Residents in Wilcox Hill, Christ Church are crying out for help after years of having to deal with farm animals roaming their neighbourhood and destroying their crops and property, while the owner of the livestock appears unwilling to keep the animals in check.
One of the affected residents, Mary Yearwood, who has been living in the community just behind the runway at the Grantley Adams International Airport for about 30 years, told Barbados TODAY the owner “has not been taking any level of responsibility” for his sheep, goats, horses and pigs.
“He is sending them out to forage for food and they come and destroy your property. When you approach him to try to get any satisfaction, he either claims the animals aren’t his, he refuses to answer the door and on at least one occasion, he came out brandishing a weapon,” she said.
“Yet, even though he claims the animals aren’t his, when anything happens he comes out looking for them. Sometimes he comes out here on a horse like a Texas ranger, or other times he is in his car blowing the horn and the sheep and goats respond to that and head back to his property.”
Yearwood said the goats had also created problems for another farmer who rents a plot of land in the area.
“Last year, he planted some yams and the goats came in and ate up all of them, as well as damaged the fence around it. Now that is not fair, because he still has to pay water bills and he had one or two other people working for him, and he lost his whole crop,” she recalled.
Her neighbour, Frederick Moseley, related a similar story.
“Sometimes the horses and a boar pig stand up in the middle of the road blocking traffic, and a couple of nights ago my dogs and Mary’s dogs started barking and when we checked, that pig was in our yards rummaging for food. I used to have pea trees and tomatoes planted behind my house and the goats – it’s about 30 or 40 of them – destroyed them, so I stopped after that,” he said.
The animal owner could not be reached for comment.
When Barbados TODAY contacted the Veterinary Services Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, a representative said there were no records of any complaints from the area in the last two years.
She said now there is a report on the matter, they will seek to address it by early next week at the latest.
The representative also explained the procedure the ministry used when it came to dealing with livestock roaming freely.
“We would call the rangers based at the Soil Conservation Unit, and they would go about collecting the animals if they are seen wandering and take them to the livestock pound in the Pine. Our vets will then examine the animals and give them any medical attention they need, such as removing ticks or deworming them. If they are too sick to be saved, we will humanely euthanise them.
“We will release them once the owner pays a fee, but if no one comes to claim them, eventually they are sold at auction. If we hear reports that the owner of the animals is uncooperative or acting in a menacing way, we will ask police officers to accompany the rangers when they go out to collect them.” (DH)
