LIMPOPO – Livestock owners around Giyani who let their animals roam free inside town might lose them to an animal pound station, which was recently introduced by the municipality to curb the influx of roaming animals.
Driven by the drought, which has resulted in dry rivers in the area, animals from villages bordering Giyani now flood the streets of the town putting the lives of motorists at risk as they roam about day and night in search for food in the town’s dustbins.
According to Municipal Spokesperson Steve Mavunda, this does not only put motorists at risk but also limits new investments in town.
“As a municipality we have a role to play in ensuring that we keep the town clean for investors or any other visitor to the town which results in the boost of local economic sector through tourism,” he said.
Meanwhile all animals are impounded by the municipality at a rate of R35 per day.
“On one day, we have had 61 cattle that had been impounded in town, however some of them have since been released to their owners,” he said.
Mavunda explained that all the animals that would not be collected in more than 30 days would be auctioned off.
“People must understand that this is not done in order to make a profit, but to be able to exercise control over animals roaming about in the streets of our town,” he continued.
He advised those who might need to check if their livestock were pounded to visit the municipality’s pounding station regularly.
“We won’t release the livestock to anybody who claims to be the owner without proof of ownership,” he explained, saying livestock claimants would be required to bring along documents to prove ownership.
