THE ‘Milkers Delight’ cattle farm had been hemorrhaging cows for the last year. Each time there was a herd count five to 10 animals would be missing. Searches of the ranch lands and neighbouring territories failed to produce the cows. The police were called in but only went as far as taking a statement. They were not equipped to address the problem of rustling.

Cows kept disappearing in small numbers and the milk and meat supply started to suffer the effects of this. From700 heads the ranch now had 675. Something had to be done about this but what?

On a visit to Lethem, Mr. Vieira the manager met Cleatus, an Amerindian who was involved in the Annual Rodeo. Over drinks, Vieira told him about the farm and the problem of rustling. “Why don’t you track down the thieves?” asked Cleatus. Vieira looked puzzled for a second then had a brilliant idea. He offered to hire the savannah cowboy to help him solve the problem. The friendly Amerindian accepted the offer and flew back to Georgetown with the manager.

Part of the trip to Black Bush Polder was spent with Mr. Vieira explaining the environment to Cleatus. Even after hearing how rough the terrain was the visitor was not daunted. He just smiled and said, “We’ll catch them.” The remainder of the journey was spent in silence, a quality that this stranger seemed to embrace.

When they arrived at the ranch Cleatus was shown to his quarters and then introduced to the other staff members. He was later taken on a tour of the milking area and slaughterhouse. Tomorrow he would go to see the cattle, which was scattered, all across the 20 acres of grassland created for them. The other 70 acres was thick forest, which meant that a constant war of slashing and cutting had to be kept up in order to keep it at bay and stop it from reclaiming the grassland.

The next day Cleatus, Vieira and two experienced ranch hands left to check on the cows. As usual, they walked with food, water and sleeping equipment. The journey would take at least two days. Vieira had his shotgun. He was taking no chances.
On the first day, they covered the first section of the ranch. The cows could be seen grazing lazily. Cleatus told Vieira that the ranch needed horses so that the entire range could be covered in a day. In that way, regular checks could be made and stealing of cattle alleviated. The boss agreed.

The second and third days saw the team reaching the boundaries of the property. Water holes were cleared and animals were driven back towards the ranch. It was while they were moving the cows back that Cleatus was introduced to ‘Ignar’. Ignar was the head of the herd-the bull in charge. Everyone had forgotten about him and how he usually had workers climbing trees or fleeing to some other haven.
Because of his violent and unpredictable behaviour, he was named Ignar; a name given to persons with short fuses for tempers.

A few cows had broken away from the group and dashed into a clump of bushes. Cleatus went after them but instead of returning with the cows running ahead of him, he came racing out with one cow after him; Ignar. Vieira headed for them his gun at the ready. He had every intention of shooting the pesky bull if necessary.

He need not have worried.
The others were running to the aid of the poor fellow who had inadvertently stumbled onto mean old Ignar when the Amerindian suddenly dodged nimbly to the side and quickly grabbed the horn of his pursuer. With a deft flip, he had tossed the bull to the ground and held him there helpless. The others arrived out of breath and in shock at this strange and dangerous exercise. None had experienced this sort of cow handling except Mr. Vieira on his recent sojourn to the Lethem Rodeo.

The Amerindian let go and the big bull got quickly to its feet, shook himself off and looked indignantly at this new force. He then trotted off to join the main group. The others were rounded up and pushed towards the middle of the range and left there to graze.
A week after, six horses were bought. Cleatus checked them before the purchase was made. After that, it took about a month to teach the other hands to ride, herd and rope the cows. Gradually they caught on. Soon everyone was taking turns at herding. The roping was harder and the cowboy knew he had his work cut out.

Patrols were mounted and every day two men would ride out to check the cattle. Vieira hoped that this would discourage the rustlers. In this he was mistaken.
Two weeks into the patrols cows went missing again. Vieira was angry and wanted to set out that same evening but the Amerindian persuaded him to wait until the next day.
At the crack of dawn, the recovery team departed. They packed for a long journey and had a number of powerful torches with replacement batteries. It was easier and faster on horseback. By 10 that morning, they had reached the area that the cows were last known to be. Cleatus then went to work.

He circled the area and soon pointed out tracks of animals heading in the wrong direction. The group followed these deep into the forest. Soon the horses had to be left behind and the remainder of the journey done on foot. One member of the team was left behind to stay with them and the others pushed on.

Cleatus lead the way and soon passed the point beyond which none of the farm workers or Vieira had ventured before. Night came and they ate around a small fire. They slept with each man keeping watch for a period of time.
The next day the trail led them off the land owned by the ranch. Now they were in the forest reserve. By now Cleatus had disclosed that two people were moving about 10 to 12 animals.

By mid-afternoon, they had closed in on the thieves. Vieira was itching to have a go at them with his shotgun. He felt he had to make up for the many cows that were stolen. Travis had a razor sharp 22 cutlass and Cleatus a bow and sling of lethal-looking arrows which he had skillfully made on their journey through the bush. They were armed and ready to rumble.

They could now hear the sound of cows nearby. Cleatus indicated that they should be quiet and they crawled stealthily to the rim of a slight rise in the land. As they peered over the top they saw about two dozen cattle milling around restlessly in a clearing.
The area was crudely fenced with sticks cut from the surrounding trees. At the far corner of this makeshift corral was a badly built wall-less shack. Dangling from a rope tied to the roof of this structure was the carcass of a half skinned cow. The place stank of blood and flies were everywhere.

What caught and held their attention was the sight of two cowering and desperate men clinging to the roof of the now tilting slaughter pen and a rampaging Ignar giving the structure its final rites. After each savage butt, the building creaked and leaned over some more. A few more blows and it would come down. God help the two culprits when they hit the ground.

Amidst their screaming and shouting, Vieira and team moved in and took charge. Cleatus was able to distract the enraged bull thus saving the two ‘butchers’ from certain death. Their hands were tied behind their backs and weapons seized.

None of the rustlers was recognised but their story was. The owner of a cattle ranch bordering Vieira’s had hired them. Every month they would steal a few cows and slaughter them there. The meat was delivered to their dishonest boss who sold it to butcher shops in the capital. It was a lucrative business and easy pickings until they caught the wrong bull.
The stolen animals were returned to the ranchland and the two thieves handed over to the police. One of them who had been wounded by Ignar had to be hospitalised. Danesh Persaud, the owner of the neighbouring farm was convicted of rustling.

In order to have the matter settled out of court, he had to replace the stolen cattle and pay a compensation fee for the loss of income due to the drop in milk and meat supplies suffered by Mr. Vieira. His was a small and failing project so he sold out and moved. Vieira bought his property and continued to improve his operations.

Cleatus was appointed manager of the nearby ranch which specialised in beef cows. He also started training new staff on branding, herding and roping cattle. Pretty soon a mini rodeo was organised with the staff of nearby ranches. It was a huge success.

As for Ignar he continues to reign supreme. He is always a handful for the staff to handle, with the exception of Cleatus. Ignar is also the star of the mini rodeo. If you wanted to be the star, you have to ride Ignar. I can assure you, not many people have.