Lorene Cross, a Kiwi who runs an animal sanctuary in New South Wales, finding two roosters who had been dumped in sealed bags at her gate. Video / Supplied
A Kiwi animal rescuer has gone viral after she posted video online of the shocking moment she discovered two roosters had been dumped on her driveway in sealed plastic bags.
Lorene Cross was a vet nurse in Mangere Bridge before moving to Australia aged 21 in the late 1980s. For the last 20 years, she and her husband have run the SMART Animal Sanctuary in Batlow, a rural settlement in New South Wales’ Snowy Mountains.
On Wednesday, Cross and a friend decided to check on two sealed bags at the end of the driveway - the 56-year-old initially thought they were rubbish that had fallen off her vehicle after a trip to the dump the day before.
But then the pair heard clucking.
In a video posted to Tik Tok, the mum-of-two is blunt in response to the scene that met her.
“It was like, ‘Okay, I’ll just deal with it’. I’ve had roosters dumped here, and cats, in sealed boxes.”
She carried the bags to a safe area away from the road and her dogs - she’s got four and “I know two of them would have loved a bit of KFC on the run”.
Then using scissors she cut the cable ties sealing the bags to meet two alive and “very chilled, nice couple of roosters”.
While the duo had survived their ordeal unharmed, Cross was still disgusted by the barbaric act.
“It’s disgraceful.”
Lorene Cross founded SMART Animal Sanctuary 20 years ago. Photo / Supplied
And while she expected to have the pair for several months, a woman she knows - among those alerted to the act of cruelty after her Tik Tok was viewed more than 1.2 million times and received thousands of comments - had already offered to adopt them.
They’re off to their new home tomorrow, Cross said.
“A happy ending for them.”
The animal saviour, who takes in and then rehomes more than 500 cats, dogs and other animals each year, has a strong message for others about pet responsibility - and it’s applicable on both sides of the Tasman.
“First, if you don’t want [more animals] then don’t breed them. Get your animals desexed.
“And my second message is, [if you do have an unwanted animal], ask for help. Don’t dump them.”
Anyone wanting to support Cross’ sanctuary can do so via its website: www.smartrescue.org.au or by going to its Facebook page, SMART Animal Sanctuary & Rehoming Centre.
