Four men from Kajiado Central Subcounty are nursing gashes inflicted by a leopard attack on Tuesday evening.
All the men from Olbelbel Village are admitted to Kajiado County Referral Hospital Level 5 with gushing wounds caused by the leopard’s teeth and claws. A fifth man was treated and released.
The four claimed that one of them, James Sisika, was heading home with a flock of goats and sheep from the grazing fields when he heard a goat bleating in the bushes and went to check.
Sisika walked into the bushes but before realising that the goat he was going to check on was being mauled by a leopard, the beast had landed on him on his chest and floored him.
“I had no option but to fight it. One minute into it, I was already feeling I am fighting 10 leopards and I was forced to cry for help," Sisika said.
"The beast hit my head with a powerful left paw and I was seeing stars.".
He suffered head and hand injuries.
When neighbours arrived to help, the leopard was eating the remains of the goat. Sisika lay injured on the ground.
Sisika, who talked to journalists from his hospital bed, said he was prompted to act against the beast when he saw two other goats on the ground before it jumped on him.
“Four other young men who came to assist me were also attacked and three were seriously wounded like me. One of them suffered a few scratches and that is why he is not here,” said Sisika.
Sisika’s father, Mzee Sisika Andowa, said the attack on his two sons and his neighbour’s sons was not the first leopard attack in the area.
“These are common occurrences here in Olbelbel. In the last month, we have lost 50 goats and sheep here. We have informed authorities but please appear to fall on deaf ears," Andowa said.
The leopard was eventually overwhelmed by villagers who killed it. He said the Kenya Wildlife Service office in Kajiado was alerted after the incident but none of their officers visited the scene of the attack.
Kajiado county KWS boss Muteru Njauuini confirmed the incident and said four people were injured.
He said it is wrong to fight with Njauuini said it is wrong to fight wild animals when they grab livestock, adding that villagers have been told many times not to fight with the beasts.
“We have told them that it is useless fighting with the beasts because the eaten animals will still be paid for by KWS. Why would one risk his life in the name of fighting a beast while knowing that the government will still make compensation?” Njauuini said.
(Edited by V. Graham)
