By KATRINA BRANDON
FEELING like the “wild west”, Tyers farmer John Williamson has been left disgusted after finding some of his cattle shot.
Living beside a pine plantation in Tyers, during winter, Mr Williamson walked down to one of his paddocks along the side of the plantation, where his cows had been, only to find some of them dead.
Unfortunately, due to the weather, Mr Williamson was unable to reach the cows in time to determine the cause of their death.
“I had three cows go down,” he told the Express.
“I was racking my brain … it absolutely threw me why I had these healthy cows that were dying, and the places that you would find them, it wasn’t steep, and it wasn’t in the gullies.”
Happening over a few months, he still couldn’t figure out the leading cause of their deaths, until recently.
Last month, Mr Williamson found his bull dead in the paddock less than 200 meters from his house.
After a thorough investigation, he began searching for reasons.
“We opened him up naturally, because we were looking for a hole, looking for a bullet hole, for anything,” he said.
“There was no reason for this bull to go down. He was healthy and had been checked the day before.”
When searching the ribs, Mr Williamson’s son had found they had been broken, which led to finding a bullet hole.
Naturally, Mr Williamson called Triple Zero and the plantation owners, HVP Plantations.
Before the incident, Mr Williamson had also found that some of his fences had been ruined alongside the plantation side.
“I had one of their (HVP) fellows up here, and we went for a drive showing they have a lot of trouble with people coming in their pines, trespassing, because the pines are private property,” he said.
“The people come through the pines, and they rip up the tracks in their four wheel drive and shoot and do whatever else. I also had my fence cut – eight different spots there a couple of years ago as well. There’s a whole lot of things that have happened in the last four or five years.”
HVP Plantations shared the deep concern of neighbouring landholders regarding any reports of illegal shooting.
A HVP Plantations spokesperson told the Express, “Any alleged illegal shooting, or property damage in and around plantations is unacceptable.”
“Illegal activities are a serious threat to safety and environmental values, and pose risks to neighbouring landholders, staff, contractors and the community.
“Hunting and the discharge of firearms is not permitted on HVP’s private property without explicit authorisation. The only circumstances where shooting may occur on HVP land are authorised pest management and plantation protection activities, conducted by appropriately qualified and approved personnel under strict controls and safety requirements.
“HVP has been working with local Victoria Police and GMA (Game Management Authority) surrounding illegal shooting in the region and will continue to support enforcement and education efforts.”
HVP is continuing to collaborate with neighbours and the relevant authorities to address this behaviour.
HVP encourages anyone who witnesses suspected illegal shooting, trespass or related unsafe behaviour to report it:
If there is an immediate threat to safety or a crime in progress: call Triple Zero (000).
To report illegal hunting, contact the Game Management Authority (GMA) on 136 186, or via GMA’s online reporting form: https://www.gma.vic.gov.au/enforcement/report-illegal-hunting-online
To provide information anonymously, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or: https://www.crimestoppersvic.com.au/about-us/contact/
