Beast's leg hacked off by rustlers

A Rotorua farmer is shocked after cattle rustlers "hacked" one of his animal's legs off in a gruesome death.
The owner, who didn't want to be identified, discovered the scene on his Maniatutu Rd farm when he went to check on his stock on Tuesday morning. He said he had heard reports from farmers of other animals in the area which had been slaughtered on the same night but he was yet to have that confirmed.
He said he was horrified by the carnage. "They just shot it from the road. They haven't even bled it. They just waited until it stopped kicking and then cut one of its legs off and just took the leg."
The angry farmer described the rustlers' work as amateurish.
"They've just hacked at the leg.
"It probably would have taken at least 10 minutes for it to stop kicking."
Words could not describe how angry this senseless act had made him feel.
"I just wish I had come across them when they were doing it."
He said it was the first time cattle had been stolen from his farm, although he had had sheep stolen before.
Maniatutu Rd resident Peter Bentley, who is also the Sensible Sentencing Trust spokesman for Rotorua, said it was no wonder farm residents were suspicious of people they didn't know.
"Is it any wonder that some rural folk treat strange vehicles with suspicion? It's a pretty horrible thing to have to find on your property."
Mr Bentley said many farmers could not afford to have insurance on their cattle.
"It's such a waste."
The Bentleys also have cattle on their farm and are thankful they were left alone.
"Luckily they were hiding in the trees ... It means people taking a Sunday drive are going to be treated with more suspicion that they normally would. It's not a pleasant situation."
The Daily Post was given photographs of the slaughtered beast but decided against publishing them because they were too graphic.
The latest farm thefts follow reports in June of gun-wielding cattle-rustlers shooting and butchering animals in Rerewhakaaitu.
Farmers Murray Jansen and Wendy Harper both had cows slaughtered and stolen from their properties.
Rotorua police confirmed at the time there had been a spate of similar thefts in the area with reports of two bulls stolen in Murupara and various cases of sheep thefts.
Mr Jansen described how thieves had taken the head and body of a 2-year-old cow and left just the offal and the feet.
He said he couldn't believe the audacity of someone coming on to a farm and killing a beast.
At the time the stolen cows were in a "meat withholding" phase and their udders had been injected with long-acting doses of penicillin to prevent mastitis, or inflammation of the mammary gland, during the winter months.
Those eating the meat could have put their health in danger, particularly if they had a proven allergy to penicillin.
Police said they were following up "several strong leads" in the cattle rustling cases in Rotorua.