COIMBATORE: A goat was killed in a suspected wild animal attack at Chinna Thadagam in Coimbatore on Thursday. While farmers claimed that it was a leopard attack, forest department officials denied it.
Duraisamy, a farmer who has a farm land at Chinna Thadagam, said that at around 8.30 pm, he heard a sound from the flock and when he checked, he found a goat killed. He claimed that it could be a leopard that attacked the goat and ran after it saw the torch light.
M Mahalakshmi, coordinator of Thadam Coimbatore a group that works as coordinators between farmers and the forest department, said, “We suspect that it was a leopard attack. This was the first time a leopard entered into are area.
Before that, movements were witnessed in Somayampalayam, Somayanur, Kalaiyanur, and Thiruvalluvar Nagar in Thadagam Valley. Once the leopards get their prey, they will start entering our place frequently. The forest department should intensify their monitoring process to prevent the incident in the future.”
R Madhusudhanan, Range Officer (Coimbatore) said, “It is not a leopard attack. During an inspection on Friday morning, the pug marks indicated the possibility of a wild dog attack. However, if a leopard attacked, it would not leave its prey once it attacked.”