Dear Friends:
The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association is supporting a statewide private land-use-lock-out launched by its Wolf Task Force Committee who is inviting all property owners, livestock producers, hunters, and agriculture and natural resource organizations to sign up and join in with the Oregon Ranch Rescue project.
Oregon Cattlemen’s Association has participated in the wolf issue at every level since it began 7 years ago. Despite thousands of comments opposing all or parts of the wolf recovery plan the Commission rushed to adopt it on December 1, 2005 even though it is not implementable before the wolf is federally delisted, probably years, possibly decades from now. They adopted the plan after removing the major points that a majority of the citizen Wolf Advisory Committee had agreed to without consulting the committee again. The Commission and the department were obviously not to be swayed by the substantial testimony they received on all sides of the wolf issue. They even indexed their failed legislation with the expectation of bringing it unchanged to the 2007 legislature for passage. We consider that a malicious act against stockmen, hunters and Oregon’s wildlife.
We spoke out very clearly against the Wolf Conservation and Management Plan because it violated property rights and offered no reasonable control of wolves. We developed a list of our needs that must be met before we would support a plan. None was met. As wolves come into Oregon, and property owners exercise their right to protect their property, ODFW and the Wildlife Commission will make criminals out of law-abiding citizens who refuse to stand back and watch their livestock be torn apart by wolves and other predators. They refused to take seriously new information about wolves as vectors of disease that could profoundly affect the productivity of livestock and wild ungulates.
Oregon statute provides that (ORS 498.012) (1) " Nothing in the wildlife laws is intended to prevent any person from taking any wildlife that is damaging land that the person owns or lawfully occupies or is damaging livestock…" .The Fish and Wildlife Commission’s plan takes that provision of law away.
Who will stand up for our property rights? We will and we must. Who will protect hunter’s rights and the wolf’s prey base? Obviously it will have to be the citizens of Oregon who must demand that the agency charged with that responsibility DO THEIR JOB!!
The Oregon Ranch Rescue project is a proactive campaign to close our private land to any public entry with the intent being:
1. A protest of the agency for not following its own polices, mission, and goals.
2. Protecting the wolf’s wild prey base in anticipation of their arrival in Oregon.
The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association web page is under construction to facilitate the Oregon Ranch Rescue project. Go to www.orcattle.com and follow the links to learn more about the project. We will keep a running tally of the total acres across Oregon enrolled in this campaign. We will develop signs that can be purchased for posting property. ODFW and their Commission couldn’t hear us when we warned that the wolf recovery plan would bring extreme conflict. This last ditch effort, Oregon Ranch Rescue, joined by people who believe Oregonians still have rights, may cause them to hear us now.
We all know this is not entirely about wolves. The agenda stems from environmentalism and animal rights, from the anti hunting, anti gun groups from the far left who are seduced by socialism.
We are asking you and your organization to lock arms with the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association to rescue our ranches, rescue our economy, rescue our rights and rescue our wildlife.
If you wish to have an in depth discussion or need more information do not hesitate to contact us.
The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association Wolf Task Force
Sharon Beck, Chair
Oregon Ranch Rescue Project chairman, Mike Colton
Committee Members:
Elizabeth Howard
Pat Larson
John Williams
Rod Childers
To confidentially register your private property or to receive more information about the Oregon Ranch Rescue campaign CLICK HERE. This will open an email window for you to confidentially register your acres and then return you to this web page. Please provide your contact information, e-mail address, number of acreage. This list will only be used to keep a running tally of acreage and to send progress updates to those registered. This list will be kept completely confidential!
Oregon Ranch Rescue Property Signs
Wolf Resolution Land Closure
Oregon Ranch Rescue Why
Oregon Ranch Rescue Goals
Information about the Wolf Issue in Oregon
Oregon Ranch Rescue Press Release