Sai Kung’s cowgirls presented a document on feral cattle issues on April 24 to the Legislative Council’s Animal Rights Subcommittee. The document by Sai Kung Cattle Angels and Sai Kung Buffalo Watch is comprehensive and well illustrated. Anyone who cares about feral and wild animals in our district should take time to go through it. Maps are given showing where most of the estimated 600 cattle in our area can be found. Some photos of ill, injured, dead animals are disturbing and you may want to skip those.
Briefly the two animal welfare groups want:
- Feeding of wild animals by wrong-headed people to be made illegal. Photos in the document show this happening in Sai Kung and the consequences.
- Construction of a cattle grid to keep the animals in the country park. The campaigners denounce proposals by Lantau lunkheads for cattle shelters in which the cows would be confined. There should be no fencing of them: It is healthy for cattle to follow their natural urge to wander and forage.
- A new survey of cattle in the district is needed.
- Increased funding of AFCD’s animal management efforts is required. The department does good work looking after the cattle in tandem with SKBW and SKCA.
- Desexing should be continued to control the population.
- Measures must be taken, such as speed cameras, on roads where cattle wander, even sleep, such as Sai Sha and Tai Mong Tsai Roads where animals frequently get killed or injured.
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