Free trip causes extinction

[dancingbear]

Depends on where you are. In some areas, natural prey is scarce. This makes livestock a much more attractive target, and when predators are very hungry, they're more likely to take on your LGD. Other areas have plenty of natural prey available for predators, so they aren't as desperate for a meal, so they're less likely to challenge your LGD. A predator will naturally be more inclined to choose a lower risk target, if they're easy to find.

Around here, I think our predator problems have been relatively minor, because there's such an abundance of food in the area. Not because there's any shortage of predators. We have foxes, coyotes, owls, raccoons, skunks, possums, hawks, and an occasional bobcat. They have deer, rabbits, squirrels, wild turkey, groundhogs, moles, gophers, all kinds of rodents and small birds, etc., to dine on. Not to mention aquatic prey, crawfish, frogs, etc.

Get out on the plains or in the desert, it's different. Less prey, not so readily found.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Quote:
Ya I agree.... but as soon as they find those chickens they become the easy target until something is done. I too have a bunch of prey animals running around but every now and then I get that stubborn Hawk or Coyote that just loves a finger lickin chicken dinner... or in their case..... paws and talons!

But for the most part the presence of my G.Pyrenese keeps things away. It's when it's hot out and she seeks the coolness of the shade is when things get out of hand. Which is why I'm looking for a more heat tolorant LGD.

 

[dirtdoctor]

Kill one coyote, leave the body hanging on the fence... that will turn the rest of them around bigtime!!! prebait and destroy....

 

[Bossroo]

That my work for a day or two around here. Last year my next door neighbor had 2 of them hanging on the fence posts around his sheep pen. 2 days later he lost 4 more lambs.

 

[Miltonchix]

Quote:
What is your beef with the tree huggers anyway. The wolves were turned loose in Yellowstone because that is where they are from. The reason why their pop. grew is because you were not aloud to hunt them due to the fact, that in 1974 they were listed as endangered----After the ranchers destoryed nearly everyone of them due to selfishness, rather then finding a balance between the two. hopefully they will find a balance and share the land.

ANYONE who feels this strongly about wolves should have them dumped in their backyard!!

Its always ok for the other guy to deal with the problem.
They should also be FORCED to watch the many videos the farmers and ranchers have shot of their LIVESTOCK/LIVELYHOOD being torn apart still alive.
The Feds reimburse them for their loss at a ridiculous amount that the rest of us are paying through taxes that are already killing us.
What is our country becoming??!!

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Bossroo.... I thought this would go good with your post... Especially since you brought it up...


http://www.wesh.com/green-pages/21202411/detail.html

I couldn't imagine what a wolf would do... you would be lucky to get away from it.

 

[seramas]

The reason the wolves are so over populated is because of abundant prey. Wolves will control their population as prey becomes scarce. They will have fewer liters in the pack; only the Alpha pair some years will produce pups if there is enough prey to raise them. They are high on the predator list--I would even say close to being equal to man.

I'm not defending them but I understand why we need them. In places were the deer, elk...are overpopulated to the point of many stress related diseases like wasting disease, starvation and auto/deer mishaps are the climax population controls that nature is placing on them (with our help).

A good book called, "The Wolves of Isle Royale" is an informative read on the rise and fall of wolf populations without man in the picture.

As far as your 'extinct Chixs' you might be able to get a 'Government Emergency Relocation Grant' to repopulate your chicken pen. They seem to like bailing out troubled corporations--it would be a refreshing change to do this with our money.

http://www.amazon.com/Wolves-Isle-Royale-Broken-Balance/dp/1572230312

 

[Bossroo]

Where do you think the story of Little Red Riding Hood came from and with good reason? The Russians came up with the Troika for self survival... 3 horses are hitched to a sleigh, the middle horse faces straight ahead while the 2 outside horses have their heads tied so they face outward. This is so they are used as an early warning when a wolf is spoted. They also carry loaded guns to shoot the wolves. One of my cousins was an inmate in the Siberian slave labor camp. The Communist Russians needed very few guards as the wolves made fast work of anyone that tried to escape. All the guards had to do was follow the escapees tracks in the snow and when they came to the wolf killed and eaten bodies they took them back to the camp to show what happened to anyone who tried to escape. One of my cousins, who lives in rural area of Lithuania, told us several years ago that a 12 year old son was walking to school when he was attacked, killed and eaten by a pack of wolves. There was very little left for them to bury.