Leopard strays into K’taka farm, caught

The farmer tied the leopard to his motorcycle and handed it over to the Arsikere range forest office, one of the officials said.

A young farmer in Hassan managed to capture a leopard that had strayed into his coconut estate on Friday and handed it over to the forest department, officials said.

A young farmer in Hassan managed to capture a leopard that had strayed into his coconut estate on Friday (HT Photo)

Forest officials said that the leopard had entered the estate in search of food.

The leopard was weak and hungry after going without food for several days.

“When the farmer arrived at his estate at 10 am, he spotted the leopard and managed to capture it. Despite leopards being difficult to catch, this one did not resist due to its weakened state. The farmer tied the leopard to his motorcycle and handed it over to the Arsikere range forest office,” one of the officials said.

During the capture, the farmer, identified as Muthu (35), sustained scratch injuries. He is currently receiving treatment at the Arsikere Taluk Government Hospital and is in stable condition, the officials said.

‘’Catching leopard is a rare incident, but the farmer managed to catch in bare hand only because the leopard was weak,’’ Hassan DCF Ashish Reddy told HT. He said the female leopard is just 8-9 months old. “Mother leopards abandon young leopards after 8-9 months naturally, hence this cub was alone. As it could not get a prey, it became giddy.”

The captured leopard is currently undergoing treatment at the Sathenally government veterinary hospital and is responding well. After three days of observation, the leopard will be released back into the forest, the officer said.

“The farmer was warned not to capture wild animals for any reason, as it poses a risk to both his life and the animal’s well-being. The act of tying the leopard to his bike caused harm to the animal due to its weakened condition. Farmers are advised against attempting to catch any wildlife that may put their lives at risk,” the officer said.

‘’I was informed by forest officers at around 12 o clock and I started treatment,’’ Sathenalli government veterinary hospital doctor B Pramod told HT.

He said they conducted a blood test of the leopard at a private laboratory and found it lacked platelets.

He said a sample of blood was sent to Veterinary College in Hassan for a haemo protozoan test.

“We will get the report by 11 am on Saturday and start treatment for the leopard. At present, the leopard has been kept in a vacant room in the hospital. The health condition will be known only after the report,” he added.