” the source explained.A disgusted resident of the West Coast of Demerara
| Domestic cattle farmers on the West Coast of Demerara, are appealing to the Ministry of Home Affairs to rein in stray catchers, who they say have established their personal businesses from their “illegally” impounded cattle.Stray catchers in operation along the East Coast of Demerara.The farmers are maintaining that despite the Ministry’s boast of closely monitoring the activity of stray catchers, the operatives are bypassing the checks and balances and are making deals with cattle owners whose animals they are illegally catching.This newspaper understands that instead of taking captured animals to the designated pounds at police stations along the coast, the stray catchers are demanding money from farmers for their return.Some cattle farmers have reported paying as much as $25,000 to the stray catchers to have their animals returned before they are taken to the police pound.According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, impounded cows carry a fee of $8000 per head with an overnight fee of $200 per night; sheep and goats carry are $7000.The fees are payable at the police station where the animal is impounded.A police source told this newspaper that criminal action can be taken against the stray catchers, if it is found that they are acting in violation of their mandate.“Stray catchers can be charged for stealing the animals if it is found that they took an animal and it did not arrive at the pound, but nobody is coming forward so that we can deal with them,” the source explained.A disgusted resident of the West Coast of Demerara, told this newspaper yesterday that cattle owners are being unfairly treated since the stray catchers are targeting animals when they are returning from grazing late in the afternoons.“We are not against dem catching our animals but dey gat to do it with common sense. Night time animals more dangerous and dem ain’t catching dem donkey and horses wha does deh pon de road at nights,” the resident stated.It was disclosed that two days ago a stray catching gang pounced upon a flock of sheep returning home from a nearby pasture late in the afternoon although the herder was nearby.According to the farmer, the stray catchers ran after the sheep into a yard and grabbed six of them and threw them into their vehicle.The resident said that the owner confronted them, protesting the wrongful impounding of his animals. However, the stray catchers demanded a fee for the return of the animals.“De man pay de money because he nah want de harassment…he would’a gat fuh go station everyday fuh feed he animals. And sometimes it tek days before he get back he animals. Some ah dem does dead in de pound,” the resident stated.“If every week these men do this you ain’t see we could go out of business. You know how much people sell out dem animals and still accidents increasing. Is we who does support dis government and dem doing dis to we?” the resident added.Another resident of Uitvlugt, who has had similar experiences, told Kaieteur News that rearing animals is a way of life for people in the rural areas.Therefore, he said, it is a bit unfair for the Ministry of Home Affairs to unleash uncontrollable stray catchers in areas where all the once available pastures have been converted into house lots.“We could understand the heavy campaign in the city but in the country, no,” he stated.He argued that while the ministry is claiming that the clamp down on animals on the roads will reduce accidents, statistics released by the police show that speeding and drunk driving among others far outnumber animals as major causes of road deaths. |
