‘Too unreal’: Chinese water buffalo captured after roaming east Charlotte neighborhood

CHARLOTTE — An east Charlotte neighborhood had some unorthodox visitors on Friday afternoon.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Animal Care and Control (ACC) got a call around 4:42 p.m. on Friday for three Chinese water buffalo roaming near Leesburg Road and Hollyhouse Drive in east Charlotte.

Officials say the owner of the buffalo was at the scene with a livestock trailer.

ACC Officer Varga successfully rounded up the water buffalo, but one became spooked and ran out of the livestock trailer.

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Four more officers and an Enforcement Supervisor were called to the scene to help corral the remaining buffalo, but after three hours, they were unsuccessful.

Officers continued working the call overnight into Saturday, where they had contained the buffalo to an athletic field at Albermarle Road Elementary School.

At 6 a.m. on Saturday morning, a new shift of ACC officers, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Patrol, and a SWAT team member continued to try and get the buffalo back into the trailer.

Chinese water buffalo captured after roaming east Charlotte neighborhood

As the call went on, officers say one of the buffalo was becoming more aggressive, even causing damage to the owner’s truck and charging at the owner’s employee.

ACC says the situation became too dangerous because of the animal’s size and strength, which could cause serious injuries. Later, officers and the owner agreed to have the buffalo euthanized.

CMPD gave the owner of the buffalo a citation; owning a Chinese water buffalo is illegal in the state of North Carolina. Officers say the situation is still under investigation.

Neighborhood resident, Reggie Moore, who saw the animals behind his home, told Channel 9 he was shocked at the sight.

“I thought I was seeing something out of Jurassic Park; it was just too unreal,” Moore said.

Dozens of neighbors joined Moore in working to corral the buffalo back into their owner’s livestock trailer. While most residents were trying to use their best herding techniques, Moore’s wife, Lynette, decided to document the moment but had to jump away when one of the buffalo ran at her.

“This is fun; we’re saving them; that’s what I was saying until they got real close,” Lynette Moore said. “Then I had to jump in the bushes because they came straight to me.”

Although the experience was intense, the Moores say it taught them a very important lesson about dealing with wildlife, especially in your neighborhood.

“You should always expect the unexpected,” the Moores said.

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