11 Aug 2022

Pitbull owner, Mr Gaofenngwe Maotoanong has organised a nine-kilometre walk to sensitise the community on how to live with dogs, to reduce dog phobia, especially of Pitbulls.

In an interview with BOPA,  Mr Maotoanong said the walk, scheduled for tomorrow, would  commence at Choppies border gate mall to Tlokweng old mall.

Maotoanong said as a Pitbull owner, he was concerned about people’s perception about the breed and dogs in general, so he organised the walk to educate both dog breeders, owners and buyers on dog grooming and how to interact with Pitbulls.

He said breeders and members of the community would also be  sensitised on what to do in case of an attack and or unpleasant dog behaviours, .

Mr Maotoanong said in some countries, dogs were not only pets, but were child-minders, adding that he thus wanted people here to see that a dog could become what you wanted it to be.

He said the walk would be a dog-human relationship booster and will also help fix the damage caused by social media, mostly about incidents where Pitbulls showed unpleasant behaviour.

He shared that to be safe around dogs or during an attack, one must fold their hands so that the dog might not feel threatened.

“In cases where you maybe have a bag or you are carrying something, try by all means to keep it in front of you so that it may delay or reduce the chances of a dog bite,” he said.

Maotoanong added that in cases where someone fell, they should put their legs together and put the head between thighs, with hands over the head, to the back, to give the dog no chance of biting the neck.

He said his affection for dogs began after he was almost attacked by a group of dogs, when doing Standard 2.

He said when his friends ran away leaving him behind, he lost hope and decided to stop and the dogs did not do anything to him and that was when he learnt that being calm around dogs helped.

Maotoanong said he had owned about four local dog breeds and when they died after being poisoned, he decided to breed Pitbulls.

He said he had collaborated with Dog Training Botswana, Botswana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA) and at the event some veterinarians would educate people on  caring for dogs, as well as how to groom and train them.

He said the event would also be  opportunity to collect sanitary pads, which would be later donated to a school in Tlokweng. ENDs