Wild animals invade and kill several sheep in Serewo village

Livestock keepers in Serewo village, West Pokot county woke up to a frightful shock Thursday morning after unidentified wild animals killed dozens of sheep.

They suspect that marauding wild animals hiding in the nearby bushes invaded the village and killed about one hundred animals.

Loketi Koringiro, one of the farmers said that he lost his sheep following the midnight incident.

"I woke up 3 in the morning only to discover that my 50 sheep had been killed by unknown wild animals. That is when I raised the alarm and alerted my neighbours,” said Koringiro.

He said the wild animals killed the sheep on the spot.

“We suspect a hyena or a leopard because it sucked the blood,” added Mr Koringiro.

Livestock keepers in the area have petitioned the Kenya Wild Service (KWS) to address the human-wildlife conflict in the area.

"We want KWS to come and address this issue because we only depend on livestock for our livelihood. This is a very big loss to us,” said Daniel Kiptoo, a resident.

At the same time, the residents called on the government to compensate them.

“We want the government to compensate us because we used to depend on cash generated from sale of these animals to pay school fees for our children among other responsibilities,” he said.

West Pokot sub-county livestock officer Dr Charles Kibet said his department is investigating the attack.

Dr Kibet said they were yet to identify the animals behind the attack.

He attributed the attack to the drought and hunger that has hit the area.

“I think the wild animals were hungry before they attacked the sheep,” he said.