* Update from the Field
*
Contact Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer
*
West Coast & South West Road Shows Continue
*
Last Words
*
Media and Outreach
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*
UPDATE FROM THE FIELD
Dear Buffalo Friends,
Our thoughts are with the bull buffalo that were
imprisoned in the Duck Creek capture facility last
night, after having been captured at 1:50 yesterday
afternoon. As I write, frozen rain is falling on the
West Yellowstone area, and buffalo are on their way to
slaughter.
Yesterday was a tough day for us in the field, as we
witnessed the first bison capture of the season. Our
patrol day began at 8:30 am, when we arrived in
Yellowstone Village on Horse Butte to find Department of
Livestock (DOL) agents unloading two horses.
We found two bulls not very far up the road, and they
were among the most beautiful buffalo we'd ever seen.
The larger of the two was deep black, with a shiny coat
and thick fur on his front legs. They were both
wonderfully healthy and in their prime. And they held
their ground firmly.
It was hours before the agents were able to get the
bison out of the subdivision. Eventually, the buffalo
reached the property adjacent to the capture facility,
(a safe zone where agents are not allowed to harass
them), and began to graze peacefully, as if they hadn't
just been chased eight miles through thick forest.
After a few minutes of waiting impatiently, the
livestock agents pulled out their ATVs and began
circling the property, hooting and
hollering and making as much noise as they could. When
that didn't work they took out their shotguns and began
firing cracker
rounds--loud explosive charges--hoping the noise would
cause the buffalo to move. When that didn't work, they
loaded up even louder cracker rounds that exploded with
deafening booms that could be heard for miles around.
This got the buffalo going, and once they were on Dale
Koelzer's property, where the Duck Creek bison trap is
located, the agents began chasing them towards the park.
We had been told earlier that the plan was to chase the
bulls into the park, but as they reached the entrance of
the capture facility, the agents on ATVs sped past the
buffalo, turned, and began to chase them away from the
park. That's when we knew we had been lied to (again)
and the agents were intending to capture the bulls.
After about 10 or 15 minutes of being chased in circles
around the trap, the buffalo were captured, the gates
closed, and their fates sealed.
We stood stunned on the opposite shore of the creek
overlooking the capture facility. One of us was a brand
new volunteer, having just arrived yesterday. Welcome to
Montana.
We sat watching the capture facility for five hours,
waiting for the transport to arrive that would bring
these magnificent creatures to
their deaths. But it never came. The sounds of the bulls
kicking madly at the walls of their prison were the only
clue we had that
they were still alive as we left our positions at
sunset.
Though we knew that we had to get up well before sunrise
for this morning's patrol, we had a difficult time
getting to sleep, and we
stayed up late talking about buffalo we had known and
loved; honoring the spirits of these two doomed
brothers.
At around 7 this morning the report came over the radio
from the patrol on duty that the two bulls, along with a
third that was
captured separately, had been loaded onto trailers and
shipped north out of town.
The Department of Livestock won't answer our questions
or return our phone calls about what they plan to do
with these bison, but they are no longer here, and the
slaughterhouse is the only place they can be heading
from here.
Ironically, it was the buffalos' tenacity; their strong
will to resist the force of the agents that the state
vet, Tom Linfield, blamed on their decision to capture
them. He called the bulls "fractious," meaning hard to
manage. But that's just the kind of quality that we
expect in a wild animal, and strive for in ourselves.
May we forever fight these attempts to domesticate us,
cage us and turn us into slaves of commerce, as these
buffalo help us remember the wildness of our souls.
Today we honor these buffalo as heroes, and mourn them
as brothers. Peace.
P.S. You can read BFC's press release from yesterday at
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/press0607/
pressreleases0607/pressreleases0607.html
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*
CONTACT MONTANA GOVERNOR BRIAN
SCHWEITZER
Montana claims their war against wild buffalo is due to
the
cattle-borne disease brucellosis. Cattle gave
brucellosis to
buffalo, yet the livestock interests say they "fear"
buffalo "may"
transmit brucellosis to their cattle. Yet even where
wild buffalo
and cattle have coexisted for decades (Grand Teton
National Park),
this has never happened. Cattle brought the disease to
our wildlife,
so why aren't we protecting them from livestock
diseases? Elk also
carry brucellosis, yet they are (rightfully) free to
come and go
across Montana's borders. Moreover, bull buffalo,
yearlings, and
non-pregnant females cannot transmit brucellosis.
Pregnant buffalo
pose only a theoretical risk. Regardless of the facts,
the science,
and the natural right of native buffalo to roam their
ancestral
lands, Montana maintains it's nefarious zero tolerance
policy against
wild buffalo and enlists the federal government to aid
them in the
battle. Montana's governor, Brian Schweitzer, earned his
election,
in part, on promises that wild buffalo would "enjoy more
tolerance"
when he took office. He made public statements that the
DOL is
"ill-equipped" to manage wild buffalo. He's also been
recently
quoted in the media stating that he wants a new plan and
aims to
increase tolerance for wild buffalo. How long must the
buffalo wait,
Governor? So far, the only "tolerance" Montana or its
governor has
shown wild buffalo is the slaughterhouse or a canned
hunt. A
cattleman himself, Governor Schweitzer has done nothing
to show
tolerance for wild buffalo and we hold him responsible
for the
continued death and harassment the country's last wild
buffalo suffer
at the hands of the Montana Department of Livestock and
all involved
agencies. He talks the talk, but just when does he plan
to walk the
walk? How many more buffalo will needlessly die before
any real
action is taken?
Please contact Governor Schweitzer today and remind him
what the
definition of "tolerance" is.
Governor Brian Schweitzer
State Capitol
Helena, MT 59620-0801
Phone: 1-406-444-3111
Fax: 1-406-444 5529
Email: BrianSchweitzer@mt.gov
Remind him that wild buffalo, not cattle, are the
natural, native,
rightful roamers of this land. Remind him that there's
never been a
documented case of wild buffalo transmitting brucellosis
to domestic
cattle and that bulls cannot transmit the disease. Let
him know you
see this war for what it is: a centuries-old range war,
all about
the grass and who gets to eat it. If you are Montana
resident,
please say so. If you are from elsewhere in the country
or around
the globe, remind him that the Yellowstone herd is the
last wild herd
residing in an ecosystem of World Heritage significance.
Tell him
you will not spend one dime in Montana until wild
buffalo are free to
roam and respected as native wildlife in Montana. If you
are a
hunter, remind him that habitat needs to come before a
hunt and that
livestock interests have no wits for or place in
wildlife management.
Remind him that wild buffalo are a living embodiment of
this
country's strength, beauty and wisdom, and that Montana
alone is
responsible for it's destruction. Tell him how
distasteful you find
it that Montana shows the world how they feel about
buffalo by using
a buffalo skull on license plates and quarters as the
signature of
the state. Tell him you, too, envision a "new Montana,"
one where
wild buffalo are not just tolerated, but respected and
valued as the
awesome beings so critical to the health of the land and
the people.
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* WEST COAST & SOUTH WEST ROAD SHOWS
CONTINUE
BFC's road shows are still going strong, yet our buffalo
warriors are
beginning to wind down the long journey of spreading the
word to save
the last wild herd. Check out the schedule and please
try to join us
and also encourage others to attend a presentation near
you.
West Coast Road Show:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/aboutus/roadshowswest2006.html
Contact Jesse, Mike or Seamus at
jesse@thisside.net
South West Road Show:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/aboutus/
roadshowsouthwest2006.html
Contact Josh at
bfc-advocate@wildrockies.org
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* LAST WORDS
"It doesn't make any sense to haul (the bison) up and
bring them to slaughter," Schweitzer told the ranchers
as they sat around a large conference table.
~ Governor Brian Schweitzer, Bozeman Chronicle, April
13, 2006
"Under the current law, they don't have to test [the
bison]... they can haul them directly to slaughter.
That's the best place, I like
them the best because they don't come back."
~ Dale Koelzer, May 17, 2006. Koelzer is the owner of
the private property where the government-run Duck Creek
bison trap is located.
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* MEDIA AND OUTREACH
Buffalo Field Campaign
P.O. Box 957
West Yellowstone, MT 59758
406-646-0070
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org
BFC is the only group working in the field every day
to defend the last wild herd of buffalo in America.
Stay informed! Get our weekly email Updates from the
Field:
Send your email address to
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
BOYCOTT BEEF! It's what's killing wild buffalo.
Speak Out! Contact politicians and involved agencies
today:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/politicians.html
Write a Letter to the Editor of key newspapers:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/lte.html
Help the buffalo by recycling your used cell phones &
printer cartridges:
It's free and easy.
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/support/recycleprint.html
.
******************************************************************************************
View Video Footage from this Season:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org
------------------------------
Make a Secure Online Donation to BFC:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/bisonmerchandise/
bisonmerchandise.html
------------------------------
Why are they killing the last wild buffalo?
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/issueinbrief.html
------------------------------
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Send your email address to
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