Dog with chopped off snout is vibrant again
Published on: Monday, July 13, 2020
By: Audrey J Ansibin
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A feisty Noobu playing with Lylian while ‘housemate’ Lucky looks on.
Noobu at the time of the incident. (Pic: SPCA KK)
Noobu smiling for the camera.
ALMOST one year on, the individual who allegedly chopped off the snout of a female stray dog along Jalan Kg Tombovo, Penampang, still walks free.
Noobu, whose name means “Baby” in Tibetan language, is a happy and “naughty” dog today despite missing a very important part of a canine’s sniffing capabilities – her nose!
After the abuse case went viral last year, animal lovers everywhere can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Noobu is in the good hands of Lylian Lee and her sisters.
Lylian said Noobu is friendly, cheerful and active – seemingly oblivious to her condition.
Noobu’s exposed flesh where her snout used to be, which play a role in transmitting olfactory signals to the brain, could easily make the next person squirm in their shoes.
Initially, according to Lylian, the veterinarian who saw Noobu had said if no one was willing to adopt her, euthanasia would be an option to consider since caring for a dog in such condition required expensive and intensive care.
“Noobu needed a lot of care, attention and high financial cost when she was first rescued,” Lylian said.
“I just need to bring her to the vet for her annual booster. Dr Katie from IAPWA (International Aid for the Protection & Welfare of Animals) told me to keep an eye out for any discharges.
“So far, Noobu is doing great and, thankfully, quite easy to manage.”
On how she first heard about Noobu, Lylian said she was at the same veterinarian clinic where a Borneo Animal Welfare Society Sabah (BAWSS) volunteer took the severely injured dog for treatment.
“I was at the veterinary clinic to apply for health certificate for export when I saw the BAWSS volunteer taking Noobu for treatment on her injury,” Lylian, who runs a grooming shop called Pets Wonderland in Sabah, said.
“My initial reaction when I saw Noobu was, ‘how can someone be so cruel to an animal?’ I felt sorry for the dog and wished I could help in any way.”
BAWSS was notified of the incident on July 28 last year when members of the public brought the animal cruelty case to their attention.
Their Facebook statement had said it was clearly a deliberate act of “animal cruelty as the dog is tame and docile, and despite the harm that has been done to her, remains sweet and gentle”.
A witness had said the incident occurred in the morning of July 20 last year. BAWSS had urged the witness to come forward.
According to BAWSS secretary Tracy Dukim, despite the RM10,000 reward offered for leads to catch the culprit, no witness came forward.
“Since Noobu made headlines everywhere, the locals in the village where I picked her up seemed aware of the case.
“Hopefully, it deters (the culprit) from repeating the same abuse,” Tracy, who rescued Noobu, said.
The case went viral not only in Malaysia but also reached audiences in the UK, Singapore and Taiwan.
Lylian said even some dog trainers in Taiwan heard about the case and donated a sum of money for Noobu.
“They couldn’t believe the extent of cruelty that was inflicted on the dog,” she said.
With such animal cruelty cases reaching the global citizens, what kind of image does the Federal and State governments want to portray to the world?
Despite having the Animal Welfare Enactment 2015 in place, animal abusers seem to go scot-free as they were not caught, like in Noobu’s case.
The increasing number of animal abuse cases in Malaysia is a red flag. It shows people are largely uneducated in terms of what constitute of animal cruelty, which could land the culprit behind bars.
We see many animal cruelty cases being reported by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), but the culprits remain at large.
Lylian shared the same sentiment and hoped the culprit will be caught and gets the relevant punishment for the act.
“I wish the Government will be more strict in implementing the Animal Welfare Enactment 2015. What use is the law if it does not serve its purpose,” she said.
“Even if the stray animal did something to make the culprit unhappy, they shouldn’t resort to such violence, because the animals are living creatures, too.”
On Noobu’s progress one year later, Lylian would like to tell the readers not to worry as Noobu is doing great.
“She has a happy life now. She eats and sleeps well, too.”
After losing her snout to the abuse, some people wondered if Noobu could still eat on her own.
This writer had the privilege to witness firsthand how Noobu eats – like a normal dog, of course!
“Except I can’t feed her wet food,” Lylian said of Noobu’s diet. She said it didn’t take Noobu long to warm up to her as she is “always friendly to humans”.
Noobu’s daily routine is “nothing extraordinary” – Lylian said she would occasionally take her out for walks as well as doing the usual cleaning up.
On whether the neighbours recognise Noobu from the news, Lylian said “yes”.
“The neighours would empathise with her condition and also ask me questions like how she eats, among others.”
As for some of the local people’s attitude towards stray animals, Lylian said she hoped they would be kinder to the homeless animals.
“No stray animal asked to be born homeless,” she said.
“Pet owners should also be more responsible in neutering/spaying their pets to prevent unwanted litters,” she said, adding that these unwanted litters would lead to more animal dumping cases in the State.
“These strays will only become subjects of abuse by people who are mean to animals.”
This file pic shows Tracy Dukim of BAWSS with one of their rescues, ‘Lulove’. Tracy was Noobu’s rescuer
in the July 2019 incident.
Lylian surrounded by Noobu and other furry companions.
A close-up of Noobu eating.
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