STRAY DOGS KILL 9 GOATS, 3 SHEEP

MAHLANYA- Stray dogs have caused havoc at Nkhanini in Lobamba. The unknown dogs invaded Gabatisa Dlamini’s premises and killed nine breeding goats and three sheep in the early hours of yesterday. Four sheep were severely injured while only a few survived.

Dlamini, who is also a well-known farmer and businessman in the country, confirmed the incident in an interview at his homestead yesterday. The distressed Dlamini said he heard a strange noise at around midnight. He said the noise was quite strange, resulting in him thinking that it was a crying baby.

Barking

“I also wondered where a baby would come from at that time of the night. At the time, my dog was barking and I could tell that something was happening outside. I walked out of the house to check what was happening, however, I couldn’t see anything,” he said.
Dlamini stated that as he walked around the premises, he saw a pack of dogs within the premises. At the time, he said some goats were scattered in the yard. “I tried to deal with the dogs and they managed to escape,” he said, while pointing at one of the holes through which the dogs escaped. The farmer mentioned that he then realised that his livestock had been attacked by the dogs.
Dlamini said he was shocked when he discovered nine breeding goats and three sheep dead.

The 12 fresh skins of the livestock were found hanging from the kraal when this reporter arrived at the homestead. The four injured sheep were found inside the kraal.
The businessman stated that he had accepted that the four sheep would not survive due to the severity of the injuries.
Asked if he knew the owner of the dogs, Dlamini said he had no idea where they came from. However, he said they took one direction when he walked out of the house and scared them off. He mentioned that later, about five dogs, were found sleeping under a tree which is adjacent to the fields.

Shoot

“We called the police to shoot the dogs because their owners are unknown to us,” he added.
A total of five dogs were put down by the police, as confirmed by Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati.

Asked about the cost of the breeding goats, Dlamini stated that the goats were specifically kept for breeding. However, he said when sold, each goat could cost around E2 500. This means that the farmer lost around E40 000 which is the value of the goats. A community police member of the area, who only identified himself as Mavimbela said there were too many stray dogs between Lobamba and Nkhanini. Mavimbela stated that the killing of Dlamini’s goats happened a few days after the stray dogs killed a calf.

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