Livestock and Wildlife Management
Numerous predators make raising livestock in the mountains difficult. Predation management for cattle, sheep, poultry or goats may be necessary if the animals are put into pastures where their vulnerability to predation increases. For cattle, this is usually confined to the calving period, and with the exception of a few losses to mountain lions and bears, most predation management is directed at coyotes. The following list of common predators can help prepare and prevent attacks to livestock.
Coyote Management
Coyotes are opportunistic hunters. They prey on small mammals, domestic pets, livestock, and domestic fowl but will readily eat carrion and plants. In Colorado, coyotes are classified as a game species and may be hunted year-round with either a small game or a furbearer license.
For open range calving where coyotes can be a problem, predation rates can be close to 5% in the absence of coyote management, with a 3% rate being considered average. With predation management in place, calf losses to coyotes should be <1%. However, even with predation management in place, smaller species losses can still be expected to be 5% for lambs, 2% for adult sheep, and 12% for goats. The problem of predation becomes more pronounced on smaller pastures, with some evidence that coyotes use the fences to aid in their hunting strategies. Removing coyotes in, or near, calving pastures immediately prior to calving may increase the effectiveness of a predation management strategy. Another option is to use netted fencing to exclude coyotes from the livestock.
- Protective fencing: Fence height should be a minimum of 5.5 feet and should be built higher on sloping terrain. Net wire-mesh should be no larger than 6 inches between stays. Electric fences of various designs have been effective in excluding coyotes. Retrofitting existing fences by adding electrified wires may provide an added degree of effectiveness.
- Using sound or visual stimuli to keep coyotes away from livestock or other resources will provide only temporary effectiveness, if any. Such efforts are likely to work best in localities where coyotes are and where the stimuli can be frequently varied in type and location.
- Certain guard dog breeds, as well as llamas and donkeys, may effectively exclude coyotes from pastures. Livestock operators who have had the best success with guard animals typically place them in small, flat, fenced pastures where the guard animal can see and challenge any intruding coyotes. Guard animals are most effective when they are behaviorally bonded to the sheep or goats they are protecting.
Mountain Lion Management
In Colorado, mountain lions are most abundant in foothills, canyons, or mesa country. They are more at homes in brushy areas and woodlands where cover allows them to stalk and ambush their prey. Mountain lions are active year-round, and at dusk or dawn, with deer as their main prey.
As with coyotes, mountain lions are most detrimental to cattle during the calving season since healthy, adult cattle are too large. Poultry, sheep and goats are more vulnerable at all life stages due to their size. Mountain lions typically avoid human interactions, so birthing close to human proximity or in enclosed areas are deterrents.
Electric fences, motion activated lights and guard animals can be effective at protecting smaller species like chickens, goats and sheep.
Black Bear Management
Black is a species, not a color. In Colorado many black bears are blonde, cinnamon or brown color. In Colorado, most bears are active from mid-March through early-November. Over 90% of a bear’s natural diet is grasses, berries, fruits, nuts, and plants. The rest is primarily insects and scavenged carcasses. Because of this, the black bear is generally not a threat to livestock but are certainly a concern when they locate food sources in, or around, our homes. Black bears often break into chicken enclosures and kill and eat large portions of, or entire flocks. Thus, building an extremely strong coop, and locking poultry inside at night may be necessary.
Black bears are naturally shy, and very wary of people and other unfamiliar things. Their normal response to any perceived danger is to run away but they have great memories – once they find food, they come back for more.
Other Predator Management Actions
- Keep the property clean. Keep garbage in bear proof containers and only compost landscape vegetation so that you do not attract predators to the property.
- Prompt removal of all carcasses. Dead animals attract coyotes and other scavenging predators.
- Use larger livestock in pastures with histories of predator problems. Pastures with a history of predator problems should be avoided, especially during lambing and kidding. Pastures with rough terrain or dense vegetation provide good cover for predators.
- Noise, light, and other deterrents. Predators can display uncanny abilities to outwit a producer’s attempts to protect livestock. Producers may need to use more than one practice and vary the practices occasionally. Most predators are wary of any changes in their territory and will shy away from anything different until they become familiar with it.