Neighbor’s peacock to be moved after pecking at children at San Antonio Botanical Gardens, ACS reports
A wild peacock that roamed the San Antonio neighborhood near Manke Park was relocated after it pecked at children at an event at the San Antonio Botanical Garden, according to the San Antonio Animal Control Service.
Concerned neighbors emailed KSAT that they had lost a beloved resident and asked for help in getting him back.
“Kevin is a handsome peacock who was taken in by the Animal Control Service (ACS) after he was deemed a ‘threat’. The threat arose after children taunted Kevin unsupervised at a private event at the Botanical Gardens,” one of the men wrote in an email.
KSAT contacted ACS and spokeswoman Lisa Norwood confirmed that the peacock “was humanely trapped after appearing at this public place during a public event.”
“People at that event, unfortunately, harassed the bird, and he played himself while people tried to take pictures and approached him, pecking at two small children,” Norwood said.
A concerned neighbor also said locals are upset that ACS was so quick to respond to the peacock but not address the dangerous dogs that linger in the community.
“Kevin has been known to roam the neighborhood and the old and young residents took care of him without incident for nearly two years,” the man said.
Norwood told KSAT that Kevin was on his way to help, which could provide him with a suitable environment, food, etc., and said he was not in danger of being euthanized.
“The peacock is a wild animal and wild animals should not be owned,” Norwood said.
In 2021, KSAT reported that there are actually several large demonstrations in San Antonio – the name of a group of peacocks.
Norwood previously said that ACS gets a few peacock calls each year, but for the most part, people just enjoy the birds. Norwood noted that the largest demonstration in San Antonio was in the Oak Hills area.
She also said that if you see a peacock, you should leave it alone.
“To ill-treat or harm them, including inhumanly trapping or poisoning them, is against the law,” she said.
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