SAVED FROM THE JAWS OF DEATH

Different peoples have among many other things, different practices, different appreciations and different palates; this sort of diversity makes human interaction exciting and makes the world a more colorful place especially at a time such as this when the world is increasingly becoming a global village. So people go to different places and experience different customs but as they say, “when you are in Rome, do what the Romans do”.

In Malawi, it is an abomination for one to eat dog meat, even in the face of famines (which are not new to Malawi); it is unheard of that dog meat may be consumed. In Malawi, dogs and cats are the most common domestic animals and because of this, many people are very fond of them in a familial manner and so it goes without saying why the average Malawian is outraged at the slightest insinuation of dog as food.

This is why it was pertinent for “All Creatures” to respond when we got a distress call from someone who was livid upon discovering that a group of Chinese people was fattening some dogs and cats so that they may soon be eaten. When “All Creatures” went to this team’s compound the first time, we brought home Lucy, she was suffering terribly from a fractured limb which had now begun to decompose internally and could no longer heal. This left the vets with not much option but to amputate the limb to help Lucy become more comfortable again as the limb had become dead-weight that she had to carry around.

Lucy after amputation

The rescue team at “All Creatures” went in a second time to rescue the remaining animals that were in the compound and when we did, we found the dear creatures bundled and tied up in sacks at the compound. This was upsetting as it meant that the animals were in a position in which they barely had enough air and could have very easily suffocated. Apart from that, it is a well-known fact that animals like to play around and enjoy some freedom, tying them up in a sack meant that they were being denied of this near basic necessity. The animals have since been liberated and are very happy to be running around the backyard at “All Creatures”; they are actually a very playful bunch.

Dogs in the sack as found at the compound

And Lucy, she was adopted by a wonderful family, David and Summer,  who not only took her in but also covered the medical costs for the amputation. They also played a key role in the rescue of Lucy and the other dogs and cats. Lucy is now on her limbs, quite keenly adjusting to a life of using three limbs instead of four. She is quite the talker too, “typical of a woman” David says.

Lucy's new family