A Perthshire man who allowed wild boar to escape on a number of occasions is not an appropriate keeper for the “dangerous” animals, say council officials.
Details have emerged of a catalogue of escapes at Bamff Home Farm near Alyth, where wild boar were able to roam free in 2007, 2011 and 2012.
Further escapes took place in November 2014 and earlier this year.
Animal welfare officers visited David Rowe’s farm and found holes in fences and footprints of wild boar outside enclosures.
At a later inspection, officers were concerned the electric fence was missing and not working in some areas.
Mr Rowe was previously granted licences to keep wild boar in 2009, 2010 and 2011 at Steillsmuir, Coupar Angus, and then at Wester Bleaton, Kirkmichael.
He received a warning letter from Perth and Kinross Council in 2011 following “serious concerns” from welfare officers about the conditions of the animals at Wester Bleaton.
The same year he was asked to move the animals to a location with appropriate shelter but refused.
In January 2012, with no licence for the wild boars, Mr Rowe was told they were being kept illegally and that he should reapply for a licence or face having the animals disposed of.
Mr Rowe made no contact and the wild boar were disposed of “appropriately”.
The same situation arose in November 2012 at premises at Kings of Kinloch, Meigle, with the same outcome.
Local farmers suggested the escape of the animals from Bamff Home Farm had been a “regular occurrence” in March 2014.
In November last year, further escapes were reported by a resident and a local farmer contacted The Courier to state he had shot up to 30 of the beasts over a seven -year period.
It was then alleged another boar had escaped at least three times from Bamff Home Farm in December and again on January 2.
On February 10, animal welfare officers discovered that Mr Rowe had bought domestic pigs from a farm in Callander, and investigations showed that these animals had been cross-bred.
As a result of all these incidents, the council’s licensing committee is being advised to refuse the latest application by Mr Rowe to be allowed to keep 55 wild boars on the Bamff Estate in Alyth.
In his report recommending refusal, James Dixon, regulatory services manager with the council’s environment service, says: “Mr Rowe has been responsible for wild boar at Bamff since mid November 2013.
“The repeated nature of the escapes and the inspection report on the fences demonstrates a lack of maintenance and a lack of responsibility being taken by Mr Rowe to prevent escapes.
“It is considered that Mr Rowe is not a suitable person to hold a licence.”
The council’s licensing committee meets on Thursday.
Mr Rowe declined to comment when approached by The Courier.