His property is fenced, but some people cut his fences to move Gibbons' cattle off their property onto his. Crowley added that no enforcement agencies want to deal with the problem. The battle will be ongoing, Gibbons believes, but she would like to have people talk to her instead of complaining to officials. Tom Bender, a neighbor of Gibbons and a county commissioner-elect, refused to sign the petition circulated last summer. He said he tries to encourage people to erect fences to protect their property.
Leases pose problems Two types of situations are common in the present-day range wars.
Subdivisions may border Forest Service land, which is often leased out for grazing during the summer months. Or, a development may border a working ranch. The fencing issue is especially tricky when federal grazing leases are involved, because the government is not obligated to build or maintain fences along its boundaries and cattle owners do not want to invest in fencing on land they don't own. Cows may wander off the leased land, especially in the fall when their instincts tell them it's time to head for lower ground. In the case of private grazing land, most ranchers these days try to keep their property fenced, both to minimize conflicts and to keep better track of their animals.