I’ll admit that over the past few months, I have become “Internet” friends with some of the members of the Idaho Elk Breeders Association. In my determination to help protect the rights of individuals and property owners, I have worked with many of the ranchers in presenting a united front. You would think that after all that has been presented in the news, on television, on radio, in hearings held in the Idaho Senate and a complete myriad of other sources, that just once a media outlet would be concerned with the elk rancher. Just once!

When Rulon Jones opened his elk ranch just east of Firth, some deer and elk got trapped behind his fences. Attempts were made to chase the animals out. I have never visited Jones’ 2,000 acre spread but from the accounts I have read, it is comprised of a lot of forested range and rugged landscape making all attempts at removing the wild animals difficult and unsuccessful. It has now been decided to hunt down and kill the wild animals.

What I find puzzling, if that be the word to use here, is that I have read two accounts of this at two different Idaho news websites. The second one I read today from Local News 8. Never once in the entire report is there any mention of how keeping the wild deer and elk inside the pen might negatively effect Jones’ elk operation.

The Idaho Fish and Game say that they have a policy to protect wild animals from disease.

“The Department of Fish and Game does have a zero tolerance policy for allowing animals to return to free ranging status, when they’ve come in contact or been exposed to domestic elk,” said Fish & Game officer, Mark Gamblin.

Fish and Game officials say since the wild deer and elk have come in contact with Jones’ animals, that there is a slight chance for disease called chronic wasting disease, but Fish and Game officials say the only way to test animals for the disease is to test them after they’re killed.

The article tells of talking with one Idaho sportsman who doesn’t think that killing these animals is necessary.

Dale Hofine says the disease has never been found here in Idaho and thinks killing the animals is a little extreme.

“There is no chronic wasting in this area and none has ever been proven. So, I understand where that is a concern, I don’t think it should be a top priority.” said Hofine.

While Hofine speaks the truth in saying that no cases of chronic wasting disease have been found in Idaho, his concerns remain only with the wild animals. So where do the elk ranchers fall in the hierarchy of things?

That’s easy if you take it from the news accounts. First, the wild animals are the number one concern. The reports are always about whether domestic elk will contaminate wild elk, never the other way around. Let’s understand this a bit better. There have been reports that chronic wasting disease is first discovered in domestic herds. Wouldn’t it make sense that they would? Wouldn’t you think that it would be far easier to test and detect disease in domestic animals long before you would in wild animals simply because they are contained? Because of this, leaps in logic and poor reporting tells us that chronic wasting disease is caused by domesticating wild animals.

Second on the list of priorities is the hunter/sportsmen. Any talk of disease and in this case the killing of several wild deer and elk, is always about how that is going to affect the ability of a hunter to bag his game. Having concern about the spread of chronic wasting disease is something we should all consider but as Hofine said, “I don’t think it should be a top priority”.

I might be wrong but I think Hofine’s number one concern was just that these deer and elk were going to be unnecessarily killed. He might be right but what about the rancher? Does anyone care about the rancher?

Not yet! Before even the rancher, people are more concerned about the fish and game department and then the rancher’s animals. Why can’t just one reporter go visit an elk rancher and ask them about their industry? Ask them about the efforts they put into protecting their animals from the ones outside their fences? Why don’t they ask what risks are assumed from catching disease from wild animals?

This is an area that needs attention. The elk industry has made great strides in educating the public. I would suppose that with the obvious bias and effortless reporting that exists, people will seldom read or hear facts, only what is fed to them by the same old sources. This has to change.

We need to figure out a way to get the elk rancher off the bottom of this list.

Tom Remington

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