High fence elk on the loose, Idaho says kill 'em fast

[bobcats]

Article published Sep 8, 2006

Risch authorizes agencies to kill escaped elk in eastern Idaho

Gov. Jim Risch signed an order Thursday declaring open season on about 160 domesticated trophy elk that escaped in recent weeks from an eastern Idaho game preserve.

Risch authorized the "immediate destruction" of the animals by state Fish and Game and Department of Agriculture agents. And he hopes to enlist private hunters too.

The animals' flight from the Chief Joseph hunter's reserve near Rexburg had raised fears they might spread illness and hurt the genetic purity of wild herds ? including those in Yellowstone National Park, just 10 miles away.
The governor is also asking Idaho Fish and Game Commission members, who meet today, to allow hunters and private land owners to shoot the escaped animals ? before they start breeding with wild elk as they wander the region.

"I don't think we've ever had an escape like this before. This is serious business," Risch told The Associated Press. "We have reports they have been seen a considerable distance from the place that they've escaped. The state of Wyoming has already determined it will use lethal means if its agents find any of those elk across the border."
After Fish and Game Director Steve Huffaker on Wednesday called the elk breakout "the train wreck we've seen coming for a long time," Risch acted quickly by contacting officials in Yellowstone, as well as Wyoming and Montana.

"There is a crisis facing our elk herds in eastern Idaho," the governor said. "Because of the escape of domestic elk that was not reported as required by law, we now have these farm-raised elk mingling with our wild elk herds."

The elk are owned by Rex Rammell, Chief Joseph's owner and a veterinarian, and have been bred to have large antlers prized by hunters who pay up to $5,995 in September to kill a bull elk.
Rammell didn't return phone calls from the AP.

He did not report the loss to state officials, Risch said.
Instead, several nearby landowners reported the escape and have been relaying to the state game agency their sightings of suspected domestic elk in the surrounding alfalfa fields and forest slopes.

The elk are tagged, Rammell has told Fish and Game officials, but the tags may not be visible from at least 150 yards away, as state law requires.

He ran up more than $750,000 in fines with Idaho for failing to apply blaze-orange ear tags, although most of the fines were later forgiven by the Idaho Legislature.
Idaho law may allow the state to recover from Rammell some of the costs of controlling the breakout, Risch said.

"I think the state of Idaho will be able to get fairly sizable groups of the elk and harvest them at once," he added. "We're enlisting private hunters, because they're the ones that will be chasing bulls that range far and wide."
Rammell has clashed with state Department of Agriculture officials in the past because he refused to allow state regulators to inspect his herd for chronic wasting disease, which kills elk by eating away their brains.

Though Agriculture Department inspectors already have determined that Rammell's fencing in the escape incident met its standards, the elk likely charged the fence until they created a large hole, officials said.

 

[ismith]

This should have been a great read for those of you that dont see anything wrong with Hi-Fence hunting and privatizing wild game animals. Keep Texass style hunting in Texass.
ismith

 

[Prism]

If infact the owner of the ranch didn't notify authorities about the escape he should pay out the rear and spend some time thinking about it behind bars!

What a cluster %@$%@

"Watch the season unfold!"
www.neverenoughbiggame.com

 

[MuskegMan]

Sounds like a classic case of those with money getting political favors. Fines are a judicial matter, not a legislative one. It should have been up to a judge to decide whether to reduce, forgive or enforce the fine, not a d&%n politician!

Hope some private hunters reap the rewards.

On another bright note, maybe the "superior" antler genetics will get passed along to the wild herd. Who knows?

We have the same problem here in Alaska with farmed salmon. They don't allow it in Alaska, but in B.C. it is quite prevalent. Atlantic salmon escape their pens all the time (the choice of salmon ranchers) are being caught frequently in fishermen's nets these days.

IMO there is too much obsession with big horns (trophies) and not enuff on the hunting/outdoor experience and fair chase ethics, even here at this site.

MM

 

[bobcats]

Word is that there are at least 4-400" plus bulls that were on the loose.

How would you feel/judge a guy that is out hunting and shoots one of the beasts then gets up to it and finds a earring in it's ear. Everyone is going to give you crap about high fencing it even though you shot it open range.

 

[Outdoordan]

I wish I knew how it happened. I bet they had the bulls seperated from the cows, and the bulls just took out the fence to get to the cows? They will probably get them tested when they shoot the elk, I hope they don't have CWD, cause I don't think Idaho has CWD yet.

 

[257Tony]

>Word is that there are at
>least 4-400" plus bulls that
>were on the loose.
>
>How would you feel/judge a guy
>that is out hunting and
>shoots one of the beasts
>then gets up to it
>and finds a earring in
>it's ear. Everyone is going
>to give you crap about
>high fencing it even though
>you shot it open range.
>

Remove the tag from the ear, done!

 

[rumproast]

The headliner from Thursday's Casper Star-Tribune has a little blurb in it I didn't see in today's news:

"Cleveland(Wyo G&F Director) said officials from his office called Idaho and understood the escaped elk are red deer elk, a sub-species of elk not found in North America, 'which would clearly impact the gene pool of native Rocky Mountain elk in the (greater Yellowstone area) and in Wyoming'."

Maybe I missed it in today's stuff, but this was on the front page in the article from yesterday.

 

[BrianID]

I hope this gets the ball rolling and high fenced hunts become illegal in Idaho.

 

[shortmag]

This is serious stuff. On both a genetic level and pathogen level there may be ramifications. Every CWD outbreak has had a operation like this at it's epicenter. "Superior" genetics are in the eye of the beholder. Fitness is also required in the wild not just inches of horn. Down the road we may see population declines due to comingling of genetics. If red deer are truly involved then we may be hunting hybrids in the future rather than Rocky Mountain elk. When is Idaho going to pull their head out of a dark place and change their stance on these operations? I hope there is a ground swell of opposition to these operations and the jeapordy they pose.

 

[Chesterwyo]

wolves will take care of all those elk quickly since they have no servival instincts

 

[gilabulls]

Hey guys my thought is how many hunters will be in search of these elk, with an orange ear tag in their pockets?
Shoot first tag later?????????????????
What an opportunity to get that big bull you've be watching early!
Dont even start that witch hunt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
gilabulls.

 

[Triple_BB]

I'd like to see the state of Wyoming sue the ahole for all costs associated with erradicating animals that cross into Wyoming. The problem is, these are red deer and the breeding season is underway. There's a good chance Rocky Mountain cow elk are starting to be bred. The guys a sh*t bag for not reporting the escape when it happened...

 

[TripleK]

>This is serious stuff. On
>both a genetic level and
>pathogen level there may be
>ramifications.

Down the
>road we may see population
>declines due to comingling of
>genetics. If red deer
>are truly involved then we
>may be hunting hybrids in
>the future rather than Rocky
>Mountain elk.

The way I understand it too, is that the Red Deer gene is a dominant gene and the RME gene is recessive. There won't just be comingling. The RME could be wiped out. I HATE elk ranching!!! Hate it! Hate it! Hate it!

 

[bobcats]

Update..............

Article published Sep 13, 2006

F&G may open hunt for escaped elk, but owner says animals pose no threat

Idaho Fish and Game Director Steve Huffaker said he may enlist Idaho hunters to help the department exterminate elk that escaped from a private farm near Tetonia in eastern Idaho. But he wants to make sure the hunt is safe and orderly.

Fish and Game teams have killed 10 elk since Monday, after Gov. Jim Risch issued an executive order Thursday authorizing the elimination of all of the elk that escaped from the Chief Joseph Elk Ranch.

Risch ordered the herd's destruction to protect wild elk from mixing with the farm-raised elk and to stop the potential spread of disease.
But ranch owner Rex Rammell, a veterinarian, said Tuesday Risch?s order was unnecessary. His animals aren't diseased, and they are pure Rocky Mountain elk, just like those found in the area south of Yellowstone National Park.

?Even if the elk weren't recovered, it is anything but an emergency,? Rammell said.

Idaho Department of Agriculture officials can't confirm yet either the health of Rammell?s herd or its genetic purity. When last inspected in June, some elk in Rammell?s herd did not have the colored tags required by law, said John Chatburn, animal industries administrator for the department.

It's the same violation the department charged Rammell with in 2004 and that was upheld by a hearing officer. Rammell?s appeal to District Court was denied, and the case is now before the Idaho Supreme Court.

?We are in the midst of a very intense, ongoing investigation,? Chatburn said. ?We'll know more here in the next week or so.?
In 2002, the Idaho Legislature voted to forgive more than $750,000 in fines that Rammell had accrued in a long dispute with the Department of Agriculture.

The bill passed the House on a 61-1 vote, with support of then-Rep. Cameron Wheeler of Ririe, who now is a Fish and Game commissioner. It passed the Senate, 27-0, with Risch?s support.
The escaped elk are concentrated in an approximately 40-square-mile area north of Tetonia, Huffaker said.

Bow hunters already are allowed to kill elk across a far larger swath of eastern Idaho because that season is open, and Huffaker is concerned about disturbing their hunt by allowing rifle hunters to shoot Rammell?s elk.

Before approving a depredation hunt, Huffaker wants to ensure he can keep hunters from trespassing on private land and get them to concentrate their efforts where Fish and Game needs them.
?We?re looking at logistics, we're talking to landowners and learning as we go,? Huffaker said.

If he authorizes the hunt, it would be limited to hunters with elk tags for the area and those who already have signed up for depredation hunts there.

?If we decide to do this, we want to ensure we can kill as many elk as possible in a safe and orderly manner,? Huffaker said.

He won't do anything before coordinating with Risch, he said.

The escape was reported to Department of Agriculture officials Aug. 14 by a neighbor who said she saw 110 elk out in her hayfield.

Rammell canceled scheduled back surgery Aug. 15 and led a group of friends and relatives as they rounded up as many of the elk as they could, he said.

?I was in trees chasing elk with a pinched nerve,? Rammell said.
He said he and his family had rounded up 30 to 40 of the escaped elk before last week.

After Risch issued his order to kill Rammell?s elk, hunters flocked to the area Friday seeking to kill the animals until Fish and Game told them they couldn't, Rammell said.

?Everything was under control until the governor made his order,? Rammell said.

Rammell said he had tested the elk himself for tuberculosis and brucellosis, which causes cattle to abort their fetuses. He also said he sends samples of all elk that die on his ranch for testing for chronic wasting disease, the elk and deer version of mad cow disease.

So far, the disease has not been found in Idaho.

But he said he doesn't know exactly how many elk he has or how many he lost because his land is heavily wooded and he doesn't know how many of his cows calved this year.

He and his family caught 10 bull elk Friday night. He denies Fish and Game reports that he was hazing the elk into the timber away from the agency?s shooters.

Rammell said he is considering legal action and intends to make sure Risch is held accountable for his order, which Rammell said is an assault on private property rights.

?It's going to cost him big politically,? Rammell said.

But the Idaho Elk Breeders Association said in a press release it ?strongly? supported Risch?s order and will review the need for additional regulatory authority to prevent similar occurrences.

Gary Queen, president of the Idaho Elk Breeders Association said he agrees with Rammell that his animals are healthy and are no threat to the genetic purity of the wild herd.

But Queen said his job is to protect the industry, which is why he supports Risch?s emergency order.

?I'm not here to defend him and I'm not here to condemn him,? Queen said. ?I don't know all the facts of what happened down there.?

Rammell said he's told other elk ranchers to support him or risk losing their own businesses to opponents of game ranching.

?They?ve been looking for every good reason to turn the public against us,? Rammell said. ?They?re not just after me ? they're after everybody.?
To offer story ideas or comments, contact reporter Rocky Barker at [email protected] or 377-6484. -

 

[idhunters]

The positive side of this is the issue has brought "shooter bull" operations into the front page of the local paper. There is a huge groundswell of local opposition building. I think that very soon there will be some political action heading in the direction of banning these types of operations. The local F&G is being over whelmed with phone calls against these. Hopefully the Dept. of Agriculture will also get the message.

 

[IDarcher]

The gist I get is that the Rammel claimed that a bear tore down the fence, but when you speak with the locals and people who know the area, the elk ran out of feed. I have spoke with a couple of guys who archery hunt that zone and they have seen inside the enclsoure and it is like a like a ball diamond, no groceries to be had, heard that Rammel had been putting out some hay, but the elk had had enough. The other interesting part is that operators of these "shooter" operations are required to bury remains. There are some photos floating around that show gut piles inside of Rammel's fence. If the bear story happens to be true, Rammel probably brought this on himself for failing to adhere to yet another on of the criteria for operating such an operation. The man has been nothing but a cancer from day one. Listening to he and his family on TV and in the press makes me sick. They put out this sob story of how picked on they are and that they are just trying to make a living. I truly hope that this is the straw that breaks the proverbial camel's back and that domestic wildlife operations go the way of the passenger pigeon. I also hope that this puts pressure on the Idaho Department of Ag. to be more aggressive in dealing with domestic wildlife issues in this state....

 

[bobcats]

LAST EDITED ON Sep-14-06 AT 08:25AM (MST)[p]Couple updates I missed...

8 domesticated elk killed by game officers

State game officers Monday shot and killed eight elk they said had escaped from a private hunting reserve and posed a threat to the genetic purity of wild herds roaming the Yellowstone National Park area on the Idaho-Wyoming border.

The five cow and three young elk were the first domesticated elk killed under an emergency order issued by Idaho Gov. Jim Risch on Thursday, authorizing state agents to destroy the estimated 75 to 160 farm-raised elk that escaped in mid-August from the Chief Joseph's hunter's reserve near Rexburg. The private hunting reserve, owned by veterinarian Rex Rammell, charges clients $5,995 to shoot one of the trophy-sized domesticated elk.

More than two dozen officers using aerial spotters had been unable to locate any of the escaped elk since the emergency harvest began Saturday. Idaho Fish and Game Department Director Steve Huffaker blamed the early lack of success on efforts by Rammell and his associates to keep the elk away from state shooters.
"We learned over the weekend the owner of these animals has been out there on four-wheelers hazing them and running them back into the trees, so we just left Sunday to let things settle down," Huffaker told The Associated Press Monday. "We went back in there with a small crew this morning and they were able to kill eight and spot several more."

Rammell did not return a message from The Associated Press left at his ranch Monday. In a weekend interview, his wife told the AP they had been working to lure the elk back into the private hunting enclosure with oats, grain and molasses before state officers could shoot them.
"We've been up there and we've been chasing them trying to get them in and trying to bait them in," said Lynda Rammell. "If they would have given us more time, we would have gotten more of them in."

Huffaker acknowledged tensions were high between the Rammells and the state officers ordered to kill as many of Rammell's elk they can find to avoid potential introduction of disease and crossbreeding with wild elk.

 

[bobcats]

Officers kill 4 more elk that fled farm
Owner has recovered about 40 animals but says state's action keeps him from rounding up more

Idaho authorities killed four more elk Wednesday as part of an effort to destroy an unknown number of the animals that escaped last month from a private hunting reserve near Yellowstone National Park.

State officers, acting on Gov. Jim Risch's Aug. 7 declaration of a disease and gene-pool crisis facing wild herds, have shot 14 elk since the emergency harvest operation began Saturday. At least four of the elk did not have ear tags identifying them as domesticated animals owned by Rexburg veterinarian Rex Rammell, who operates the Chief Joseph "shooter bull" reserve where between 75 and 160 elk escaped in mid-August.

State officials fear the farmed elk will breed with wild elk during the fall mating season.
Rammell has demanded the state stop shooting his elk and allow him to try to recapture them by baiting catch pens with grain and molasses. He has disputed claims his elk may spread disease or pollute the genetics of the area's wild herds.

Rammell has recovered about 40 head ? including 10 prized bulls ? but said Wednesday he can't round up more because of the state's intense hunting effort.
"They've scattered them everywhere," he told The Associated Press. "And if they're shooting elk without ear tags, then they're killing wild elk because all my elk have been tagged."

Rammell had an ongoing legal battle with elk farm regulators for the state departments of Agriculture and of Fish and Game before last month's escape escalated tensions.

State officials say he had been cited for failing to maintain fencing and for failing to use brightly colored ear tags to distinguish his elk from wild animals. Rammell says he's using U.S. Department of Agriculture-approved aluminum ear tags that are in compliance with state law and visible from 150 feet away.
Fish and Game spokesman Niels Nokkentved said state shooters Wednesday killed a young "spike" bull, a mature bull with branched antlers, and two cow elk. Three of the four elk had ear tags; one of the cows did not.

State officials are collecting blood, tissue, hair and fecal samples from the dead elk to test for potential livestock maladies such as parasites. A Canadian lab is examining the samples to determine the genetics of the elk and whether they had been crossbred with red deer. Test results may not be available for two weeks, Nokkentved said.

 

[bobcats]

This'll get everyone fired up......It's from the Idaho Statesman

Our View: Elk escape shouldn't tarnish industry

The largest escape of domestic elk in Idaho history raises questions about the industry ? and its relationship to wild game and Idaho values.

We shouldn't overreact to the point of hurting the entire elk industry. Idaho leaders should closely examine the difference between elk farms and hunting ranches to see that laws adequately regulate both ? and make sure Idahoans are comfortable with the new business of canned hunts.

Idaho is home to about 78 ranches and 6,500 head of domestic elk, compared with hundreds of thousands of wild elk.
Most ranches raise elk for antlers used for medicinal purposes and for meat for restaurants. Elk also are sold between ranchers. A few ranches, and it's unclear how many, allow private hunts that are not regulated by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, which means there are no seasons or limits.

All elk ranchers are required to follow a set of rules and regulations formulated by industry members and the Idaho Department of Agriculture, the state agency that oversees the private elk breeders just as it does the cattle industry. Rules include regular testing for diseases, tracking the buying and selling of each animal and making sure elk are tagged so if they do escape, they can be distinguished from wild game.
Raising domestic elk is legal business here, as in many Western states. It is illegal to import hybrids or red deer. No Idaho domestic elk has ever been tested positive for chronic wasting disease, brucellosis or tuberculosis.

So what is everyone afraid of?

Right now it's one man's antics, which raise unfair questions about the ranching industry. The more appropriate questions should challenge the business of private hunting ranches and why one man has gotten so many breaks from state officials.
Rex Rammell owns a hunting preserve near Rexburg where elk are bred for large antlers and canned hunts for rich people willing to pay thousands for a guaranteed kill. At least 70 and up to 160 of his elk escaped last month, according to the Department of Agriculture. No one knows for sure because it is unclear whether his elk are wearing required ear tags that must be visible from 150 feet away. Rammell has had hefty fines assessed in the past for failing to apply tags because, as he has said, the tags ruin a hunting experience.

Inspectors also have said he has improperly maintained fencing and protested a law requiring testing for the incurable, devastating CWD.
Rammell said Tuesday he doesn't know how many elk he has on his ranch because the ranch offers so much cover. Hunting ranches usually are large, making the elk more elusive and harder to monitor and control.

This makes us nervous and suspicious. Gov. Jim Risch must have had the same reaction, because he authorized the immediate destruction of all the escaped animals.

Idaho's wildlife has been spared CWD ? unlike in Wyoming, Montana and Utah ? and we should take extraordinary measures against this disease.
Rammell, meanwhile, has defied the rules and challenged officials and successfully lobbied the Legislature to forgive some $750,000 in fines for repeated violations.

The escape of his elk has caused a furor and, given Idahoans' innate love of nature, that's understandable. State officials and wildlife lovers should act on the moment:
? The Department of Agriculture should fully investigate Rammell and any other rancher that comes under suspicion.

? Lawmakers should be comfortable that current laws for elk ranches also apply for canned hunting ranches.

? And we should ask ourselves whether canned hunts ? banned in Wyoming and Montana ? fit with the values of Idaho.

 

[bobcats]

Elk on the loose prove elusive for state hunters

Some animals have been recaptured by owner, most likely hiding from hunters in grain fields, thick timber

Up to 160 domesticated elk that fled an Idaho hunting reserve remain elusive. A helicopter, a fixed-wing plane and more than 25 state agents failed to locate any during the first day of an emergency hunt meant to keep the animals from mingling with wild herds.

"There's only two kinds of cover in that area where the elk are: grain fields, and very thick timber," Idaho Department of Fish and Game director Steve Huffaker said Sunday, a day after the search. "We had a trained observer in the helicopter, and he said, 'We could have had 1,000 elk underneath us, and we still wouldn't have seen them.' "

Huffaker hadn't yet been apprised of Sunday's progress by Fish and Game and the Department of Agriculture, in eastern Idaho near Rexburg. Some of the elk were rounded up by the owner Friday, he said.
"I just want them out of the wild," Huffaker said. "So, if he traps them, or we kill them, those are equally good options. We just want to make sure they're healthy, and to make sure they're really elk and not really hybrids."

The elk escaped before Aug. 14 from the Chief Joseph hunter's reserve that's owned by Rex Rammell, a veterinarian who charges guests up to $5,995 to shoot one of the large bulls he's bred to have enormous antlers.
Rammell didn't report their flight, as is required by law, said state officials including Gov. Jim Risch, who fear the animals might spread illness and hurt the genetic purity of wild herds ? including those in nearby Yellowstone National Park, just 10 miles away.

Risch authorized the animals' "immediate destruction" Thursday.

He'd originally asked the Fish and Game Commission to open a so-called "depredation hunt" allowing licensed hunters and private landowners to shoot the animals. Commissioners opted instead to monitor the situation over the weekend. Huffaker said he's not ready to make a decision yet on public depredation hunts.
"The Fish and Game biologists and conservation officers, and (hunters) from the Department of Agriculture are very good elk hunters," he said. "If they haven't been able to find them, I doubt the general public is going to do a whole lot better."

Rammell's wife, Lynda, told The Associated Press that employees at Chief Joseph and others had rounded up about a dozen loose elk Friday evening. They're being held in a pen on private property. She said the family didn't report the elk because they didn't know they'd gone missing.
The couple, who according to the Chief Joseph's Web site charge $1 million for a membership in their hunting preserve that includes a site for a home, dispute that the animals carry diseases, and maintain their genetic quality is superior to wild elk.

Rex Rammell has tangled with the state Department of Agriculture in the past over its efforts to get him to tag his domesticated elk. His wife said he's being unfairly branded a rogue game farmer by state officials who don't like his operation.

 

[bobcats]

Article published Sep 29, 2006

2:07 p.m. ? Eastern Idaho elk rancher arrested after confronting F&G officers

An Eastern Idaho elk rancher was arrested this morning after confronting Idaho Fish and Game Officers who had shot four elk that escaped from his ranch, an Idaho Department of Fish and Game official said.

Fish and Game offices were preparing to haul the elk away near Rex Rammell?s Fremont County ranch when Rammell confronted them and tried to stop them from removing the carcasses, Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Steve Schmidt said.

The officers called Fremont County Sheriff?s deputies, who arrested Rammell when he continued to interfere with the Fish and Game officers. More than 100 domestic elk escaped in mid-August from Rammell?s Chief Joseph ranch south of Yellowstone National Park.

Fish and Game officers fear the elk could pollute the wild elk gene pool and introduce diseases, like chronic wasting disease, and commissioned a public hunt of the animals. Earlier this month, Rammell sold the ranch to a California resident.