A family in BH9 under Chief Mvuthu is counting the cost of human-wildlife conflict after four donkeys were killed by lions inside an enclosed field at their homestead three days ago.

Bekithemba Moyo says he was asleep when one of his dogs began barking repeatedly towards the field where his five donkeys had been kept.

The barking alerted him that something was wrong.

When he went to investigate, he says he discovered that lions had entered the enclosure and attacked his animals.

Moyo says the lions appeared to have jumped over a roughly two-metre barrier made from thorn branches and trees.

Four of his five donkeys were killed and eaten, while one survived.

Moyo says he does not know how many lions were involved in the attack. However, he says community members have reported that a group believed to number about 10 lions has been moving through the surrounding communities.

The loss goes beyond four donkeys

For Moyo, the loss is not simply about livestock.

He says the donkeys were also used to assist people in the community, particularly when someone was seriously ill and needed transport to another village.

The animals therefore provided a form of transport for both his household and other community members.

Moyo is a father of nine and says the repeated losses to wildlife have left him struggling to find ways of supporting his family.

The recent lion attack is also not his first experience of losing livestock to wildlife.

He says two pregnant goats were killed by lions inside his kraal in February last year.

More recently, he says elephants destroyed his banana crop, which he had been relying on as part of his efforts to support his family.

For Moyo, the losses are making it increasingly difficult to rebuild his livelihood.

Growing concern over lions

The latest incident has also heightened concerns among villagers about the safety of people living in the area.

Communities say they are increasingly worried about lions moving close to homesteads and through areas used by villagers.

There are also concerns about children travelling to and from school in areas where lions have reportedly been sighted.

For communities living alongside wildlife, the fear is not only about losing livestock. It is also about the possibility of the next encounter involving a person.

The wider cost of human-wildlife conflict

The losses experienced by Moyo’s family form part of a much wider human-wildlife conflict problem in Zimbabwe.

According to ZimParks figures shared with VicFallsLive, between 2020 and October 2025, wildlife killed 340 people and injured 444 others across the country.

The same figures show that wildlife killed 952 cattle, 152 donkeys and 1,495 goats during the period.

In 2025 alone, 62 people were killed by wildlife, while reported livestock losses included 153 cattle, 27 donkeys and 280 goats.

Behind these figures are families losing people, livestock, crops and sources of income.

For households that depend on livestock and agriculture, the loss of a donkey, cow or goat can affect food security, income, transport and the ability to meet other household needs.

What is being done to protect communities?

VicFallsLive has approached the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) for comment on the situation.

We have asked the authority to explain its assessment of the reported increase in human-wildlife conflict in communities under Chief Mvuthu and surrounding areas, what measures are being taken to protect villagers, what resources have been deployed to respond to the situation and what support is available to families that lose livestock or livelihoods to wildlife.

We have also asked ZimParks to explain what is being done to promote safer coexistence between communities and wildlife.

Its response will be published as part of our continuing coverage.

Watch Moyo tell his story

In an interview with VicFallsLive, Moyo describes how he discovered the lion attack, the losses his family has suffered and why he is now appealing for help.

The interview forms part of our ongoing Living Alongside series, which documents human-wildlife conflict through the experiences of people living directly with its consequences.

Due to the disturbing nature of the images from the scene, VicFallsLive has not published all the graphic images of the killed animals.

Watch the full interview on YouTube:https://youtu.be/7fkE75b_ew8