A PIT bull has caused another death after mauling a toddler in East London, Eastern Cape.
It is reported that the incident occurred on Wednesday, 23 November, and the child was just 15 months old.
The dog is believed to be from the neighbourhood, and social media has become awash with debates about this breed.
Meanwhile, a national campaign calling for a ban on pit bulls has gained traction after another child was mauled to death in the Free State over the weekend.
Sizwe Kupelo Foundation founder Sizwe Kupelo said enough was enough.
“It is time we take a stand to protect our kids by putting more pressure on the government to ban pit bulls. We cannot continue losing people to these vicious dogs that have shown, time and again, that they should not be kept as pets. The defence by pit bull lovers, that it is how you raise the dog, does not hold water. So many people, including joggers, have been attacked and killed by pit bulls,” he said.
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He said the government needed to take decisive steps and impose a ban on the ownership of pit bulls as domestic animals.
“Such a move would prevent further attacks and unnecessary deaths. We cannot continue sending out messages of condolences for something that can easily be prevented,” said Kupelo.
According to the foundation, countries including Russia, Finland, Denmark, UK, Portugal as well as parts of Germany, China, Brazil and Australia had either banned or placed restrictions on the ownership of the breed or its importation.
Cops spokesman Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana said: “According to the report, the boy child was playing with the neighbour’s dog in Gonubie Farm when a passer-by who was walking with a dog in the proximity of the yard, was seen by the Pit bull. It is further alleged that the Pit bull attempted to get out of the yard whilst barking at the passing dog.”
Kinana said after failing to leave the yard, the Pit bull is alleged to have returned to the child and bit him in the upper body.
