A farmer from Umguza District is struggling to come to terms with the loss of her eight cattle on Saturday morning after she was allegedly sold the wrong stockfeed from a city shop.
Zodwa Dube shared her ordeal with CITE, explaining that she purchased feed from Fivet Animal Health in Bulawayo on September 18, 2024, expecting to receive beef survival feed for her livestock.
However, she was allegedly sold a concentrate feed that killed her cattle within an hour of consumption.
Dube said she watched helplessly as her beasts collapsed one after the other, starting with the bull ending with a cow that was due to bear a calf.
“My son and I visited Fivet to purchase two bags of stockfeed. This is where I always buy my stockfeed. I instructed my son to go inside the shop and buy. In a short while, he was done and we left. Then on Thursday my herd boy called telling me that my cattle were running low on feed. I then proceeded to my homestead on Friday evening,” Dube said.
The feed was mixed with molasses and given to the animals on Saturday morning.
“I measured a small amount and gave it to the calf. The herd boy added some molasses to the feed and the calf only nibbled a bit. Then it proceeded to the garden,” she said.
Dube said subsequently her neighbour’s goats also came to eat feed and to her horror, after nibbling on the feed, the goats collapsed and died immediately,
“While we were still amazed by what was happening to the goats. The cows came to feed home and the herdboy fed them. I then saw my bull stagger and fall to the ground. That was the end of it. As the rest were still eating, they also started falling one by one. I was powerless and confused. I didn’t know what to do,” she said.
“I watched them falling one by one and dying. In less than thirty minutes they were all gone. It felt like a dream. When I thought I was feeding my cattle and preventing them from death, I was actually killing them.”
After the ‘tragedy,’ Dube returned to Fivert to confront management, but no agreement was reached on compensation.
“When I went back they could not give me a straight answer. They gave me a wrong product which killed my cattle but they don’t want to pay me back. I spent three hours talking to them but we did not have any understanding. I reported the matter to the police but nothing has been done as yet. The police were actually there at the scene when my livestock died.”
In a statement, Fivet acknowledged that the product sold to Dube was “Nhapi Tapi 98,” a urea-based protein supplement designed for ruminant livestock.
The supplement is formulated to provide essential nutrients that help improve digestion, feed efficiency and protein assimilation especially during dry seasons or periods of limited forage availability.
The company emphasised that such products require careful handling to avoid urea toxicity, which can be fatal if improperly administered.
“Like all urea-containing supplements, it must be handled with caution. Proper feeding instructions are vital to prevent the risk of urea toxicity, which can occur when animals ingest excessive amounts or if the product is improperly mixed or introduced too rapidly into the animals’ diet,” the statement read.
In the statement, Fivet claimed they had met with Dube to provide veterinary advice, to make sure no further losses occurred.
Dube, however, noted she was unaware of the company’s statement and is still in communication with the company to find out how she can seek compensation for her loss.
