Baboon’s visit to Westenburg ends in death
His visit to Westenburg ended in tragedy when a baboon was shot and killed last Thursday, but it is not known who shot the baboon.
POLOKWANE – His visit to Westenburg ended in tragedy when a baboon was shot and killed last Thursday, but it is not known who shot the baboon.
The stray baboon was first spotted at a house on the corner of Coverdale and Southon Street on Wednesday. The animal was chased by children in that area and it allegedly ran across the railway to Rainbow Park.
The following day it was spotted at Evans Headger, a 70-year-old pensioner’s house in Coverdale Street. “The domestic worker saw its tail and started to scream. We went out to see what it was and found the baboon in a tree. That was at 09:00 Thursday morning. We called the police and when the baboon saw us it jumped into the neighbour’s yard and disappeared,” Headger explained.
He added that at about 14:00 the baboon returned.
According to the residents who saw the baboon, if compared to a human size the animal is as big as a two or three year old. “I think it feared my neighbours dogs that’s why it came back. I called the Westenburg police for assistance. The police came and called the municipality to come assist.
“An official from the municipality came and chased the baboon. It went to the back of my yard, and jumped over the fence. The municipal worker jumped over the fence as well and shot the baboon dead. He then threw the animal over the wall and carried it to the vehicle and left with the corpes,” Headger said.
Capt Mohlaka Mashiane, Westenburg police spokesperson confirmed the incident.
“We were called to the scene in the morning, but the baboon ran away. We explained to the homeowner to call the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), if the animal returned. It did come back later that day and the SPCA was called and the animal was killed,” Mashiane said.
According to Matome Semenya, an inspector at the SPCA they did not respond to the call. “We do not deal with wild animals as we are not equiped to do so. The municipal nature conservation deals with such complaints,” he explained.
Matshidiso Mothapo, a municipal spokesperson says the municipality is not aware of the incident. “None of our relevant units that could respond to such an incident knows about it,” Mothapo explains.
