A three-month-old Doberman pinscher puppy, now named Lola, is in the care of the BC SPCA after she was found badly injured on the side of the road in Langley.
Lola was found at 264 Street and 64 Avenue by two Good Samaritans visiting from Alberta. They found her near some mailboxes and rushed her to the Abbotsford SPCA.
Staff say it appears someone had tried to dock Lola’s tail and botched the job.
“The puppy was thin and her tail area was grossly swollen and infected – oozing puss and blood. She was clearly in a great deal of pain,” says Marcie Moriarty, chief prevention and enforcement officer for the BC SPCA in a statement.
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“Her tail had been wrapped tightly with a plastic zip tie, in an apparent effort to do a home amputation for cosmetic purposes. This was a barbaric act that caused needless suffering to an innocent puppy.” She said the SPCA is worried that there may be more puppies in the litter who are being subjected to the same cruelty.
“If anyone knows who this puppy belongs to, we urge them to contact our animal cruelty hotline at 1-855-622-7722,” she said.
Last November, the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia (CVBC) voted to ban tail docking and alteration of dogs, horses and cattle.
The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association has the same position as the CVBC when it comes to tail docking and alteration.
The CVBC says there is no scientific evidence to support a welfare or medical benefit for tail docking, but evidence does show “a detrimental effect on behaviour and animal communication, as well as the risk for infection and phantom pain.”
The college also voted to ban ear cropping in dogs last year.
Tail docking is the removal of portions of an animal’s tail. It was originally thought it was done to prevent any injuries to working dogs, but soon grew into a cosmetic procedure. The CVBC says tail docking is only necessary when carried out in cases of injury or for medical reasons, such as removing cancerous tissue.
Lola is now receiving veterinary treatment and is currently in the care of an SPCA foster home.
The investigation into the case continues.
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