Park Island dog-walking ban after baby grysbok killed

There has been an immediate ban placed on dog-walking on Park Island – effective until January 1 next year – after an off-leash dog killed a baby Cape grysbok there.

Zandvlei Nature Reserve manager Kyran Wright said the incident on Monday could have been avoided had the rule to keep dogs leashed been followed.

“This is prominently displayed at the entrance to Park Island and has been communicated multiple times over the past months,” Mr Wright said.

It was not the first case of the dog-walking rules being disregarded, he said.

The City of Cape Town is the management authority for the reserve, which Park Island is part of.

The ban would give the island’s fauna time to recover and hopefully remind the public that the rules were meant to be followed, Mr Wright said.

“Dog-walking on Park Island, as well as anywhere on the reserve, is a privilege, not a right, and if users are unable to control their animals, we will be forced to permanently exclude dogs from these areas.”

This ban applies only to Park Island, but Mr Wright has reminded the public that dogs should also be kept strictly on-leash on Wildwood Island.

The incident was being investigated and action would be taken accordingly, he said.