SPCAs with pound status a possible solution for stray cattle problem
The locals SPCAs regained official pound status and are busy with negotiations to get farm pound status as well.
MBOMBELA – On Wednesday the Nelspruit, White River and Barberton SPCAs regained their official pound status from the City of Mbombela Local Municipality. According to Nelspruit SPCA vice-chairman Ludi Botha, they only now received official pound status, as the previous agreement was still in the name of Mbombela.
“This means that all animals that get picked up next to the side of the road must come to one of us and are not allowed to go anywhere else. If you pick up an animal and you keep it or take it somewhere else, it is seen as animal theft,” Botha explained. “You have no legal claim on that animal.”
Not only is this a light in the struggle against animal cruelty in the city, but it opens the door for a possible farm pound as a solution to the ongoing problem with stray cattle on the city’s roads. Lowvelder reported on Tuesday of another two accidents caused by stray livestock on the road, with no stakeholder claiming responsibility for them.
READ ALSO: The cattle battle continues on city roads
Botha confirmed that they are busy with negotiations with the municipality to become a farm pound and that the doors are open now that they have regained pound status. “We are negotiating about a farm pound and the specifications, like adequate space and financial implications, around this,” Botha said.
DA caucus leader, Stephen Schormann, confirmed these negotiations.
“This (the cattle in the road) is not a new problem in the community. We were told by the municipality that they are currently negotiating with the SPCA to get the pound up and running,” Schormann said at Tuesday’s community police forum meeting.
He added that one hand might be able to help the other. “The SPCA can help the municipality with the cattle problem while they could make an extra income to help with their financial problems.” Upon further investigation Lowvelder found out that the cattle on the N4, which are allegedly owned by farmers from Matsafeni Mdluli Farms, were not only a danger on the roads. According to Hans Schnettler, a former Transnet employee and current resident at one of the houses next to the train track, the cows also jump in front of trains.
“I have seen three cows die,” Schnettler said. “There are no fences to keep them in.”
A date for the new farm pound has yet to be confirmed.
READ ALSO: Cattle are disrupting traffic on the N4
