Alberto Esposti was attacked last week in the front yard of his farmhouse in San Giovanni del Dossa, near Mantua, in Northern Italy. Mr Esposti’s injuries were so severe that doctors at Cremona hospital, where he was airlifted to intensive care, had to amputate an arm and part of his leg to save his life. After hearing the farm dog barking excitedly in the yard, Mr Esposti went out to investigate the disturbance when he was confronted by a very aggressive wild boar which knocked him off the legs and then severely damaged his arm, leg and cage of. The final moments of the horrific attack were witnessed by Mr Esposti’s son Ivano, who was on his tractor as he returned from the fields. It was only when his son jumped off the tractor and ran at the boar shouting that the animal stopped attacking Mr Esposti and ran out of the yard.
Damage to agricultural land
It was not immediately clear what caused the animal’s wild reaction. Boar attacks on farmers are relatively rare. Coldiretti, Italy’s national farmers’ union, said the incident “confirms our oft-reported concerns” about the seriousness of the problems posed by Italy’s 2.3 million-strong, partially protected wild boar population. The association has long called for the boar population to be culled. Farmers argue that the animals cause huge damage to farmland and produce as they roam in search of food. So far this year, around 13 people have been killed and 261 seriously injured as a result of road accidents involving wild boars, the largest of which can reach a meter in height and weigh up to 175 kilograms. Wild boars can also be carriers of African swine fever, which has a high mortality rate among domestic pigs. In recent years, major urban centers, including Rome, have been “invaded” by families of wild boar, which roam the city’s outskirts as they forage for food in rubbish bins.
