Townships are home to millions of people, and the same areas are also home to dogs and other animals. Many animals here aren’t lost or without love, but are vaccinated, spayed and integrated back into their natural packs. Moments with township animals are a reminder of the earnest kindness and trust only animals can show. Here are some perhaps untold stories of southern Africa’s township animals.
Animals in the townships
Dogs are natural companions in KwaZulu-Natal’s township spaces. If you are kind to them, they will accept you into the pack. Soon, you might see regulars and daily visitors around you, much like visiting birds that come and go by their own schedule. Leave something out for them like fresh water, and the neighbourhood dogs might leave a bone or toy at your doorstep in return. I have a growing collection of gifts that include a keyboard key (Home) and a catnip mouse. If you walk after dark, the township’s animals might join you along the route. A rustle in the bush is most likely an excited dog jumping up to say hello.
I have gotten to know them individually over time, though occasionally there is a newcomer. They’re quickly accepted into the pack and are soon shown by the neighbouring pack which areas are outside their range. The dogs have taken me on many impromptu walks with their tails wagging. They have also shown me with incredible enthusiasm how to uncover rat nests and anthills.
The relationship between humans and dogs has ancient roots. I can tell how the symbiosis would have been similar when humans warmed up next to canines in caves. If you’re lost or there’s been a power outage, the animals happily lead the way back home. Just follow their tails. If you’re sick or sad – township dogs (and perhaps all canines) have a natural instinct for showing concern. When one of them gets hurt, show the same concern back: call a vet, arrange medicine and learn to keep an animal-friendly first-aid kit around the place. Repay the kindness they’re sure to show you.
Supporting animal charity organisations
Supporting animal charity organisations is an honest endeavour. Simple kindness and outreach projects help to create a better world and often longer stories for township pets. Outreach projects teach proper and responsible pet care, which isn’t always obvious for a household that has never had a pet as part of their home. Outreach also provides essentials like vaccinations, spaying, rabies shots and deworming.
However, outreach projects, including the SPCA, are underfunded and overpressured. Public help doesn’t mean sharing memes and donating time. Surgeries, outreaches and the happiness of every pet ask for money. Animals don’t have the budget to pay their own bills, and it’s no more their fault than the fault of the elderly and disabled for being unable to work.
Charity never sleeps
Proverbial gods sleep through eternal wars, but charity never sleeps. An inspector’s job never quite stops or slows down. An inspector’s call could be a response to anything: a hurt animal, an angry reptile or even an armed robbery. Their jobs are ongoing and are enacted on the edge. Inspectors see many things that are both good and bad. Much of their time gets spent in police stations and courts. They are witnesses and first responders to things most people never even think about. Every success story and its opposite leave their scars. I have always had respect for this job – a mixture of heavy lifting, paperwork and emotion. Like the philosophy of Sisyphus pushing a rock uphill, only to have it roll down again, there are two ways to look at how they might view their jobs: imagine that pushing the rock uphill is a labour of love; without loving the success stories, you’d hate the job.
Donating to an animal welfare charity doesn’t necessarily mean your money will go towards blankets, shampoo or animal food, even though these are common items for their daily functions. Donations also go towards maintaining their vehicle fleet, recovering losses after robberies, and paying for their staff’s therapy – mental stress is a job hazard. If you’ve never thought where charity goes, know that donations could improve the lives of both animals and people. Every happy animal means a donation has come from somewhere, and every minute of therapy helps inspectors get through what they have lived.
The Africanis: South Africa’s own breed
The Africanis is South Africa’s own dog breed, and one with which the township streets are very familiar. The Africanis Society defines it as a “traditional indigenous dog of subequatorial Africa” with great endurance, and which can be found only in certain areas. According to the Africanis Society, there are distinct differences between the township dog and the Africanis. The Africanis is considered a pure, specific breed, while over time many other breeds have blended with the Africanis and created various mixed breeds. The Africanis is highly adaptable, with an immune system that can be compared to the hardiness of goats. They are friendly and sharp, characteristics which have become key to their survival.
The Africanis Society also notes, importantly, that most purebred dogs aren’t adapted to survive harsher rural conditions. Township dogs, while unofficial blends of various breeds, sometimes carry traits of the Africanis’s natural instincts and adaptability. You will notice that township dogs, sometimes with traits of the Africanis, are far removed from the paranoia you’ll sometimes feel in the suburbs when dogs feed off their owners’ insecurities – like, at worst, being deliberately trained as weapons. Township dogs are integrated and are not simply kept, and unlike many instances I have seen elsewhere, families embrace dogs for their companionship.
Honest companionship
Township dogs provide honest companionship, which has made many days brighter. I am far away from the beloved cats with whom I used to share a home, but I like to think they’ll never be lost to history. The names Jeff, Arthur, Chris, Vosti, Pixie, Baby Sneezes and Lily are ingrained memories that are difficult to explain to people. However, the township dogs appear to listen and understand. Many of them have, as I have, left behind familiar names and memories somewhere else.
Every day for a while now, the township dogs have sat down with me and listened to the names and stories of pets they’ve only heard about before. In return, I have thought it only fair to tell some of theirs.
- Photography: Izak de Vries
