Simple Solution: Boot Livestock

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letter from George Wuerthner

The article in the Casper Star-Tribune titled “Wyoming livestock seeking balance in predator management” (Oct. 27) about the Upper Green River Cattlemen’s Association whining about predator losses deserves a response.
The reporter failed to mention that there is a very simple solution to the problem for our predators created by private livestock grazing our public lands. If these welfare ranchers don’t like the presence of predators there, they can take their cows home. They are not doing us any favors by grazing their cows, at subsidized rates while degrading on our property. Their cattle are creating conflicts with our predators and it is the cows, not our wolves, grizzlies and coyotes that should be removed.
The mere presence of their cattle disrupts and displaces native wildlife like elk. Their cattle trample streams degrading fisheries. Their animal hooves compact soils and destroy biocrusts. Their cattle spread weeds.The cow manure pollutes waterways.The grass going into the bellies of their cows is not available for native wildlife like elk, deer, ground squirrels, or grasshoppers. Worse our predators like wolves, coyotes, grizzlies and cougar are killed to benefit the profit margin of a bunch of ungrateful individuals.
These ingrates seem to have the attitude that their cattle have some special rights to a predator-free environment. In reality, the public should expect and get a livestock-free environment or at the least use that does not degrade the public heritage. Killing predators to benefit the profits of private businesses using our public property does degrade the public’s patrimony.
The Upper Green River Cattlemen’s Association are tenants using our property at fire sale rates, and yet they treat our property and our wildlife with disdain. If tenants in my rental properties acted like these ranchers, destroying my houses and trashing my lawn, and then had the gall to demand that they be allowed to kill wildlife in the yard, I’d send them packing so quick their heads would spin. It’s time to kick these ingrates off our public property so our public wildlife can flourish.
GEORGE WUERTHNER, Bend, Oregon

3 thoughts on “Simple Solution: Boot Livestock”

  1. Encroachment Never Ending: On Their Turf
    Get cattle and sheep out of the wilderness, encroaching on wildlife. Stop wildlife agencies and hunters from farming elk and deer in the wilderness. A sheep rancher turned 1800 sheep loose on rugged hillside land in eastern WA on an allotment, a lease, then complained about wolf predation and wanted the wildlife agency to do something about the wolves. Ranchers in the Tetons (Wyoming) placed cattle in prime predator country (wolves and grizzlies) then complain about predation and want “balanced” treatment of the predators. Hunters in the wolf jihad states want a war on wolves and sometimes lions and bears; and want to basically farm sport targets in the wilderness. Idaho sent a professional hunter into the Frank Church, River of No Return Wilderness to kill a pack of wolves (2013), so there would be more elk for them to kill. Ranchers should not be allowed leases in the wilderness or prime predator country. Ranching is taking up more and more public land, 23,000 grazing permits in 16 western states. Ranchers are on public land, complaining about predators, bison, and some even resent sharing with grazing wildlife. Turning cattle or sheep loose in back country is predator baiting. Ranchers are not seeking balance with wildlife they are seeking power and control of public land and the killing of predators on that land. We, as a society, need to start retiring public land leases not expanding them; allow no more encroachment Stop the hunter-rancher war on wildlife, albeit a tradition.

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