The herd of cows that had escaped capture for months is finally back with their owners, the Mauricie Agricultural Producers Union (UPA Mauricie) announced on Sunday.
“Several attempts made since mid-December have successively returned the thirteen runaway cows, as well as two calves,” said the UPA Mauricie in a press release. The last three recalcitrants were caught on Sunday morning.
After many attempts ― including the intervention of cowboys from the Saint-Tite western festival ― what finally got the better of the fugitives was the installation of feeding points under surveillance, around which fences were gradually installed day by day. day.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ), the municipality of Saint-Sévère, the owners of the farm concerned and the UPA Mauricie have coordinated to establish a common plan.
“Over the next few days, the UPA Mauricie and its partners will take stock of the strategy,” the statement said. Questions will obviously have to be asked about the chain of communication between stakeholders in such circumstances. »
Various government agencies have come under fire for tossing and turning and not reacting quickly to find the cows.
The director general of the municipality of Saint-Sévère, Marie-Andrée Cadorette, had testified in particular to the difficulty of obtaining support during her appearance on the show. Everybody talks about it.
“The MAPAQ said ‘we can’t do anything about it because we don’t have tranquilizer darts to get them, so call the Wildlife,'” she said. I called Wildlife to explain all this to them and they told me that they weren’t wild animals, as they are cattle, so to call the Humane Society (SPA). I called the SPA, they laughed. They told me “listen ma’am, we’re not going to get 25 cows […] call MAPAQ”. »
The saga began in the summer of 2022, when 24 cows escaped from a farm in Saint-Barnabée. Although half of them returned on their own, the others took the direction of Saint-Sévère and hid in the forest, coming out at night to eat the crops, much to the chagrin of the local farmers.