Water buffalo that was on the loose in Iowa captured
A water buffalo that had gotten loose in an Iowa town has been captured, officials announced Wednesday.
Police in the Des Moines suburb of Pleasant Hill, a town of about 11,000 people, responded Saturday to a call about an animal in the road. It turned out to be a water buffalo, and the owner told police the animal was aggressive.
That proved to be the case when police and animal rescue and control groups began trying to contain the water buffalo and return it to the owner's property. Those efforts "led the animal to show its aggressiveness toward Pleasant Hill officers which resulted in one round being fired from a shotgun, injuring the animal," police said in a Facebook posting on Monday.
The wounded water buffalo got away. Police used drones and ATVs to try and find it and brought in people with expertise in water buffaloes. The animal was eventually found in a water sand pit around 7:30 p.m. local time Tuesday, the city said Wednesday in a news release. Officials decided it wasn't safe to try to capture the water buffalo at that time "with nightfall and storms on their way."
On Wednesday morning, the water buffalo was coaxed out of the water and shot with a tranquilizer dart. After walking around for another half hour, the water buffalo was hit with another tranquilizer dart, which "immobilized" the animal, the town said.
The water buffalo was then put in a trailer, where it was given "reversal drugs, antibiotics, and vitamins." It was then taken to Iowa State University Veterinary Hospital for monitoring and any further medical care it might need.
The town said the owner has surrendered the water buffalo to police and an investigation into its escape is being conducted. Charges could be filed depending on what the investigation finds, the town said. The town did not provide any details on the fate of the water buffalo once it is handed over to police.
Madison Pottebaum told CBS affiliate KCCI-TV that a police officer arrived at her backyard Saturday and asked if she had seen the water buffalo. Pottebaum told the station she thought the officer was joking until 30 minutes later when she saw the animal herself.
"I look up and the water buffalo's just staring at me," Pottebaum told KCCI.
She told the station her dogs started barking and eventually the water buffalo ran away.
Water buffaloes can weigh up to 2,650 pounds, according to the website for National Geographic, though the Iowa animal appears smaller in photos. Often domesticated, the water buffalo is the largest member of the Bovini tribe, which includes yak, bison, African buffalo, various species of wild cattle, and others, the website said.
Earlier this month, multiple water buffalo escaped their enclosure in Tennessee and roamed the streets before being herded back home, WKRN-TV reported.