The Jeff Davis Sheriff’s Office is offering a reward for any information that leads to an arrest or conviction of the people involved in an animal cruelty case in Welsh.
Five cows are thankfully still alive after each was shot in the head. Sheriff’s deputies and Louisiana Livestock Brand Commission agents responded to the situation. Investigators believe it happened sometime on Sunday.
“We don’t have any vandalism out here. We’ve never had a tractor get windows broken. We’ve never had anything stolen, never. So, this was very random,” said cattle farmer Jeff Faul.
It was a shocking discovery for Faul who went out to feed his livestock Monday afternoon and realized about five cows had been shot in the head.
“I was putting out some hay, and I saw a white-faced cow with blood on her head, and I looked, and I could see bone fragments from the bullet shots,” he said.
Faul believes the cows survived because the gun used is believed to be a smaller caliber weapon.
“But still, they were trying to kill them. They were trying to kill my cows,” Faul said.
Faul and his wife own more than 160 cows. It’s how they make their living.
“It would be a financial ruin, total ruin [if they had died]. Even if they could catch the people, they could never pay it back.”
He hopes by sharing his story, whoever did this will be found and brought to justice.
“This is my livelihood, me and my wife’s life right here. This is what we do. We have to work 365 days a year for this. We don’t get vacations. We don’t go anywhere. All we do is work to get things done, and when somebody just comes and does something this ignorant, it’s very disheartening. People need to think about what they’re doing before they act,” he said.
If you have any information, please contact the Jeff Davis Parish Sheriff’s Office at (337) 821-2100, the Louisiana Livestock Brand Commission at (225) 925-3962, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-558-9741.
