Roaming Cattle – Who is responsible?
Stray animals are an ongoing problem in the Bela-Bela area. Not only can these roaming cattle, donkeys, and goats cause damage to private and public property, but they can also be dangerous to motorists when they venture onto public roads, which is often the case.
It has been confirmed with Col Annemarie Smith from the Bela-Bela SAPS, that recently very few accidents involving cattle have been reported in the area, but fate can never be tempted as they can cause havoc on the roads.
The problem with many of these animals is that they are not branded, which is required by law (The Animal Identification Act 6 of 2002), thus it is almost impossible to trace the owner through the branding database. The Act states that – ‘All livestock owners must have a registered identification mark for their animals. The permanent marking of cattle, sheep, goats and pigs is compulsory in South Africa.’
Everyone has the right to own property under the South African Constitution, and that includes cattle, goats and other farm animals, but the responsibility for caring for these animals, and how they are kept is the sole responsibility of the owner of the animals. There is a saying that says – It takes a village to raise a child – it does not take a village to raise an individual’s cattle.
According to the Bela-Bela Municipal By-Laws, animals are not allowed in public spaces – Chapter 12 (Art 27) explicitly states that ‘Animals must not be allowed in public places and no person who has control over animals must allow such animal to be in a public place’. The courts also take a serious view on free roaming animals on public roads that might cause a danger to other road users and the National Road Traffic Regulations Reg 313 of the National Road Traffic Act of 1996 also prohibits the owner of animals from allowing such animals ‘… to be on any section of a public road…’
In conjunction with the Limpopo Province Pounds Act 3 (III) (1) of 2002 it also authorises any landowner, traffic officer, or member of the police to impound such animals in public areas not being supervised. At a public municipal meeting held at Laerskool Warmbad on Tuesday 7 May, the Municipal Manager (MM), George Ramagaga confirmed that the municipality is working on the issue of cattle roaming freely on public roads. He said that they know who the owner of the stray cattle is and that he has a letter that was handed to him in the township in which he was given a 30-day notice to remedy the situation with the free-roaming cattle or face the full brunt of the law.
At the time of the meeting, the 30 days had not yet expired. According to the information, the expiry date of the letter is approximately the middle of June.
Very few people are aware of the procedures to follow should stray animals be impounded. The current situation in Bela-Bela dictates that any animal roaming in a public area without a minder or guardian is considered a stray animal, and according to Etienne Briel, the Pound Master for the Bela-Bela region, such an animal can be lawfully impounded, he however did not want to comment on the legal rights of the person impounding the cattle or the rights of the owner of such cattle, as it can be a technical nightmare.
The major obstacle for those impounding any stray cattle is the attitude of the owners of these animals. Landowners impounding stray animals are often victimised and threatened and it is clear that the owners of such stray animals refuse to take any responsibility, either maliciously, or through ignorance. It is said that the owner of such cattle is usually unknown or untraceable until such cattle are loaded onto a vehicle to be impounded. Accusations of ‘theft’ by the owners of such stray animals are often misunderstood by authorities and wrongfully handled.
So, it seems until a consensus is reached between officials, and concerned parties in Bela-Bela, residents will have to be content with cattle, goats and donkeys roaming freely in our town, parks, and public roads.
