The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-07-11
ENORMOUS LOSS
OF STOCK IN WEST
Storms, Droughts and Ravages of Wild
Animals and Disease Strew Ranges
with Bones of Cattle and Sheep.

the West dies before it reaches mar
can be stopped is shown by results re
ported from the national forests. This |
waste is said to add millions Of dol |
lars to the people meat bill and |
gives one more cause of the high cost |
of living Winter storms and sum
mer droughts strew the ranges with |
the bones of cattle and sheep: preda-
tory animals take a heavy toll; poison
Gus plants sometimes kill half the ami
mails in a herd almost over night. Cat
tie contract anthrax, blackleg and
other diseases, get stuck in big holes.
Slip off icy hillsides, and sheep pile up
and die Of suffocation. Insects which
madden and kill swell the total losses
as do a multitude of other minor
causes of death and injury.
How Disease Is Prevented.
If any of the animals to be grazed
upon Il national forest seem to be suf-
fering from disease, the stock is sub
lected to a rigid inspection by the fed
eral bureau of animal industry before
it is allowed to enter the forest. If
an animal grazing on the forest devel-
ops suspicious symptoms the permittee
is requested to remove it. The ear
casses of animals dying from infec-
tious or communicable diseases must
be buried or burned, preferably the
latter. 10 protect their stock against
blackleg ipermlttees are encouraged to
use vaccine furnished free by the de
partment of agriculture. Sheep suf-
| fering from scab or from lip and leg
| disease are barred from the forests un-
| til they have been treated in conform
| ity with the requirements of the bu-
reau of animal industry. This coop
| GRAFTON between the two bureaus has
made it possible to keep the forest
ranges remarkably free from all forms
| of stock disease.
Stock Killed by Wild Beasts
The settlement and development of
| the West does not appear to have
! greatly reduced the number of ami
mails (which prey upon domestic live
| stock, and the loss from that source
alone runs into the millions OF dollars
| each year. Within the forests, how
ever, the number CT domestic animals
| killed has been appreciably reduced by
| the campaign against wild animals
| waged by the officers of the service
| During the past eight years forest Of
| hcers have killed over $4,000 predatory
animals, consisting of coyotes, wolves,
| bear, mountain lion, wild eats, lynx
etc.
The losses due to poisonous plants
| have been in the. aggregate the most
numerous and the most difficult tc
guard against. Stockmen knew gen
| orally that certain flats or valleys OF
hillside slopes could not be used fol
grazing without heavy loss of stock
but there was much doubt as to what
caused the loss. Gradually it was de
termiued that the losses were due Il
various species of plants. Later, i
was learned that in most instances
these plants, while extremely poison
Gus during certain periods of the year
were comparatively innoxious during
the remainder of the grazing season
The forest officer determined the va
| rious plant species which cause dealt
or injury of live stock, the period
during which each species is danger
Gus, and the areas of forest land up
ON which the plants are sufficient,
abundant to cause losses OF stock.
The next step was to devise way
and means of preventing the losses
Where definite information is obtain
able the outer limits of the poison
areas are marked by warning placard
which give the name of the poisonou
plant, the Kind of stock 10 which it i
injurious, and the period during whicI
it is most harmful. With this warn
ing, stockmen are enabled to handl
their stock as to prevent the occupan
cy of the poison area during it's dan
ger period. In cases where the area
of poisonous plants are comparativel
small the permittees have been encoui
aged to fence them, material for fenc
, construction being furnished free O
charge by tho forest service. The re
suit Of this work has been to reduc
the number of animals lost throug
poisonous plants as compared to tn
numbers lost several years previously
Losses from Poison Unpreventable
= Notwithstanding all precaution
1 | which may be taken against stoc
I poisoning, losses from this source mus
, be expected. During the past seN
. eral years the bureau of plant indu,
try has been making u study of poi
onous plants and of antidotes IN til
| case vi laFhSpuF, IoI eAdHlple, the ID
| reau has determined methods [
treatment which are reasonably SUI
Cessful, under normal conditions III
5 only difficulty has been that the an
mails suffering from poison are gene
f ally out upon the open range and ma
: not be observed by their owner unit
: it is too late to apply an antidot
: The forest service has therefore u
: ranged to meet this situation in .
: experimental way by equipping
: limited number of rangers with hyp
L dermic syringes and the necessal
e chemicals Armed with this equipmel
e forest officer can in few momen
h administer a treatment which ms
/ save $40 steer.
Il Wornen's TWO Ages.