Frequent leopard attacks scare people, pet animals in Poochakulam, 10 dogs go missing recently

KONNI: Pet dogs in Poochakulam in Thannithode Panchayat is having the worst of time as they are frequently attacked by leopards coming into human settlements. Ten pet dogs in the area have gone missing recently. Anil Kumar of Anila Bhavan in Poochakulam can only remember with horror the sight of a pet dog being mauled by a leopard in front of his eyes in the middle of the night.

The incident took place on December 16th at around twelve o'clock in the night. The leopard caught the dog from the farm shed where Anilkumar was sleeping. Anil woke up to the sound of a dog barking. By then the wild animal had caught the dog. Anilkumar got scared of the leopard and rolled off the bed and fell on the floor. The leopard ran away with the dog. Claw marks of the animal was also found on a nearby rock. More than five dogs have already been caught by the leopard from here. A solar fence has been installed on the forest boundary in the area but is not operational.

The leopard was spotted within the limits of Gurunathanman Forest Station. Earlier there was a leopard attack on Ajikumar of Koyikaleth house. There is a strong allegation that the forest guards are not taking action despite leopards posing a threat to people's lives. The local residents said that they saw a leopard in Poochakulam the other day. The animal was spotted in Bijin's backyard at Poochakulam. The incident happened around 7:30 pm.