Chat
10-20-2014, 09:33 PM
Please. Please. DO tie your goats up (or otherwise contain them) when in camp. Two weeks ago, I spent 10 hours traveling each way to Cody Wyoming, where I met with Forest Service Officials from Washington DC, the Forest Service Regional Office, the Shoshone National Forest, and representatives from the Wild Sheep Foundation. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the closure of most of the Shoshone National Forest, including the Wind River Range, to Pack Goats, due to concerns over our goats escaping, co-mingling with wild sheep, and transmitting diseases to the wild sheep.
We do not need to go into the lengthy debate on the remote possibility of this scenario occurring, nor do we need to debate the "science" of this issue. It's too late for that; the Shoshone Forest Plan is all but complete and the final decision will be issued soon. However, there are other public lands where we will be facing the same issue. We DO need to spread the word amongst our small Pack Goat Community that we can be trusted to follow Best Management Practices when we take our goats onto our public lands. This includes high-lining at night, and keeping control of our goats at ALL TIMES, in order to avoid any chance of them getting lost, escaping, or otherwise co-mingling with wild sheep. The Forest Service, Bighorn Sheep Advocates, and the rest of the public will be watching us closely from now on.
At the meeting in Cody, we did our best to reassure the Forest Service that we could be trusted to follow these Best Management Practices. The last thing we want is to show that we are not able to control our goats, especially since this issue is going to carry forward onto other National Forests and public lands in the future. Please tie your goats or restrict them when in camp. This can not be overstated enough. Thank you--Saph.
We do not need to go into the lengthy debate on the remote possibility of this scenario occurring, nor do we need to debate the "science" of this issue. It's too late for that; the Shoshone Forest Plan is all but complete and the final decision will be issued soon. However, there are other public lands where we will be facing the same issue. We DO need to spread the word amongst our small Pack Goat Community that we can be trusted to follow Best Management Practices when we take our goats onto our public lands. This includes high-lining at night, and keeping control of our goats at ALL TIMES, in order to avoid any chance of them getting lost, escaping, or otherwise co-mingling with wild sheep. The Forest Service, Bighorn Sheep Advocates, and the rest of the public will be watching us closely from now on.
At the meeting in Cody, we did our best to reassure the Forest Service that we could be trusted to follow these Best Management Practices. The last thing we want is to show that we are not able to control our goats, especially since this issue is going to carry forward onto other National Forests and public lands in the future. Please tie your goats or restrict them when in camp. This can not be overstated enough. Thank you--Saph.