Did You Know Cattle Rustling is still a Thing?

I was scrolling thru faceborg today and had a post show up that reads as this…

Steve Mcendree

22h  ·

“Jamie and I would like to ask all of our friends and family to keep a watch out for around 80 head of our pregnant cows! A nice two semi loads of our mama cows are gone! After much looking it is pretty apparent that someone took advantage of their location near the corrals and went for an easy pay day. The cows have one of our two brands on their left hip. The S JM (connected) or the Lazy TC connected followed by a quarter circle. We are not looking for sympathy but want everyone too be aware that this is happening in our community. Watch out for unknown semi trucks and cattle trailers!!! Watch out for unknown pickups on our back roads!!!

Mostly black cows. Ear tags are predominately blue Y-Tex tags”

I also saw another post from a Veterinarian in Bennet CO who found that several someone’s had killed and stripped the meat off of one of her heifers and attempted to kill her steer that was in the same pen. Recent updates indicate the steer is recovering but was stabbed multiple times and had one punctured lung.

I won’t post those pictures as they were not pretty at all.

Cattle rustling is a Class 4 Felony in Colorado.

Class 4 Felonies

If you are found guilty for theft of property worth $20,000 to $100,000, you may have to part with $2,000 to $500,000 in fines or serve two to six years in prison, or both. Crimes in this category also include manslaughter, identity theft, sexual assault, and vehicular homicide.

I would be good with this going back to a hanging offense.

I do fear this trend, while it has never truly gone away over history, is back on an upswing as the economy and things in this country are going to shit.

I see more and more reports of this type of crime every year.

While living in Colorado, we heard of one of our neighbors who had several of his cattle stolen in the night. Another neighbor, who has watering pivots had all of them stripped of their copper wiring. His farm insurance company refused to pay out on his claim for this too, and he was out about $100K for the equipment.

Rural crime is and will continue to increase. Sadly, too many farms and ranches don’t have security measures in place, and this makes them an easy target for criminals.

Brands can be altered, and I don’t believe they do any brand checks for cattle crossing the southern border. Not all states have brand laws on their books either so stealing cows or moving them to areas where they won’t be found is altogether too easy. I know our local brand inspectors are usually quite busy, esp. this time of year when many ranchers are taking cows to the sale barn, so they don’t have to feed them over winter.

It is also not limited to cows. Sheep and horses are also stolen on a regular basis. This is the main reason why my sheep are in a corral at night 30 yards from my bedroom window with 5 large dogs that can raise the dead with their barking. They also stay in that corral if we are not home.

There has always been a criminal element when it comes to stock rustling. History is rife with stories of thefts, hangings, and trials throughout the west. Some of it has been theft for profit, some for theft for food. When people get hungry enough, they will take advantage of unwatched stock to feed their families. While I don’t want to see anybody go hungry, I cannot condone theft. If you're that hungry that you are contemplating stealing my sheep, come talk to me first. I will give you work in exchange for food. And I will expect you to work. As the saying goes, nothing in life is free. If you are going to try and take my sheep for your own monetary profit, you are going to have a very big problem with me. Just a fact.

If you have livestock, please make sure they are safe. Watch out for strangers that may be watching your place to figure out the easiest way to get at them. Put up some cameras. And if your outside, have some way of defending your animals. Network with your neighbors so you are all keeping an eye on other people’s places. Get to know your local brand inspector and keep in touch with what is going on in your area.

Blessed Be