Ministry to Slaughter Free-Roaming Cattle

The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) has announced it will soon begin killing cows that wander loose through public areas as a way to enforce a 1973 law that prohibits owners of livestock from allowing their animals to wander freely along highways, parks and other public places.

The law is widely ignored, according to ministry director Alexis Sandí. “It is common practice among some cattle owners to allow their animals to wander around highways and public streets, which

creates a high health risk as these animals can transmit various diseases,” he said.

Tuberculosis and bovine brucellosis are among the diseases carried by cattle that can be transmitted to humans.

MAG has asked all of its regional offices to launch campaigns to alert livestock owners about the practice so they tie up their animals to prevent them from being confiscated and sent to the slaughterhouse.

The ministry did not say what it would do with the meat from the confiscated livestock.