Seeing his neighbour being attacked by dogs spurred a Scottsville man to put his life on the line to save him.



Duncan Buchanan (30) bravely stepped in as his neighbour, Victor Kabata, was being attacked by pitbulls that escaped from a neighbouring home on Windsdor Avenue on Sunday afternoon.

He sustained several bites in the incident, including having one of the dogs latch onto his right arm while another bit him all over his body. He spent four hours under the knife as doctors worked to fix several bite wounds.

Buchanan was bitten across his right arm, on both thighs, on his lower right leg, on his stomach, and dogs had taken “chunks” off his ankles.

A pastor by trade, Buchanan was getting ready for an evening service when he heard a commotion outside his house.

He told Weekend Witness he saw four dogs from the same house from up the road attacking a neighbour’s Rottweiler.

“I took a knobkerrie and hit the dogs to break them up. Two ran up the road and the other two ran down the road and went around the back. When they came back onto the road they saw Victor, who had no idea what was going on, then they attacked him,” he said.

Buchanan immediately went to assist Kabata. “They released Victor and turned on me. They bit me on my legs and knocked me down.

“One went for my neck, but I put my right arm up and one dog latched onto the arm, and the other went for me all over.”

Another neighbour intervened and hit the dogs with a sjambok. Buchanan was taken into his home and then driven off by an ambulance.

He spent three nights in hospital and was discharged on Thursday. Doctors have put him on a schedule of rabies injections.

“Doctors were talking to me about the tendons and nerves in my arm and I was worried about that, but I’m grateful to still have function in my arm.

“I’m not sure trauma-wise: I may go for counselling, but I will see how it goes.”

Kabata, a university student, was injured on his arms and legs and was taken to hospital where he got stitches.

The dogs’ owner, Ray Williams, visited Buchanan in hospital, and said one dog has already been put down and the other will be sent to a rehabilitation centre in Durban then given away.

The two other dogs, which are still puppies, have already been given away, he said.

Buchanan said he was not yet sure how he would proceed legally with the incident, but said he would consult a lawyer.

He stressed, however, that he had no vendetta against Williams. “But there has to be some action taken so people take more responsibility when they own dogs like this.”

Buchanan said he had no regrets, despite the injuries. “I could see that those dogs were in kill mode, and I knew I had to do something.”