A LITTLE dog from Sigatoka has become an internet star with almost 1000 fans and a Facebook page dedicated to her.
The little dog now known as "Poppy" was found scavenging for food by the headmaster of Kavanagasau Secondary School, Sigatoka earlier this year.
Not just another skinny homeless dog, Poppy had an injury on her face that left people terrified. The top of her nose was completely missing leaving a large gaping hole near her eyes. The headmaster asked for help from the Nadi SPCA and drove two hours to drop the little dog to its clinic at Martintar.
"It is a miracle this little dog is alive," said Lynn Scott of SPCA Nadi. We have been told she belonged to a pig hunter and he accidentally chopped off her nose while they were hunting.
"It was a terrible thing to happen but to add to it, the man never made any effort to get help for her, and he left her to starve.
"The actions of this headmaster saved the dog's life." After a Facebook appeal, the launch of www.animalsfiji.org website and publicity in Australia, $AUS10,000 ($F18,350) has been given to West Charity Trust Society รน a charity recently set up to support the animals in the Western Division, the Nadi clinic and especially to fund welfare care and treatment cases such as Poppy.
She is now free of pain and has gained 5kg in weight since she started being fed properly.
The fund has also purchased an anaesthetic machine for the clinic to treat all animals, and hopes to pay for a visiting vet to work on Poppy's face to improve her appearance and stop infection. West Charity Trust Society spokesperson Casey Quimby said this sends an important message.
"This sort of cruelty is not something that should happen in Fiji or anywhere in the world today. The assistance and attention we have received from Australia, UK, New Zealand and community members in Fiji shows how much people do care," said Ms Scott.
"It is a message that visitors and residents to Fiji don't want to see neglected and abused animals when they come here they expect us to look after animals respectfully and properly," said Ms Scott.