‘An animal hero has fallen’: Condolences pour in after fatal stabbing of vet in Cape Town

“An animal hero has fallen and we are all heartbroken.” 

These were the words of condolence shared by colleagues after the fatal stabbing of veterinarian Dr Natheem Jacobs by an alleged thief in the early hours on Thursday outside his home in Athlone, Cape Town. 

Cape of Good Hope SPCA CEO Moyo Ndukwana said: “He was a shining example of what it means to truly care for animals and his loss is not only ours, it is a loss for animal welfare at large. He will be deeply and sorely missed by all of us.” 

Jacobs had been working under the supervision of SPCA board member Dr Ayoub Banderker under the compulsory community service programme. He completed his community service between the Wingfield Animal Health Centre and the Cape of Good Hope SPCA and signed a contract for permanent employment with the SPCA a day before he was killed. 

He was stabbed after confronting a person allegedly trying to steal the wheels on his wife’s vehicle. 

“I enjoyed supervising and working with Dr Jacobs and I was so proud of him as one of the new generation of Muslim vets” said Banderker. 

Hundreds of messages of condolence, many of them from animal welfare organisations as far away as Harare in Zimbabwe and Paraguay in South America, were shared in response to a post about his death on Facebook by the Cape of Good Hope SPCA. 

Abegail Williams wrote: “I am so sorry. He was the first doctor to give my 17-year-old dog Benji a proper diagnosis. I will remember he took his time and gave me feedback after all the tests. He was so caring towards Benji. I am so sorry for your loss.” 

“An animal hero has fallen, and we are all heartbroken, but we are honouring Dr Jacobs in the best way we know how, by continuing to help the animals he loved so much” said Ndukwana. 

Jacobs was buried in accordance with Muslim rites on Thursday.

Police are investigating a case of murder. 

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