A leopard is suspected to have killed a goat at an agricultural settlement near Ooty to Coonoor Road in Ketti, near the Valley View viewpoint on late Monday night.
Villagers said that two goats, a few dogs and some poultry had gone missing over the last month. A couple of days ago, a shepherd is alleged to have spotted a leopard stalking a goat. As villagers began shouting, the animal is alleged to have fled into the forest. However, another goat was missing since Monday night.
Villagers found the carcass on Tuesday morning and alerted forest department officials. G Vasudevan, a farmer and shepherd, whose goat was killed by the leopard on Tuesday, said that they initially believed that their livestock was being stolen. “It was only when the shepherd saw the leopard a few days back that we realised that the goats were being killed by a wild animal,” he said.
Forest department officials arrived at the spot and checked the carcass. Forester, Kundha Range, L Sashidharan, said that the families would receive compensation for the loss the livestock. N Sadiq Ali, Founder of the NGO, Wildlife and Nature Conservation Trust, said that he has requested the forest department to expedite the release of the compensation to the farmers. “The people should also keep their cattle and livestock in closed pens in the evening and ensure that they are kept watch over when they are grazing,” he said.
