Villagers feast on stray buffalo, livestock movement halted

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M- Residents of Sikhuphe, near the Airport had a surprise feast when they slaughtered and ate a stray buffalo.

Though a buffalo is a wild animal that is rarely found roaming outside a game reserve, the one that strayed into the Sikhuphe village had not been claimed by anyone, according to villagers.

It was seen by herdsmen who were collecting cattle from grazing fields.

Spotting the wild animal has led to the ban of the movement of all livestock (kwesula) from the area, as a precautionary measure.

A resident, Frank Sibiya said as the herdsmen were driving the cattle, they noticed that a buffalo was part of the herd.

“They went to report the discovery to community elders, who alerted the veterinary officers and the police. Rangers from the Hlane Game Reserve were called to the scene, but when they arrived they said they did not own the animal.

He said advice from the veterinary officers was that since no one took ownership of the animal, it had to be put down in the veld to avoid the spread of animal diseases such as foot and mouth.

“It was then shot dead by a resident, after which it was slaughtered. A large fire was made and people came from all directions to eat the meat. They said it tasted like cow meat,” he said.

He said there was strict

The buffalo that strayed into Sikhuphe village had not been claimed by anyone. HOW TO REACT TO STRAY BUFFALO

Most of the time you do not need to do anything. Generally, buffalo will not pose a threat to humans, but it is important not to disturb them, and to be aware that such large animals are potentially dangerous if they feel threatened.

Don’t frighten them by sudden movements or noise, and don’t try to touch them or get too close to them. Do not try to feed them. Make sure to control your pet dogs so they don’t upset or frighten the buffalo.

It Is EssEntIAl to rEport to tHE nEArEst vEtErInAry oFfiCE.

word from the veterinary officers that not even a piece of the meat should be taken home.

Reason

“This is the reason people had to eat until they were full. Whatever remained from the meat was burnt down. Residents then dug a hole and buried all the remaining parts of the meat as an instruction from the vet officers,” he said.

Director of Veterinary Services Dr Xolani Dlamini said he had been informed about the issue of the stray buffalo and confirmed that it had to be killed to ‘contain the spread of diseases. He said some specimens were however taken by vet officers for tests to detect possible infection with diseases.

“You will recall that a buffalo

is a carrier of foot and mouth disease. However, it does not mean every buffalo has the disease, but it is highly possible that if it is infected, it can infect cattle too. If we come across a buffalo whose owner is unknown, then we have a responsibility to terminate it because it is a likely source of infection,” he said.

Dr Dlamini said there was a need to ensure that before it was removed, it had not spread any disease.

He said this was not the first time the country dealt with a stray buffalo and in similar incidents, they always killed and buried the carcass. He said he could not comment on whether it was right for the residents to eat the meat from the dead buffalo or not.