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Dead horse causes a stink

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A dead horse in Colville is causing a stink after the Sol Plaatje Municipality refused to remove the carcass.

A DEAD horse in Colville is causing a stink after the Sol Plaatje Municipality refused to remove the carcass.

The owner of the horse, Randall Coetzee, said yesterday that he was caught between a rock and a hard place as his appeal for assistance from the municipality to bury or dispose of the carcass of one of his horses has been ignored.

Coetzee said the horse died after it ate a plastic bag on Tuesday.

Coetzee said his horse kraal was situated opposite his home, adding that the residents in the area regularly dumped their refuse in front of and close to the kraal.

“We are two horse owners who keep our horses in the kraal. The people in this area, however, also use the land as a dumping site. The animals usually graze in the veld at the back of the street, but sometimes they also roam around the dumping site.

“They then eat rotten food as some residents put their potato peels and other things inside the plastic bags. The horses eat that and become sick,” he said.

He said although they try to keep the land clean, residents continue to dump their rubbish there.

“The municipality does not clean up the land and we have tried unsuccessfully to keep in clean. However, some people continue to dump in the area. We have about 55 horses which we use to keep the children entertained, and also to keep them away from drugs and under-age drinking,” said Coetzee.

He added that he had contacted various people to assist him in disposing of the carcass.

“I have called the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) but they said they do not work with horses. I then called a friend who has lions and offered him the carcass to feed to his lions, but he said he does not have the necessary transport to take the carcass.

“I also approached the municipality and requested a grader in order to dig a hole to bury the animal, but that has also not happened,” he said.

He added that he was afraid that the dead animal would pose a health risk to residents.

“The carcass is already in a decomposing state and there is a bad stench in the area. The residents are going to blame me for the stench as I am the owner of the animal. I do not know, however, how to dispose of the carcass,” he said.

The Sol Plaatje municipal spokesperson, Thoko Riet, said the onus fell on the owner to dispose of the carcass.

“Unfortunately the municipality does not dispose of carcasses. We might assist sick or injured animals but not dead ones. The owner must take it upon himself to dispose of it,” said Riet.

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