Deadbeat rancher Cliven Bundy has long been criticized for the “management” of his herd of cattle. The Justice Department noted that his hands-off approach to the herd was borderline cruelty:
The Justice Department describes Bundy's ranching operation as negligent to the point of cruelty in sending half-wild cattle to graze illegally on protected lands without supervision. Unvaccinated and susceptible to illness, the cattle have little contact with humans and Bundy often has no idea where they are, the government said.
The cattle were left out during harsh winters, according to the Justice Department memo, their lives coming down to "fighting off predators and scrounging for the meager amounts of food and water available in the difficult and arid terrain that comprises the public lands" in the Nevada desert.
With winter behind us and the calendar well into the spring months, Bundy’s cows are still roaming the Nevada desert. Untreated, unvaccinated and with very little food or water. Due to Bundy’s negligent “management” over time, the herd has grown from 150 cattle to an estimated 1,000 cattle. And many are apparently slowly starving to death in the Nevada desert.
The Reno Gazette-Journal emailed Nevada officials to find out why they haven’t been rounded up:
Flint Wright, the department’s animal industry administrator for the Nevada, replied by email:
“We have not received any substantiated reports of Cliven Bundy’s cattle starving on the Golden Butte allotment — though this may be true to some extent, as Cliven’s management practices leave a lot to be desired.
“Yes the cattle are in trespass and some are unbranded, and therefore feral and estray. Also yes, per [Nevada Revised Statute] 569, that makes them state property. However, because they are trespassed on BLM ground with a court order in effect, it would require BLM or the court to authorize the [Nevada Department of Agriculture] to perform any sort of gather of the cattle.”
Sooooo, passing the buck to the Bureau of Land Management? The Reno Gazette-Journal reached out to the agency:
Rudy Evenson of BLM Nevada responded with this statement: “The Bureau of Land Management too is concerned about the welfare and condition of the cattle and has discussed this situation with other interested parties such as the Humane Society of the United States. Unfortunately, all previous attempts to remove Mr. Bundy’s trespass cattle from the public lands have been met with threats of violence and most recently with an armed assault on law enforcement officers.”
A Fish and Wildlife Department representative told E&E News that the herd will be hard to round up:
But removing Bundy's ornery, battle-tested herd -- estimated by one Nevada official to be worth up to $800,000 -- will be expensive, logistically difficult and potentially dangerous.
"It's like hunting cape buffalo," said Ken Mayer, the former director of Nevada's Department of Wildlife. "They're nasty, they're smart, and they won't hesitate to charge.”
And then there are the threats of resistance and violence from Bundy supporters:
Yet if BLM does plan another impoundment operation, it may be difficult to find a willing contractor. Three of the previous firms BLM has hired have faced protests and intimidation from the Bundys.
One of the many threats sent by Cliven Bundy to a contractor:
"I will serve you and yours and company a constructive notice making you and anyone aiding or abetting with you accountable for all loss, damages, or expenses to my life, liberty, and property," Bundy warned the company. "RANGE WAR!”
So for now, the cows continue to roam the Gold Butte area of Nevada. There is currently a petition with 6,000 signatures asking the state of Nevada and the BLM to take urgent action. With Cliven Bundy and four of his sons behind bars, it’s time for the cows to find a new home.