I am starting to hear about goats being killed in the night
in my neighborhood. I am guessing
Mountain Lions. One person says, I lost two goats last night and the next thing all the neighbors are talking abut pets and farm animals they have lost. I listen incredulously at the cavalier attitude about animals and why it is happenning. Yanni wants or wanted goats. I said I really don't want any farm animals here until we have the ability to put them up safely at night. I suggested we move all cars out of the barns and set up proper stalls so that we could bring animals in and close up at night, he did not like that idea.
There is a reason early settlers almost wiped out mountain
lions, wolves, coyotes, bears and some of the Birds of Prey. It is hard to live with them. When I was a kid in the 60s I lived in a
rural new development in the East Bay, Fremont to be exact. We never saw coyotes, let alone the bigger
more interesting and menacing predators. The reason they were wiped out or pushed back to less desirable land is
because they are hard to live with. When humans want get ahead (or
survive) they need to take action. Predators can make a tough life even tougher to raise a family, to have neighbors, build towns and roads.
Large predators keep you one step behind because you are spending too
much time protecting what is necessary to survive.
Fast forward to this century, we are all elated when we spot
a wolf in California and outraged when we discover a beautiful white wolf was
killed. We want to “live with the wild animals”. I agree, I think it is the right thing to
do, but what are we willing to sacrifice to do that? What can we do to make it safe for all of us
including our animals and children and our neighbors?
Leaving food out encourages wild animals. Dog food in a pan outside or in the garage
encourages rats, mice and raccoons and perhaps a bear or two. Sloppy garbage habits encourages coyotes and
bears. Cats free ranging at night encourages
coyotes. Chickens out in the open encourages birds of prey, fox and others. Lastly goats and sheep and horses encourages the big game animals. We don’t
think of the goats we use to keep our grass mowed as bait to lure predators in,
but they are. Most wild animals do not have a taste for
human food or domestic animals until we teach them. Once
they taste it they find it is good and easier than wild game. Catching a goat in a fenced
area must be far easier than to actually have to hunt a wild deer especially if the lion knows there are more where that goat came from.
We can go back to shooting all predators on sight, problem solved. I think coyote are currently fair game anytime. If you really want to live
with wild life stop leaving all types of food out. Garages, heavy duty chain link kennels with
covers and concrete floors, barns are ways to keep animals in. The early settlers moved all livestock
inside. It is because of the early
settler's eradication efforts that we have this false sense of security today. Why do we think it is possible to leave our
animals outside and live in harmony with all living things? What are you willing to sacrifice? I have a neighbor who has a small herd of
sheep and goats with 2 emu and 1 llama and 2 large guardian dogs. Even they bring everything in at night!!
I love all wildlife and I love living close to wildlife but I don't like feeding and encouraging them so close to my home. It means there is no room for error on my part. If I were the neighbor of people who left food
out every night which was causing Mountain Lions to frequent I would be
pissed. Do we really want Mountain Lions to learn to live with us as coyotes and rats have?? Stop leaving your animals out at night, it is not fair to
the neighborhood to be encouraging large predators who will then acquire a
taste for domestic animals that far are easier than wild prey.
If you can’t keep your animals in get the proper guardian animals or don't have them and buy
a weed eater!! The problem will only get worse if we / you don't.
