Only four days into the New Year and Humane Society of Grand Bahama (HSGB) chief Elizabeth ‘Tip’ Burrows has been called to a cruel scene depicting how serious animal cruelty really is on the island.
In the early afternoon hours of Friday January 4, 2013 Burrows received a call from a concerned citizen informing her of a submerged dog in canal waters.
“We received a call early this afternoon from Gary Simmons about a dog submerged in a canal just past the Sir Charles Hayward Yacht Club.
“Gary kindly waited on us to arrive and even more kindly swam out to retrieve the dog’s body with the help of his own dog.
“It seems apparent the dog died a horrible death from drowning,” Burrows revealed.
The dog had a large chain tied around its neck with a short length of rope trailing at the end of it.
Gruesome photographs reaching the Freeport News’ office courtesy of Burrows clearly paint a loathsome scene of how the dog may have met its demise.
Burrows questions, “Was he a dog who finally busted loose, fell into the canal and the weight of the heavy chain caused him to drown?
“Or was the rope at the end of the chain attached to a heavy object like a cinderblock or rock and the dog thrown in the canal intentionally?”
Deeply affected by this animal’s death Burrows revealed that the hearts of herself, Simmons and staff at the Humane Society of Grand Bahama are broken especially when they take into consideration the fear and pain the dog must have felt before meeting its untimely end.
According to Burrows the HSGB would be prepared to offer a reward for any information leading to the identity of the dog and his owner, any answers to the circumstances surrounding the dog’s death and any information that may result in an arrest.
Burrows said, “At the least, this is yet another good reason not to chain or tether dogs.
“At worst, it is a case of horrendous animal cruelty.”
