail. We were devastated.
I phoned the SPCA to check if perhaps he’d been brought in – he hadn’t, but they asked if Choccie was microchipped, to which I confirmed that indeed he was. The fact that he was microchipped was an advantage; I was comforted by the thought that, should he ever be found and brought to an SPCA, they’d scan him and trace him back to us.
During the following months, thoughts ran through our heads constantly – mostly terrible ones. Is he dead? Did someone steal him? Is he perhaps in a loving, caring home, or somewhere being mistreated? It drove us crazy not knowing. Months went by and we basically lost all hope that he’d ever be found.
But then a miracle happened: on the 31st of December 2018, my phone rang. I didn’t answer at first, but when I returned the call, the news left me ecstatic and shocked. I had a moment of disbelief: could it really be at all possible? Was it really Choccie?
There are no words to explain the emotions I felt on seeing my boy. We’re thrilled to have Choccie back home where he belongs.
