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Animal welfare officers are used to seeing ill-treated pets but staff at Waitakere City Council said the state of one dog was so sickening it brought some hardened professionals to tears.
The council's animal welfare manager, Neil Wells, said a mastiff-labrador cross named Bobbie was recently found on a property in the suburb of Massey in a "horrific" state.
"The dog had its mouth tied up with electrical tape, more than once it would seem, and his face was very swollen with scars and dead tissue.
"It was initially difficult to tell what breed it is because its face was so disfigured."
The dog's legs also showed scars from where it had been tied with rope.
Mr Wells said the council was called after Bobbie was spotted wandering the street with a rope tied between its legs.
The make-shift muzzle had been introduced by its owners to stop the dog from ripping into rubbish bags.
Bobbie underwent surgery on its face last week and had to have part of its tongue removed.
"Because its mouth had been taped up it was unable to pant properly and part of its tongue had died," Mr Wells said.
The council said the owner would be prosecuted for ill-treatment.
Mr Wells said Bobbie still had a lovely nature, despite his ordeal, and after recuperating, would be put up for adoption.
Summer was normally a busy time for the animal welfare team but had been relatively quiet leading up to Christmas.
"We had wondered if there had been a change in attitude towards responsibilities towards animals," Mr Wells said.
"But it seems as soon as Christmas was over and people started heading off on holiday that things have really picked up and we've had a lot of calls of animals being abandoned or left at home without adequate provision."
- NZPA
