01/08/2022
YOUR HELP IS URGENTLY NEEDED!!
IF YOU WILL BE OUT IN THE WOODS RECREATING, PLEASE KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR CATTLE!
I have been working the phones for the last three hours. Multiple issues have arisen.
The wolves are at it again up north of Butte Falls. I am working reports of multiple cattle killings by wolves this week. Sadly, we are getting a lot of calves being born now. These are known in the livestock business as "early drops". Typically you want calves being born in February and March. But, some are being born now. And what a world they are being greeted by. Deep snows making things harder for their mothers.....and now the arrival of wolves. And the wolves are finding these young calves easy pickings. I am a member of the Jackson County Wolf Committee, so my phone has been on melt down.
But, part and parcel to all of this is finding out we have hundreds of cattle stuck in the deep snow out there in Southern Oregon. The owners were not able to locate them all before the weather hit. The drought and lack of water had really scattered them. Then, when the snows hit, they tried to make their way back home, or at least to the pens they should be at.....and then got stuck.
If you are going to be in the woods for any reason, please let Dinah Cantrell, the local livestock inspector know where you are seeing the cattle at. How many of them, and what color tags they had in their ears. The colors are owner identification. Dinah will be able to tell who owns the cattle by the colors. She can then notify the owners so they can get them. And with calves now being born out there.......time is critical.
So please, if you are snowmobiling, cross country skiing, snowshoeing, whatever you are doing and find cattle, try to get an exact location. Use your phone and get GPS coordinates. Anything like that helps. I know there are going to be rescue missions all weekend now to try to get cattle out of the snow in the Cascades.
Again, contact Dinah Cantrell at 541 210-0754 and report any cattle you see and where.
PLEASE share this message with any groups you are part of. Snowmobiler groups, four wheeler groups, whatever. Your help is badly needed, and very appreciated!
Photo credit to Dale Reynolds of Wallowa, Oregon.
