“My husband and I put bells on our cows as soon as we arrived in Cunlhat. As there are many wild animals, notably deer, the wires of the fences are sometimes torn off and the animals come out of the meadows. The bells allow us to find them more quickly,” explains Marie-Laure Espinasse, from the Lafont farm.
One detail is important according to the law: their neighbors arrived the same year as them, in 2010. There is therefore no precedence bonus in favor of the breeders. Around them, other farmers have given in. Especially since the mayor of Cunlhat, Chantal Fancy, believes that bells are not used in Auvergne farms.
A deeper neighborhood conflict
“Out of eight families neighboring our farm and our meadows, only one made this complaint,” points out Marie-Laure Espinasse, who has received a lot of support since her call for help on social networks. Behind this tension around the ringing of bells, the neighborhood conflict is deeper.
The Espinasses obtained ownership of a 150 m long planted hedge from a surveyor, a hedge that the neighbors also claimed. Both parties have retained a lawyer and conciliation is underway.
But Laurent Espinasse, 52, will never see its outcome. The bills to pay, the farm to run, and the many worries led him to violent burnout. The farmer committed suicide before Christmas. Marie-Laure and their son Antonin are determined to lead this fight in his memory.