Topic: Is There Such a Thing as a “Feral Cow”? (Read 437 times)

December 20, 2014, 12:06:50 AM

May 28, 2009

Question: I have been encountering a herd of feral cows every time I go hiking on the Tehama Wildlife Area over the last four or five years. I have searched through the regulations but cannot find any references to feral cows. My question is: Can I harvest one or will I get charged with a felony for grand theft? (Khris)

Answer: “Feral cows” do not exist in Fish and Game regulations because all cattle are considered domestic (not wild or feral) livestock and are someone’s property. California may have feral pigs but there is no such thing as a feral cow. Cattle all belong to someone until that right of ownership is relinquished, and ranchers do lease cattle grazing rights on public property.

According to DFG Patrol Lieutenant Supervisor Scott Willems, it would be a felony to kill another’s cow without their permission (grand theft) and therefore unlawful for you to “harvest” cattle from the wildlife area, or any other place for that matter, without written permission. When cattle do gain access to a wildlife area, DFG has the authority to relocate them under the provisions of CCR Title 14 Section 550(b)(16).

Bottom line … if you try to do this yourself, you may be arrested for cattle rustling and find yourself in jail for up to six months along with facing a hefty fine.

December 21, 2014, 10:45:22 AM #1

I know the exact cattle this guy is talking about. Even though state regulations may say that "feral cows" do not exist, they do indeed, especially in the Tehama Wildlife Refuge. They're mangy, skinny, and gross, unlike any other cattle I've ever seen. The bulls are very aggressive--a few years ago I was driving a dirt road through the wildlife refuge and came across a massive black bull standing in the middle of the road. He refused to move! It took a lot of honking and inching forward to get him to move out of the way. He had no tags, and no brands that I could see. I don't even want to know what would've happened if I'd come across that thing on foot.

The USFS has been struggling with how to deal with these feral cattle as well, since they cause extensive resource damage. Since they're considered "property", that means we'd normally go after the livestock owner. But in this case, there is no owner. The things are out there breeding and are self-sustaining, yet we can't treat them like feral pigs. It's an interesting legal conundrum for both the feds and the state.

December 21, 2014, 10:53:31 AM #2

I know those cattle too. Not only are they causing environmental damage, they carry STDs and infect domestic cattle outside of the wildlife area.

They should absolutely be eradicated.

December 21, 2014, 11:04:38 AM #3

Quote from: Clayman on December 21, 2014, 10:45:22 AM

I know the exact cattle this guy is talking about. Even though state regulations may say that "feral cows" do not exist, they do indeed, especially in the Tehama Wildlife Refuge. They're mangy, skinny, and gross, unlike any other cattle I've ever seen. The bulls are very aggressive--a few years ago I was driving a dirt road through the wildlife refuge and came across a massive black bull standing in the middle of the road. He refused to move! It took a lot of honking and inching forward to get him to move out of the way. He had no tags, and no brands that I could see. I don't even want to know what would've happened if I'd come across that thing on foot.

The USFS has been struggling with how to deal with these feral cattle as well, since they cause extensive resource damage. Since they're considered "property", that means we'd normally go after the livestock owner. But in this case, there is no owner. The things are out there breeding and are self-sustaining, yet we can't treat them like feral pigs. It's an interesting legal conundrum for both the feds and the state.

Since F&G don't allow you to keep fish in the Ishi Wilderness (catch and release only) perhaps we should be chowing down on the feral cattle. A guys got to eat! Unfortunately I'd go hungry since I've never been able to get close enough to the ones I seen there.

December 21, 2014, 12:43:54 PM #4

Not sure how tasty those feral cattle would be. The ones I've seen looked nasty. But I'd be more than happy to try one!

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