Idaho

Legislation to Delist the Mexican Wolf Advances

Fri, 23 Jan 2026 22:11:58 GMT

The House Natural Resources Committee advanced the Enhancing Safety for Animals Act of 2025 (H.R. 4255) with bipartisan support. The bill would remove federal ESA protections for the Mexican wolf, restoring commonsense wildlife management authority and providing much-needed relief to cattle producers and rural communities across the Southwest. The next step for the bill is to be presented to the full House for a vote.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and Public Lands Council (PLC) strongly support H.R. 4255, which would reduce regulatory barriers that have prevented effective management to safeguard livestock and rural communities from this abundant apex predator.

“For decades, cattle producers have borne the cost of federal policies that prioritize paperwork over practical wildlife management. The Mexican wolf population has grown well beyond recovery goals, yet producers are left without the tools needed to protect their livestock, their families and their livelihoods,” says Oregon rancher and NCBA Policy Division Chair Skye Krebs. “This isn’t just a producer issue — it’s a rural community issue. When predators cannot be responsibly managed, it puts people at risk and undermines the stewardship efforts of those who live and work on the land every day. Delisting the Mexican wolf would allow wildlife professionals to use proven, science-based management tools to reduce conflict and restore balance.”

Because of its ESA status, Mexican wolf management remains heavily restricted, even in areas where wolf populations have expanded significantly. Producers face ongoing livestock depredation, disrupted grazing operations, and delayed or denied responses to problem animals — often with little to no compensation for losses.

“Whether it is Mexican wolves, grey wolves or grizzly bears, ranchers across the West face daily challenges with recovered species protected by the Endangered Species Act. This bill is a step toward alleviating the challenges southwestern producers face and would recognize the realities on the ground,” says Colorado rancher and PLC President Tim Canterbury. “This legislation is grounded in established science and restores commonsense in the listing determination. The Mexican wolf has recovered, now is the time for Congress to finish the job and pass this legislation.”

NCBA and PLC commend the House Natural Resources Committee for advancing this legislation and thank Rep. Paul Gosar for introducing a bill that recognizes conservation success while standing up for the men and women who help feed Americans.

Read More about Wolves:
House Approves Gray Wolf Protection Removal in a Victory for Cattlemen
Nightly Battles and Big Losses: Ranchers Demand Reform as Wolves Continue to Wreak Havoc
Wolves Are Not Going Away: Ranchers Push for Practical Management Tools
The Cost of Coexistence With Wolves

Wolves Are Not Going Away: Ranchers Push for Practical Management Tools

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 11:41:36 GMT

Ranchers repeatedly stress they are not advocating extermination of the wolves, but workable management solutions.

“We’re trying to be conservationists,” says Luke Morgan, Lightning Bolt Cattle Co. general manager. “Wolves are here to stay. We’ve got to have some tools to make it more holistic for people, wolves and the rest of the animals.”

Morgan manages 2,500 mother cows on multiple locations in Oregon and Washington utilizing both public and private lands. He says the split listing of wolves in Oregon is frustrating: “A line down the middle … federally listed on one side and not on the other … makes zero sense.”

Read more about the challenges rancher are facing with wolves:
Nightly Battles and Big Losses: Ranchers Demand Reform as Wolves Continue to Wreak Havoc

Rick Roberti, California Cattlemen’s Association president and a cattle rancher in Sierra Valley, adds: “We don’t want to get rid of all the wolves. We just want them managed in a way we don’t suffer so many losses — for them to return to their natural habitat.”

Cattle producer Amy Anderson Fitzpatrick says her family has been dealing with wolves since 2011. Her family raises cattle in southern Oregon during the grazing season (May to December), then move the herd to winter in Northern California. The base ranch, called Rancheria Ranch, is in the mountains of Oregon and is a mix of owned land and permitted grazing.

Fitzpatrick explains state and federal laws severely limit ranchers’ ability to defend their livestock; only nonlethal hazing is allowed, and requests to remove or euthanize problematic wolves have been denied.

Here are two requests from the producers dealing with wolves:

1. Coexistence management tools.

This would allow flexible, rapid deployment of nonlethal and, when needed, targeted lethal tools to address habituated wolves near people and livestock.

“They have zero fear of humans,” Morgan says. “If we could instill a little fear, push them back into wilderness areas and keep them more of a wild animal.”

He suggests seasonal, expedited permits and field-response teams during calving; prioritize high-risk allotments and pastures.

Fitzpatrick adds: “Our wolves are not scared of us, because why should they be?”

2. Notification and data transparency for risk management.

Roberti requests for more notification and data sharing regarding wolves. He says with collared wolves, agencies can tell ranchers when wolves enter their property, but he says: “We’ve been getting the reports after the kill.”

He would also like to know how many wolves there are and would like to see a deer survey done.

“If there’s not enough prey, you’re pretty much saying they’re going to eat cattle,” Roberti says.

Fitzpatrick expresses frustration with public perception and how the pro-wolf sentiment on social media downplays or ignores ranchers’ struggles with the predators.

Despite the ongoing hardships, Fitzpatrick says her family remains committed to ranching while calling for a level playing field that would allow effective protection of their livelihood.

Paul Roen, a Sierra County rancher, adds unified, more flexible regulations and continued collaboration between local, state and federal agencies is needed. He advocates for policy reform, increased documentation and knowledge-sharing to better equip rural communities to manage the realities of coexisting with wolves.

Roberti summarizes that sensible management policies will allow both wolves and ranchers to coexist, but he stresses that unless balance is restored and ranchers’ voices are heard, both the rural way of life and broader ecosystem could face severe consequences.

Your Next Read: Nightly Battles and Big Losses: Ranchers Demand Reform as Wolves Continue to Wreak Havoc

Beef Counts: Making a Difference

Mon, 21 Jul 2025 16:57:45 GMT

Cattle producers understand the nutritional value of beef and protein demand is at an all-time high. While consumers continue to buy beef at retail and through food service, another sector of the population is also in need of this valuable, nutrient dense protein — those dealing with food insecurity.

“Protein is always in demand, and it’s one of the things that is hard to get donated,” says Amy Luginbill, development manager with the Idaho Foodbank. “The Beef Counts program, really helps us ensure we’re able to provide quality beef, quality protein to folks across Idaho.”

Luginbill says 12.7% of the population in Idaho is affected by food insecurity.

Mobile distribution included beef, which is a much needed source of nutrients, along with donated produce, fruit, vegetables, yogurt and canned goods.

(Maggie Malson)

“On average we serve 211,000 people throughout the state each month,” she says.

Of the food distributed, 15% is protein.

“Protein is just an essential part of a well-rounded diet,” Luginbill adds. “The Beef Counts program helps us ensure protein is available and we’re meeting the nutrition needs to provide nourishment and food to folks who need it.”

Beef Counts was the first program of its kind and began in Idaho and Washington in 2010 as a rancher-led initiative to provide a more consistent supply of protein to those in need through the Idaho Foodbank. Partners in the collaboration include AgriBeef, the Idaho Cattle Association, the Idaho CattleWomen and the Idaho Beef Council. In Washington, ranchers partner with AgriBeef, the Washington Beef Council and 2nd Harvest. Donations to the program are used to purchase beef.

“The Beef Counts program has allowed us to provide 230,000 servings of beef throughout Idaho last year. This year, we’re on track to meet or exceed that,” Luginbill says.

In total since its inception, Beef Counts has provided more than 2.6 million servings of beef in Idaho and 1.4 million in Washington. And it’s donations from producers that make the difference.

John Hepton, of Hepton Livestock in Wilder, Idaho, has been involved with Beef Counts for five years. As a cattle feeder, he understands the importance of the product he and his customers work so hard to produce and has a mission to uniquely feed the world through beef. His company has always donated beef to local organizations where he has feeding entities. This year, they decided to make a bigger impact.

“We thought ‘What if we could provide 100 meals a day to the Idaho Food Bank that included beef?’. So, we got with the food bank, and they got with the Beef Council. Through the Beef Counts program, we do that every single day,” Hepton says.

Protein is a much needed source for food banks. Donations are matched and beef is provided by AgriBeef Co.

(Maggie Malson)

Hepton and additional industry partners, like Advantage Veterinary, are excited to have a way for everybody to be involved.

“They’re working in the heat, snow and rain, and they’re proud of what they do,” Hepton says. “They’re proud of how they take care of cattle. They’re proud of the beef they produce. They can all be a part of donating this great product that they put their heart and soul into, and help families in need in Idaho.”

Hepton encourages other ranchers and ag businesses to get involved with the program.

“We’ve had such fun doing it together as a group of cattle feeders,” he says. “We have some of the vendors we do business with and banking institutions donating to Beef Counts now. Our mission is to uniquely feed the world and encourage other people to do the same. We’re really involved in 4-H and FFA, and we want to spread that message as much as we can to use the product that we work so hard to produce to donate to hungry families.”

The Cost of Coexistence With Wolves

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 16:52:24 GMT

Wolves continue to cause ranchers havoc, including significant income loss. Recent research estimates the wolves are causing some impacted ranchers in the Southwest to lose 28% of their income potential.

“While the expansion of gray and Mexican gray wolf populations is often hailed as a conservation success, the consequences for ranching families can be gruesome, costly and complex,” says Daniel Munch, American Farm Bureau Federation economist. “They are threatening the safety of ranch families and their pets and livestock, as well as the long-term survival of multigenerational ranches and the rural economies they anchor.”

Munch summarized a recent University of Arizona study that focused on the Mexican gray wolf and analyzed both direct livestock depredation and indirect effects such as stress-induced weight loss and elevated management costs based on 2024 cattle prices. Findings are based on survey responses from impacted ranchers, modeling of herd-level financial outcome and county-level livestock performance trends.

“In areas with wolf presence, even a moderate level of impact, such as 2% calf loss, 3.5% weight reduction and average management costs, can reduce annual ranch revenue by 28%,” Munch says.

While the study focuses on Mexican gray wolves in the Southwest, the core challenges it identifies — livestock depredation, herd stress and weight loss, increased management costs and difficulties accessing timely compensation — are not unique to that region. Ranchers across the northern Rockies, Pacific Northwest and Great Lakes states report similar experiences as wolf populations have expanded.

“Because these economic stressors stem from common predator-prey dynamics and livestock production systems, the study’s findings provide a credible framework for estimating broader impacts,” he says. “This Market Intel draws on that foundation to illustrate the tangible financial risks associated with predator recovery and highlight the need for responsive, producer-informed wildlife policy in all regions affected by wolf activity.”

Key statistics shared by Munch in his article, “ Wolves and the West: The Cost of Coexistence ,” include:

$1,336 average value loss per calf due to wolves. Whether the calf was a day old or nearly ready for market, the rancher loses its full market value, estimated at $1,336 in 2024 for a 525 lb. calf.
A 2% loss of calves could reduce a 367-head ranch’s net income by 4%, or about $5,195, for that year. At higher loss levels, such as 14% of calves, net income could fall by as much as 34%, or roughly $42,599, in that same year.

When a cow is killed, the financial hit extends over multiple years.

“The operation not only loses that year’s calf, but also future offspring, along with the revenue and herd stability that cow would have provided,” Munch explains. “Ranchers then have to retain or buy replacements. This means fewer animals are available for sale, working capital must be used to buy additional replacements and herd development is ultimately delayed. Excluding these long-term impacts, the revenue loss associated with the loss of a single cow was estimated at $2,673.”

(Data: American Farm Bureau Federation)

Figure 2 displays the calculated value of calves lost under this scenario, assuming each calf is valued at $1,336. This generates a loss of 13,514 calves out of an inventory of 1.87 million calves valued at $18 million in wolf-occupied counties. The states with the highest number of calf depredations under this scenario are Montana ($3 million; approximately 2,307 calves) and Idaho ($2.7 million; approximately 2,044 calves).

Keep in mind this method assumes static wolf presence at the county level. Wolves regularly traverse dozens of miles per day, crossing county and state borders, so county-level presence can vary widely year to year.

58% of those surveyed had stress- or depredation-related wolf impacts on their operation (compared to just 38% reporting depredation).
3.5% reduction in average calf weaning weight (18.4 lb.). According to Munch a figure supported by published field research — can significantly reduce revenues across an entire herd.

At the $2.54 per lb. value reference in the study ($1,336/525 lb. average), a ranch that markets 80 head would lose out on $3,738 in marketable weight value.

“Weight loss can be much higher in regions with elevated wolf activity,” Munch says. “If that same ranch experienced a 10% reduction in weaning weight, the loss would exceed $10,600 before even factoring in additional impacts like reduced conception rates.”

(Data: American Farm Bureau Federation)

Using these assumptions about ranch exposure to wolf presence and average weight loss, Figure 3 presents the estimated revenue loss by state. In total, more than $50 million in potential calf weight value was lost due to wolf presence, including $8.6 million in Montana and $7.6 million in Idaho alone.

Ranchers reported an average cost of $79 per cow for conflict avoidance measures and associated labor.

Wolf presence forces ranchers to change the way they manage their operations — often at a steep cost. In wolf-occupied areas, ranchers routinely implement additional strategies to deter predation, respond to attacks and monitor herds across expansive rangelands.

“These management efforts are both labor- and resource-intensive,” Munch says.

Even before accounting for any depredation or stress-related weight loss, these management expenses alone reduced net returns for the average ranch by 19%. Through interviews and surveys, producers indicated they spent anywhere from several thousand dollars to over $150,000 per year on these efforts.

“For our analysis, we convert the $79 per cow figure to $55.30 per calf based on their 70% calf crop assumption,” he explains. “We then apply this per-calf cost to estimate statewide wolf-management expenses, using the study’s finding that 58% of ranchers in wolf-occupied counties experience wolf-induced stressors. Based on these assumptions, ranchers nationwide spend over $60 million each year on efforts to mitigate the impacts of gray wolves.” (Figure 4)

(Data: American Farm Bureau Federation)

All combined, on a ranch experiencing a modest 2% calf depredation and 3.5% weight loss that also spends the average reported amount on conflict avoidance, annual ranch revenues are reduced by 28% ($34,642). These combined costs, reflecting $128 million in annual costs to U.S. ranchers, are displayed in Figure 5.

(Data: American Farm Bureau Federation)

45% drop in the ranch’s long-term earning potential. The study projected what repeated losses from wolves would do to a ranch’s profitability over 30 years. Even a moderate level of impact — losing 2% of calves and 3.5% lower weights — would reduce the ranch’s net present value by more than $191,000.

“In plain terms, that’s a 45% drop in the ranch’s long-term earning potential,” Munch says.

The study estimates that, without wolf impacts, the ranch would generate about $420,000 in long-term profits (in today’s dollars). With average wolf-related losses, that shrinks to $228,000.

“While a single year’s loss might seem manageable, the effects compound over time,” Munch says. “Smaller calf crops mean fewer replacements and fewer animals to sell, while lower weights reduce revenue year after year. These cumulative impacts ripple through herd management and finances, steadily eroding profitability and increasing the odds that the operation may not be financially sustainable in the long run.”

Munch summarizes if predator recovery efforts are to be economically sustainable, they must be accompanied by policies that recognize the people on the front lines: those whose livelihoods now depend not only on their animals but also on a system that values and supports the cost of coexistence.

“That’s the heart of the issue,” Munch explains. “For many ranching families, the return of wolves is not just a wildlife management question, it’s a daily reality shaped by decisions made in distant urban centers, often by voters and officials who will never have to look into the eyes of a mother cow searching for her calf. Ranchers are the ones bearing the real-world costs of policies shaped far from the range. And they’re doing so while continuing to care for livestock, steward the land and feed a growing world.”

Japanese Importers Tour U.S. Beef Supply Chain

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 15:11:32 GMT

Japanese beef importers made a recent visit to the U.S. to learn more about the beef supply chain. About a dozen buyers from the four major beef importing companies in Japan traveled to Colorado, Kansas and Idaho. Jay Theiler of Agri Beef, the U.S. Meat Export Federation chair-elect, was one of the hosts.

“We had the great opportunity to show them all the steps in the beef supply chain, starting with going to a ranch operation, then Agri Beef’s feedyard out in Parma, Idaho,” Theiler says. “We took them to the producer owned plant, True West Beef in Jerome, Idaho. They really got to see a good overview of all the steps in our U.S. beef supply chain, and see the focus that we put on quality.”

The True West beef plant is one of the newest plants in the U.S., opening in June 2023.

“It’s a good example of a new facility, and it’s a plant that is also partially owned by producers here in the Northwest,” Theiler explains. “That’s a little bit different for the Japanese to see a model different than all the other plants in the United States.”

Japanese buyers examine cattle feed at an Idaho feedyard.

(USMEF)

Because there is not enough beef in Japan for all domestic consumption, they rely on trading partners.

“With the U.S., it’s been such a long relationship that they really do appreciate the quality that we produce here,” Theiler says. “The Japanese markets are critical to Agri Beef. There’s a lot of items that go over there that are not necessarily consumed here, domestically. And if you look at it as an industry, exports in total are around $415 a head, but $75 of that actually comes from Japan. It’s actually a critical market. It’s the number one volume market, and second only to South Korea and the value.”

The team met in Denver and received an overview from USMEF then visiting Idaho for the tour. They also met with representatives from the Idaho Beef Council, Idaho Department of Agriculture, Idaho Farm Bureau Federation, Washington State Beef Commission and Oregon Beef Council. In Kansas, they toured the National Beef processing facility in Dodge City and learned about ranching and cattle feeding sectors.

The tour was supported by the Beef Checkoff Program, USDA and Idaho and Washington state beef organizations. For more information, visit usmef.org

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Vence: Innovative Grazing Solutions Post-Wildfire

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:31:34 GMT

Like many ranchers in the West, the Thompson family manages cattle on large Bureau of Land Management (BLM) allotments of public land. Located in southwest Idaho, they experienced two wildfires within 10 days of each other in the summer of 2024, which burned approximately half of the fields used for winter grazing. Jessie Jarvis and her husband, Justin, ranch with her folks, Allen and Kim Thompson. Jessie worked with their local field office to utilize Vence virtual fencing to allow grazing on part of their allotment.

“Because we have BLM permits, putting a traditional five-wire fence wasn’t an option and due to the landscape, temporary fencing doesn’t make sense,” Jarvis says. “We were left with trying to find another place to run cows or feed them hay and supplement through winter. The cost of feeding the amount of cows we collared would have been about $26,000, so it’s far more financially friendly for us to use Vence than it is than any of our other options.”

This technology also allowed Jarvis to keep the cows in locations they were already familiar with.

“Virtual fencing allowed us to run our cattle in two fields they already know and do really well, which was a lot easier than putting them in a completely different field,” Jarvis says.

When it comes to fires on public lands, the BLM has two weeks from the date of containment to put together a fire recovery plan.

“The BLM office was under the clock to make decisions about the recovery and whether it will be seeded or it won’t be seeded, if it can be used, and how all that works,” Jarvis says. “We had less than two weeks to make our decision and how we were going to operate.”

The family worked with their local field office in Twin Falls, and the Shoshone office to borrow a base station, which had been used for a previous virtual fencing project. They purchased the collars and batteries themselves.

1 of 5:

Installing batteries and preparing collars to use for virtual fencing.

Jessie Jarvis

2 of 5:

Easy-to-install collars are adjustable to fit each cow.

Jessie Jarvis

3 of 5:

The Jarvis family uses virtual fencing collars and a base station on their BLM allotment to keep cows off area burned in wildfire.

Jessie Jarvis

4 of 5:

The base station would be moved three times within the allotment to communicate based on where the cows were located.

Jessie Jarvis

5 of 5:

Computer software shows where the virtual fencelines were and the movement of cattle throughout the boundaries.

Jessie Jarvis

Jarvis admits the first two weeks were a big learning curve as they had to work with Vence to determine where the base station would be located in relationship to the cows.

“We are moving the cows three different times, so there will be three different base station locations and they had to be predetermined so we knew we had the right amount of coverage for grazing that area,” Jarvis says.

All this took place during the fall and one of the busiest times when the family was gathering, weaning, processing different sets of calves, and preg testing. While learning new technology on top of all the fall work was a little overwhelming, Jarvis explains it was completely worth the extra effort.

“I think for us and other ranchers in our situation, being able to use this tool and continue grazing after a fire has such a positive impact,” Jarvis says. “I look around at all the fires that happened last summer, and I know how many people have had to liquidate their herds or completely sell out, and that breaks my heart. It takes so much time, energy and effort into building the genetics that are in your cow herd, and to have to completely get rid of that, that is life changing for all of us. We probably would have been faced with some of those very same difficult decisions had we not had this technology available to use.”

Vence Success Manager, CK Wisniewski, joined the Jarvis’ to help collar cattle and set up the system. She says every ranch has different goals for using virtual fencing.

“Some ranchers are wanting to track their cows more easily even within interior fencing,” she says. “Barbed wire fence is not fun to build, especially if you’re in very tough terrain. Sometimes that fencing cost can be $15,000-$50,000 a mile. When you have all those wildfires that are happening and it’s eight miles of fence, rebuilding is too labor and cost prohibitive. There are lots of different types of stakeholders who are always wanting to get engaged with our Vence system.”

Gary Tiller, director or commercial operations with Vence, which is a U.S.-based company owned by Merck Animal Health, says Vence focuses on three pillars — profitability, sustainability and legacy.

“Your first consideration is going to be, ‘how do I intend to make money using this technology?’” Tiller says. “That could be improved stocking density, saving on replacement or maintenance costs for fencing or replacing the cost of an employee to move fence.”

Tiller also notes what’s unique about virtual fencing is the ability to utilize ancillary benefits, which provide support to the main purpose of the operation.

“Ranching properties can also utilize wildlife habitat,” Tiller says. “For example, if fishing is an income stream to the ranch and protecting your stream sides is something that will make you more money in the end, you can exclude those cattle from going into the water and eroding the bank, which can improve your fishing population. That’s an ancillary profit center.”

Tiller points out, the second pillar — sustainability — can have multiple definitions.

“As a ranching community, we recognize wildfires aren’t going away,” he says. “When you look at the western states with a majority of ranchers relying on public lands grazing, if you don’t have fencing or funding to rebuild fences and you can’t keep cattle contained and manage the landscape, will we even have access to that land?

“It’s not only sustainability of the resource, but also of our industry,” Tiller adds. “We can’t lose 50% of our rangelands and still have 28-29 million cows needing to graze.”

Legacy is the third pillar that virtual fencing provides.

“Most everybody on the ranch has a dream of passing it down to the next generation and the only way we’re going to have the right to operate is by being really good stewards and making sure that the public understands how we are taking care of the land,” Tiller says. “I think most ranchers in general, prefer to pass on land at a better state than they inherit.”

Vence was designed for big remote areas to incorporate LoRa (long-range communication) through a system of base stations and collars that work autonomously once the directions are set. They utilize a high-density lithium battery mill spec battery designed to operate in the worse conditions, from hot and humid in Florida to below freezing in Montana.

“We designed a robust system around cattle and rugged conditions and landscapes with very minimal communications that we can magnify,” Tiller says.

The concept of virtual fencing technology has been around for decades but continues to evolve. Virtual fencing uses behavior modification based on audio and electrical cues from a collar device to keep cattle within a virtual boundary using GPS. This geospatial technology uses satellites to pinpoint a location. A virtual fence can also be used to keep animals out of certain areas. The collar can be controlled by a phone, tablet or computer using cellular data.

This is part of a four-part Smart Farming series on virtual fencing companies available in the U.S. — eShepard , Halter, NoFence and Vence .

(FJ/UA)

The Fall Cattle Drive Now Includes Calving Season at Idaho Ranch

Wed, 18 Sep 2024 14:51:32 GMT

Before winter arrives, American ranchers are rushing to get cattle and calves settled and sorted.

That fall drive includes fall-calving cows. It’s a growing trend as more herds shift to delivering a fresh crop of calves ahead of seasonal snow showers.

“Oh, he’s a little one,” Tucker Shaw says as he and his son, Joe, hoist a calf to weigh it on a mobile scale. “He’s just 60 pounds.”

The Shaw Cattle Co. is nestled against the bleached bluffs of Western Idaho along the Boise River just outside Caldwell. With roughly 1,400 calves expected this fall, the Shaw team is on the hunt to tag and treat a new crop of babies.

“We’ll take off in the mornings and very first thing two or three of us will go in different directions to do inventory,” says Tucker.

Tucker and Joe Shaw tag baby calves.

(Maggie Malson)

“We’re getting 40 to 50 calves a day, every day and so it’s a nonstop job just to get through the calves to make sure everything’s healthy, mothered up and nursing,” explains Sam Shaw.

These calves are the future of an operation that began with their grandfather.

“He worked for a guy in high school that had registered Hereford cattle,” recounts Tucker. “That guy, when he graduated, promised him Hereford heifer.”

World War II came calling but when their grandfather returned home, that promise was kept.

“There was a letter waiting at his folks’ house when he got back from World War II that said, remember, I still owe you a heifer,” Tucker says. “That heifer is what got my family into the cattle business.”

They lived in McCall, Idaho, at the time but in 1959, the family moved from the mountains, south, to their current location just outside of Caldwell.

The Shaw Cattle Co. calves roughly 1,400 cows each fall.

(Maggie Malson)

“We moved here just because of the winters,” explains Sam. “The winters were a lot milder than it was in McCall and this is great cow country.”

Plentiful irrigation water and abundant permanent pasture have helped the Shaw Cattle Co. thrive as a Hereford, Angus and Red Angus seedstock business.

“Our normal rainfall is about ten inches a year, so everything has to be irrigated,” says Tucker. “As long as we’ve got water, it’s a great place to be.”

Today, the operation sells roughly 500 bulls a year supported by a robust artificial insemination (AI) and embryo transfer (ET) program.

“We’re identifying those cows that are the elite cows in our operation and trying to propagate those genetics,” Sam says. “We don’t get just 1 or 2 calves out of them a year but we’re trying to get 10 or 15 calves out of them every year.”

They are also using DNA testing and genetic mapping to make selections and add depth to their understanding of the herd.

“Part of the registered cattle industry is that over the years, we keep adding more and more layers of data,” explains Tucker. “That gives us more information about our cattle and the breeding stock that we’re able to offer to our customers.”

A new baby calf stands tall at Shaw Cattle Co.

(Maggie Malson)

As the latest calf crop lands hock deep in green grass, this ranch family is excited about the work.

“Today we probably have somewhere between 35 and 42 to tag,” Tucker says. “It looks like Monday we tagged 65 calves that day and so that was as big of a day as we’ve ever had.”

They’ll keep hunting newborn calves curled up and waiting to be discovered.

“I love seeing the next generation of genetics,” smiles Sam. “You get to look at these cattle and see, yeah, either we messed up or no, we did it right.”

That’s an important job and it comes with a long tail.

“The genetics we produce today, our customers won’t reap the benefits of for 3 to 5 years,” explains Sam. “Ultimately it’s to produce a better product for the consumer.”

This fall as each calf is checked, counted, cared for and celebrated this family of ranchers is driving forward with a focus on future seasons of the operation.

New $20 Million Feed Mill Expansion Unveiled in Idaho

Mon, 09 Sep 2024 15:34:21 GMT

Beef and dairy producers throughout Idaho may soon be receiving steamflaked corn and calf grains from a newly expanded feed facility in the state. Scoular, a global agribusiness company based out of Nebraska, recently completed a $20 million expansion of its state-of-the-art feed blending facility located in Jerome, Idaho.

According to the company, the expansion adds a 120-feet high concrete feed mill, boosting the facility’s production capacity by 35% and delivers a 40% increase in storage capacity.

“Scoular’s mission is to deliver safe, reliable and innovative solutions to our feed and food customers around the world,” Scoular CEO, Paul Maass, said in a company. “This new investment is a perfect example of meeting our customers’ demands and bringing forward the ideal solutions. We are thrilled to continue to make growth investments in this important region and industry.”

Updates to the facility will help provide two new capabilities, including:

A steamflaking process that processes corn and barley into flakes and makes the feed more digestible for cattle. The corn is steamed, heated, then pressed into a flake.
A pellet mill to make feed pellets. Pellets are easy to transfer, handle and proportion for optimal nutrition. Feed pellets are typically used for feeding calves and beef cattle.

“The expansion shows Scoular’s customer-focused approach,” said Jeff Ackerman of Bettencourt Dairies. “Scoular is helping us provide the right nutritional profile to the animal at the right time. Tailor-made feed blends are essential.”

As the dairy sector continues to grow in the state, this expansion will provide both beef and dairy producers with an additional resource for purchasing feed.

“To see a company like Scoular expand means good news for producers,” added Rick Naerebout, CEO of the Idaho Dairymen’s Association. “It gives producers more options for how they want to handle feed on their farms.”

This expansion not only provides more choices for producers but also reinforces Scoular’s commitment to bolstering the local agricultural community.

“Agriculture drives the Magic Valley’s economy, and Scoular has made it a priority to support the industry through innovation, state-of-the-art facilities and programs that support local producers,” said Andy Hohwieler, a Scoular Regional Manager based in Twin Falls. “With our latest investment, we look forward to creating new feed products that create solutions for end-users.”

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Strange Bird Flu Outbreak, HPAI, Now Detected at Idaho Dairy

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 19:10:39 GMT

The Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) announced that HPAI, known as highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu, has been found in dairy cattle in Idaho. This now brings the number of affected states to four, adding more evidence the virus may be spreading cow to cow.

The cows were recently brought into the Cassia County dairy from another state that had found HPAI in dairy cattle, according to the ISDA.

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced that an investigation into mysterious illnesses in dairy cows in three states—Kansas, New Mexico, and Texas—was due to HPAI and that wild birds are the source of the virus.

Symptoms of HPAI in cattle include:

Drop in milk production
Loss of appetite
Changes in manure consistency
Thickened or colostrum-like milk
Low-grade fever

At this stage, there is no concern about the safety of the commercial milk supply or that this circumstance poses a risk to consumer health. The pasteurization process of heating milk to a high temperature ensures milk and dairy products can be consumed safely.

The ISDA encourages all dairy producers to closely monitor their herd and contact their local veterinarian immediately if cattle appear to show symptoms. HPAI is a mandatory reportable disease, and any Idaho veterinarians who suspect cases of HPAI in livestock should immediately report it to ISDA at 208-332-8540 or complete the HPAI Livestock Screen at agri.idaho.gov/main/animals/hpai/ .

For more on HPAI, read:

WOTUS Rule and Producers: What You Need to Know

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 19:40:51 GMT

“We’ve had about 13 different regulatory definitions of WOTUS, and the rule that went into effect on Monday is just the latest example of that,” says Mary Thomas Hart, chief counsel of government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).

While it may be one of many Waters of the United States (WOTUS) definitions, Hart joined AgriTalk host, Chip Flory, to discuss how producers should prepare their operations in reaction to the new WOTUS rule now in effect.

Hart best described WOTUS as “regulatory whiplash” and the Biden administration’s attempt to write a WOTUS definition that fits somewhere in the middle between the 2015 Obama rule and the 2020 Trump era Navigable Waters Protection rules.

“Unfortunately, in attempting to find middle ground, they got rid of a lot of the bright-lined definitions that made it easy to interpret ... what’s in and what’s out and what’s subject to federal jurisdiction,” Hart explains.

General features, such as those that carry water after it rains, as well as isolated features, which are far away from traditional navigable waters, are less defined, Hart says, and are going to require case by case determinations from regulators, which is not only time intensive but also costly.

Hart and NCBA believe regulation should be left to the states, limiting the federal government’s authority to only those features that actually contribute to downstream water quality, such as major waterways, the Great Lakes, oceans and other traditional navigable waters that contribute to interstate commerce.

So, What Does the New WOTUS Mean for Producers?

“My word of caution to landowners across the country is if you have a water infrastructure project or if you’re planning to manipulate the movement of water on your land in any way, talk to somebody before you start,” Hart says.

Whether it be the local Soil and Water Conservation District or Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), talk to somebody, have them look at the feature and have a conversation about what may be required, Hart adds.

Hart explains some producers got caught in a “pretty burdensome WOTUS definition” and “gotcha enforcement actions” under the Obama rule and were told they needed additional permitting in projects that would be considered very normal, such as building stock ponds and maintaining grass waterways.

Flory adds, “There are so many projects that are under construction right now that are part of an effort to provide cleaner water downstream. Unfortunately, the rule as it stands right now, could put those projects at risk.”

The new WOTUS rule may also discourage producers from starting new projects, Hart says, with the extra time and money needed to get a permit to carry out the project.

Producers “shouldn’t have to go through all of that regulatory red tape to do something that’s ultimately going to improve the natural resources in their land and in their community,” Hart adds. These could include projects such as a grass waterways that will improve overall water quality and stability for the water features long term.

While producers in 48 states are subject to the new Biden WOTUS rule, Idaho and Texas have been granted a preliminary injunction , which pauses the rule or puts the new definition on hold for litigation purposes.

Hart adds, Judge Brown, who granted the preliminary injunction, indicated he has a lot of issues with the Biden rule, which may bode well for litigation down the road. In addition, Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said Judge Brown recognized the new rule likely overstepped EPA’s authority under the Clean Water Act.

So, what are the likely next steps?

“Next steps certainly involve waiting for the Supreme Court to issue their decision on the Sackett versus EPA case ,” Hart adds, regarding the lawsuit NCBA and its litigation partners filed in January of this year.

The Supreme Court’s decision could potentially limit the reach of the Clean Water Act, conflicting with Biden’s WOTUS rule.

Read More:
What Bodies of Water are Considered WOTUS?
WOTUS Rule Frozen in Two States, But Unimpaired in 48
Supreme Court to Hear WOTUS Arguments on Monday
EPA Releases New WOTUS Rule, with the Supreme Court Ruling Pending

Ranchers: Don't 'Rescue' Our Dogs!

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:57:00 GMT

Idaho sheep ranchers are asking the general public, “Leave our dogs alone.”

Several working dogs have been “rescued” by well-meaning hikers or campers in Idaho, recently, who believe the dogs to be lost or abandoned. Enough of the incidents have occurred that southern Idaho officials issued a press release Monday urging the public to leave the dogs alone.

Sheep ranchers and the U.S. Forest Service say the dogs are expensive livestock guardians – often large white Great Pyrenees – that spend the summer on ranges with flocks of sheep. The dogs are there to protect livestock from predators like coyotes, mountain lions, black bears and wolves.

Gretchen Hyde, general manager of the Idaho Rangeland Resources Commission , told Drovers the incidents involving guard dogs is increasing because of the increase in use of public lands by the general public. More visitors to Idaho’s vast and scenic natural resources means more people unfamiliar with livestock and the dogs’ purpose is common. Removing the guard dogs can be harmful, similar to removing an orphaned fawn from its mother.

Corey Peavey, a Blaine County, ID, sheep rancher, told the IdahoPress.com , “I realize that everybody has their own best intentions, but you shouldn’t be taking a guard dog out of its environment, bringing it home, causing undue stress, and exposing it to unnecessary domestication.” Peavey has had his dogs hauled away to an animal shelter by mistake.

“Out of respect for the dog and the rancher, it’s better to leave them where they are,” Peavey said. “Even if they might look lost, they know the way.”

John Noh with Noh Sheep Company in Kimberly, ID, has had his guard dogs picked up by people who thought the dog was lost, and they ended up at a shelter in the Wood River Valley, forcing Noh to spend hours of down time to go fetch the dog and return it to his sheep flocks, reports IdahoPress.com.

“These are working dogs that ranchers rely on to non-lethally protect their sheep from predators,” Noh says. “For people to take these animals out of the woods that ranchers have spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars feeding and training is wrong.”

Renee Kehler, range conservationist for the Sawtooth National Forest, said there have been a number of guard dogs picked up by people thinking they were lost or needed attention. “It’s been happening a lot lately,” Kehler says. “Please treat them like livestock and leave them alone.”

Often livestock guard dogs have a collar with a name and phone number on them. If they have questions, they also could call those numbers to see if the dog is lost.

“For me,” said Peavey, “I’d appreciate a phone call over taking my dog.”

Related stories:

Idaho Rancher Retires Grazing Permits

Intermountain Packing To Build New Idaho Plant

Intermountain Packing To Build New Idaho Plant

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:56:56 GMT

Intermountain Packing has announced plans to build a new packing facility in Idaho Falls, ID. The $20 million facility will occupy nine acres and is scheduled to be in operation in the fall of 2021.

Construction on the 50,000-square-foot facility will begin this fall, General Manager Bob Stirling told EastIdahoNews.com. The plant will have capacity to process 500 head of cattle and bison per day and will employ 200 workers. Stirling said starting wages will be $15 per hour with medical and dental benefits.

Intermountain Packing is an offshoot of Intermountain Bison , an Idaho Falls company founded in 1969 by Roger Ball. Intermountain Bison is a vertically integrated bison operation with ranches in Idaho and South Dakota. The company raises and processes bison meat and jerky.

Stirling said there has been a need for additional meatpacking capacity in eastern Idaho for several years even before the coronavirus pandemic forced several smaller plants to close.

“That threw a huge wrench in the industry,” Stirling told EasternIdahoNews.com. “Many ranchers and feedlot operators didn’t have anywhere to go with their cattle. Live cattle were sitting in feed yards on ranches and then (there were) empty shelves in the grocery store.”

Stirling said bison ranching is attractive to some ranchers because it’s a niche market that attracts higher-paying customers and can be more profitable for ranchers.

The Intermountain Packing announcement is the second packing facility announcement in Idaho this summer. In late July Agri Beef, Boise, ID, announced it plans to open a packing plant in Jerome, ID, that will process 500 head of cattle per day. Jerome is located about 165 miles west of Idaho Falls.

The Jerome plant will operate as True West Beef and employ 400 workers. Agri Beef already operates Washington Beef located in Toppenish, WA, which has a daily harvest capacity of 1,550 head. The company said average workers would make $52,000 per year.

Related stories:

Agri Beef Announces Plans For New Idaho Packing Plant

Spring Cove Ranch: Built On A Breed

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:51:51 GMT

When the first Angus sire arrived at Spring Cove Ranch in 1919, no one could have predicted his legacy. Old, handwritten herd books trace the first pedigrees of the Butler herd to a time when cattle were traded for a saddle and a good meal. The yellowed pages reveal registration numbers with only 4 digits, traced as forebears of cattle grazing these high desert ranges today.

Self-proclaimed “number nerds” Art and Stacy Butler inherited the craving for information documentation on their herd of 800 cows.

“Data collection, and specifically EPDs (expected progeny differences), are tools we’ve been able to use through the years to create the proper combination of marbling and function and form and maternal and feed—and whatever else it takes to make the Angus cow that’s going to survive on the western range and also produce a Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) steak,” Stacy says.

All Butler bulls are genomically tested with Angus GS and more than 60% of those in their annual sale earn the CAB Targeting the Brand™ logo, signifying breed average or above for the Marbling EPD and $Grid index. Each bull gets its own Spring Cove Ranch calving ease score that consolidates genetics, genomics and cow-family data to provide extra analysis on potential herd sires.

The main goal is an Angus bull whose progeny thrive on the western range and have the carcass traits and growth characteristics to generate premiums for commercial cattlemen while balancing a focus on breeding cows that “keep us all in business” with strong maternal values.

The philosophy isn’t new. It serves a vision the Butlers held long before the market directly justified it, and it earned them the 2019 CAB Seedstock Commitment to Excellence Award.

A student at the University of Idaho when USDA lowered the grading standards in the mid-1970s, Art saw the industry moving toward a leaner product but kept steering his herd the other way.

“We were breeding to high marbling bulls, mainly because we wanted to improve the quality of the cattle and add value on the rail,” Art says. “When we started to market a few cattle on the rail in the ’90s, that’s what paid the bills, was marbling.”

It’s hard-earned knowledge he works to pass on to his bull customers today.

“Marbling is something that you can add to these cattle no matter what size and what your goals are as far as productivity,” Art says.

Form, function and fertility come first. They don’t preach single-trait selection, but say those necessary traits are already built into the Angus cow. “It’s what has made her ‘King’” Art says.

Some say great cows and exceptional terminal traits don’t happen in one package. Art and Stacy prove they do.

“The Angus cow has provided a living for the Butler family for 100 years,” says Stacy. “She has done so through droughts and storms and floods and diseases and generational differences and different genetics.”

They lay the accolades of what they’ve built at her feet, but credit data and targeted selection as vital tools along the way.

The couple encourage connections between each link of the beef production chain, working to help feeders understand the value of their customer cattle and their customers understand the needs of the beef consumer.

“Helping our customers market their cattle, and more than that, trying to help them get a premium for the genetics that they’ve invested in,” says Stacy. “The premium paid by the consumer at the end needs to trickle down to the cow-calf man that is actually producing that calf.”

A Western Video sales representative, Art guides his customers through capturing premiums without retained ownership. Program feeder cattle bring added value and Spring Cove Ranch genetics help carry a reputation for paychecks from the packing plant.

“Cattle with credentials” like carcass genetics, source- and process verification or Natural and other certification can help Western commercial cattlemen capture another bid and dollar, Art says. Historically, his program cattle bring as much as $67 per cwt. over the average black calf.

The dollars add up, for one customer all the way to $169,000 for a truckload headed east.

“I think a lot of people are thinking that maybe we’re going to saturate this market with high-quality cattle, but I think the demand is only growing and worldwide,” Art says. “A small part of this world today eats the premium product like we do and the others are now finding how tasty it is. They’re going to want more of it.”

The Butlers will be here with a ready supply of carefully selected Angus seedstock, continuing the work of converting forage from non-tillable lands into valuable protein.

A century after the first Butlers partnered with this land, it’s become a place few would dispute as a perfect home for ranching. The cattle are better and the land looks refreshed and invigorated compared to the black-and-white photos of times past. The next generation of Butler cowboys are learning the ropes as so many times before.

Judge Rejects Plan for Public Land Grazing Allotments

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:22:29 GMT

An administrative law judge has rejected a plan for public land grazing allotments that would have destroyed re-emerging sagebrush in south-central Idaho in favor of non-native plants to increase forage for cattle and sheep.

The ruling directs the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to set aside its final grazing decisions for about 80 square miles (200 square kilometers) of allotments in Twin Falls County and then reissue them with terms consistent with the ruling.

The plan that “provides for vegetation treatments intended to reduce or destroy native sagebrush and other native plant communities lacks a rational basis,” U.S. Interior Department Administrative Law Judge Andrew S. Pearlstein wrote in the May 9 order.

WildLands Defense and Prairie Falcon Audubon in 2017 appealed the Bureau of Land Management’s decision involving 18 permittees on 21 allotments that would have destroyed native plants on what are called the Berger Allotments.

“BLM is supposed to look for opportunities to restore sagebrush habitat,” said Katie Fite of WildLands Defense. “This was the dead opposite of that. This was purging sagebrush.”

A federal report last year concluded efforts to save sagebrush habitat in the West were failing, with invasive plants such as cheatgrass and medusahead on nearly 160,000 square miles (414,400 sq. kilometers) of public and private lands.

Federal officials in April released a plan intended to reverse that trend using new technologies and analytics to aid in restoring sagebrush habitats that support cattle ranching, recreation and 350 wildlife species, including imperiled sage grouse.

Efforts to restore sagebrush habitats can run into the millions of dollars from a single wildfire.

The BLM’s decision on the southern Idaho grazing allotments would have used large machines to kill sagebrush and other native plants where ranchers favor non-native forage plants such as crested wheatgrass.

“It’s like we’re back in the 1950s,” Fite said.

The BLM can appeal the judge’s ruling to the Interior Board of Land Appeals. BLM officials said Friday they were reviewing the order.

Pearlstein noted that besides sagebrush, the allotments are seeing a return of native grasses that include bluebunch wheatgrass, Thurber’s needlegrass, needle-and-thread grass, Sandburg bluegrass and Davis peppergrass, listed as a rare or special species by the BLM.

Invasive grasses on the allotments include primarily cheatgrass, as well as invasive forbs and shrubs.

Pearlstein also noted the presence of wildlife dependent on native plants, including pronghorn, mule deer, and smaller mammals and many types of birds, including sage grouse. He said sage grouse are rarely seen in the allotments, but there are four occupied sage grouse leks, or breeding grounds, within about 2 miles (3 kilometers) of the allotments.

Specifically, Pearlstein noted, the BLM classifies the allotments as “seedings,” meaning the agency can plant crested wheatgrass “without consideration of the vitality of diverse native vegetation.” But Pearlstein said killing native plants in favor of non-native crested wheatgrass couldn’t be justified.

Fite said the ruling prohibiting the destruction of native plants on the grazing allotments is one of the first such rulings she’s seen.

“This is a pretty exceptional decision,” she said.

East Idaho Man Dies in Farm Equipment Accident

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:20:02 GMT

A Rexburg, Idaho father has died after he became entangled in the rotor of farm equipment.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s office says 36-year-old C.J. Frizzell died Friday while trying to remove blockage from a grinding tub feeder used to grind hay to feed cattle.

The Jefferson County Coroner pronounced Frizzell dead at the scene near the agricultural community of Terreton, which is about 35 miles from Idaho Falls.

The Standard Journal says Frizzell leaves behind a wife and several young children. Another child is expected in April.

Massive Wildfire Chars Rangeland on Idaho-Oregon Border

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:10:56 GMT

A giant blaze on the Idaho-Oregon border grew to 414 square miles Friday afternoon, scorching grassland ranchers need to feed cattle and primary habitat for a bird being considered for federal protection.

The blaze that started Monday has been recorded traveling a mile and a half in eight minutes and producing spot fires that expand to more than a square mile in 10 minutes.

“Without a doubt there’s livestock lost,” said Wyatt Prescott of the Idaho Cattle Association, noting cattle would have been spread across the area. “Some of them have the instinct to get out of the way and some don’t.”

At least 15 square miles of primary sage grouse habitat has also burned. Habitat will be a key consideration when federal officials decide if the birds need protection under the Endangered Species Act. A decision is expected this fall.

There have been no reports of injuries to humans. One unoccupied structure has been destroyed.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management also announced that workers on Friday started hauling hay for a herd of about 60 wild horses about 13 miles southwest of Homedale that no longer have enough unburned forage to sustain them.

One horse injured trying to escape flames has been euthanized, and officials said they were considering rounding up horses to keep in corrals near Boise until the range recovers and they can be released.

The Owyhee County Sheriff’s Office recommended residents evacuate several drainages on the southern edge of the fire, and some roads are closed to recreational visitors but locals are allowed in.

Fire spokeswoman Gina Bonaminio said more than 400 firefighters split into day and night crews are trying to contain the fire with the help of four helicopters and nearly 20 fire engines, but the fire is only 10 percent contained.

Cheatgrass is fueling the fire, Bonaminio said. A wet spring caused a bumper crop of the invasive, fire-prone species that then dried out.

“It’s a flashy fuel, so it burns quickly and moves quickly,” Bonaminio said.

In areas without cheatgrass, experts say, fires have a hard time because native plants are spread out. But cheatgrass forms a blanket that ignites everything.

Prescott said ranchers who lost grazing areas will now have to buy feed for cattle or find someplace else to graze them.

The fire has also burned down power poles, and Idaho Power crews have been working to replace them. The company on Friday didn’t have a precise number of poles destroyed or the number of residents who lost power.

Dozens of smaller fires are burning in forested areas of the state, mainly caused by lightning storms.

In northwest Idaho, mandatory evacuations were put in place Friday for areas west of the city limits of Kamiah in northwest Idaho because of a 20-square-mile fire, a TV station reported.

KREM-TV in Boise said that residents of the city of Kamiah, which has a population of about 1,300, and other surrounding areas have been told they should be packed and ready to evacuate at any time. These areas include Harrisburg East, Caribel, Tom Taha, Adams Grade, Kamiah proper, East Kamiah, Woodland Grade, Frasure Grade, Ridgewood, and Fort Misery.

Photos sent to KREM from viewers showed a home in Kamiah that the station says was burned to the ground.

In central Idaho, a 600-acre fire burning 13 miles north of Crouch in timber is the largest of three fires started in that area when lightning moved through earlier this week.

In northern Idaho, some residents in Idaho County have been warned to be ready to evacuate due to fires that have consumed about 6 square miles.

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare has also issued a statement warning residents from the southwest to the north to take precautions due to potential bad air quality because of all the fires.

Missing Idaho Cows Recaptured by Employees

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:05:12 GMT

Pocatello, Idaho, police say two cows that escaped from a meat-processing business have been captured.

The Idaho State Journal reports that officers were told by Anderson Custom Pack that employees found the missing cows and brought them back to the business Saturday.

A total of five cows fled from Anderson Custom Pack in two recent incidents.

One of the cows was recaptured on Dec. 15 and two were fatally shot_one by Pocatello police and the other by one of Anderson’s owners.

Police said the cows recaptured Saturday were not injured.

Anderson Custom Pack has said the cow that fled the business Dec. 12 escaped on its own while the other four cows were intentionally released by a trespasser.

As Beef Prices Rise, Cattle Herds go Missing in Idaho

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:04:53 GMT

More than 150 cattle valued at about $350,000 have been reported missing in southeastern Idaho, and authorities suspect modern-day cattle rustling as beef prices have soared.

“Right now it’s just insane what those things are worth — it scares me to death,” Idaho State Brand Inspector Larry Hayhurst said. “Which means the incentive is there.”

Three ranchers say roundup searches in recent weeks in the hills and gulches on the remote summer range where the cattle graze have come up empty in two counties.

The losses include a herd of 50 Black Angus consisting of 25 cows and 25 calves valued at $150,000. Another herd of 41 cow-calf pairs, meaning 82 animals total, plus 10 cow-calf pairs, or 20 animals, from another rancher are also reported missing. Those missing cattle are valued at about $200,000.

Authorities say other ranchers in the region have reported smaller losses, but note that typically one or two cow-calf pairs go missing almost every year. An entire herd disappearing is something else.

“At this point we don’t have any suspects,” said Sgt. Jeff Edwards of the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, which is investigating the missing Black Angus.

He said an aircraft was used in that search, and so far no other rancher has reported accidently rounding up the cattle, which happens sometimes.

The sheriff’s office in nearby Bingham County, where the 102 cattle are missing, is also stumped.

“It is a very cold trail,” said Capt. Robert Sobieski. “There’s no way of knowing when they went missing. That’s what makes it toughest.”

But he also said that deputies aren’t ready to confirm that the cattle have been stolen because they could have mingled with other herds in the area. But there have been no reports of that from other ranchers so far.

Authorities said taking that many cattle would likely involve tractor-trailers, and at least several people on horseback or all-terrain vehicles to round them up.

“We’ve never seen cattle prices this high before in the history of the cattle market,” said Brad Higgins, a rancher in northern Idaho near Cottonwood and board member of the Idaho Cattle Association. “I worry about (theft) a little bit out here.”

U.S. cattle industry officials say beef prices are at record highs due to a combination of factors that include past droughts that caused cattle numbers to shrink and increased demand for beef on a global scale following the Great Recession.

“More people entering the middleclass want to eat up the food chain,” said Kevin Good, a senior market analyst for CattleFax, a group that tracks the industry.

He said the size of the nation’s cattle herd has shrunk in 15 of the last 17 years, while at the same time the human population has grown.

He also said some cattle producers are currently withholding cows and heifers from the market in an attempt to increase herd sizes, another factor leading to less beef on supermarket shelves.

“It’s supply driven,” Good said. “At some point we’ll expand the herd.”

Good said the U.S. had a cattle population of 88 million in 2014, and that Americans will eat about 54 pounds of beef per person this year. That compares to a cattle population of about 103 million in 1996, when American at about 67 pounds of beef per person per year.

Higgins said ranchers are having to decide whether to cash in on high prices by selling more heifers that would normally be used to replenish or increase herd numbers. Retaining those cattle is essentially betting that prices will stay high. Higgins, 45, said he’s sticking with his plan to hold onto about 15 percent of the heifers to maintain a herd of about 225, but could understand if others chose differently.

“It’d be a great time to cash in on the market if you’re at an age where you’re close to retiring,” he said.

Hayhurst, the state brand inspector, said that earlier this fall his office caught a man trying to sell 10 dairy cattle he’d stolen from a large dairy that didn’t even realize they were gone.

He said that if the eastern Idaho cattle were stolen it would be difficult to sell them in one of mostly western states that exchange information on brands. But he said someone with some planning could get past state ports of entry by using back roads and end up in a state without brand inspections.

“There are ways to get rid of them,” Hayhurst said. “But it’s hard with a branded animal to market them.”

He also said the cattle could simply be used to start another herd, as likely the cows were pregnant.