Love animals, but don't be stupid

[kenny]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/05/17/baby-bison-euthanized-after-yellowstone-tourists-put-it-in-their-suv.html

 

[monarch64]

Uh huh, and human intellect is superior. Right.

 

[BeekeeperBetty]

They don't mention in the article that the calf had already been rejected by its mother when they found it. They stupidly believed that the park rangers cared about saving the bison. They do not. If the calf is rejected, it will die a slow terrible death by starvation if the wolves didn't get to it first.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I never understood why they had to euthanize it. There has got to be some kind animal rescue in the area. Since it had already been rejected by its mother/herd it really could have been saved. The park rangers just didn't want to be bothered.

 

[kenny]

They don't mention in the article that the calf had already been rejected by its mother when they found it. They stupidly believed that the park rangers cared about saving the bison. They do not. If the calf is rejected, it will die a slow terrible death by starvation if the wolves didn't get to it first.

If, and I DO mean IF, humans were not the reason the mother rejected it then let nature take its course.

Wolves vultures, flies and maggots and all those other critters deserve food just as much as attractive animals do.

 

[monarch64]

They don't mention in the article that the calf had already been rejected by its mother when they found it. They stupidly believed that the park rangers cared about saving the bison. They do not. If the calf is rejected, it will die a slow terrible death by starvation if the wolves didn't get to it first.

If, and I DO mean IF, humans were not the reason the mother rejected it then let nature take its course.

Wolves vultures, flies and maggots and all those other critters deserve food just as much as attractive animals do.

That's right. Predators are vital to the ecosystem. I posted this video on the gorilla thread the other day but I'm sure no one watched it. If you have 3 minutes, please enjoy this "well, DUH" but still not condescending vid:

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=they+released+14+wolves+into+a+park&&view=detail&mid=5DBBABA8891C45F4B9B95DBBABA8891C45F4B9B9&FORM=VRDGAR

 

[packrat]

I didn't see anything in any of the reports I read about it being abandoned initially by the herd. Everything I read stated it was rejected *after* the fact. Regardless--There is a reason why they did what they did. We aren't the all knowing bystanders. Again. Really. We're not. If someone says "hey, this is my job, I've had schooling, training, I know what is going on here, this is what happened, this is what happened as a result of that, this is what occurred because of those instances" I kind of tend to believe them.

For whatever reason, we can not accept the fact that sometimes *we* (especially the *we* who are unschooled and uneducated in a particular area) don't know best, and there is a reason why we have people who are "in the know". Arm chair quarterbacking. Again.

There aren't bison rescue centers every 50 miles. If there is no place to take it, there's nothing they can do. It's a part of nature and part of the reason why they tell people to LEAVE WILD ANIMALS ALONE. Because they're wild animals. They live in the wild. Not condos. They don't want to hang out w/humans. They want to be w/wild animals. In the wild. Not seatbelted into someone's Subaru and taken to the lodge to play scrabble by the fire.

We had a mommy cat who *hated* when we'd touch her babies. Hay-ted-it. She'd get so sick of it she would move them and sometimes that wasn't the best thing for the kittens and they'd die--all b/c we tried to pet them. Know what we learned to do? Respect her and leave them alone. If she brought them to us or brought them out of her hidey hole and didn't get pissy when we were near, then we knew it was ok.

It really just boils down to having respect for animals and not thinking we can do whatever we want b/c we're so far *cough cough* superior. If it ain't yours, don't touch it. I teach that in preschool for heavens sakes and it floors me that grown ass adults can't figure it out. "Wow, I've been given this awesome opportunity to see these (wild) animals in their natural (wild) habitat..it's so beautiful and unspoiled (wild) here..but geez...i've got the heater on in my car..I bet the (wild) babies are cold! I really should ignore what the people who take care of this place and are schooled and educated and experienced in this area of expertise (experts) say and take it upon myself to do what *I* feel is best bc..yanno..I did sleep at a holiday inn Express last night "

And really-what if the mom bison would've been like aw HELL NAW and attacked that person? Then people would be even more up in arms b/c then that mom would've been shot just b/c she was protecting her calf from US. That's her instinct. The person is lucky it wasn't a moose. I'm not sure how open to shenanigans bison are as a species, but a moose would fu ck a person up.

JD's caught a couple bobcats around here, and posted videos of the releases. Another (wild) animal that people oooh and ahh over and when they see one, try to creep up on it and take pictures. "I think it's purring, listen" Uh, NO. That's called growling and that cat will EAT YOUR FACE.

 

[packrat]

I remember when I was little, watching shows like Wild Kingdom and bawling b/c sick/lame/baby animals would be attacked and eaten. Why won't they SAVE IT?? They're FILMING this and not doing ANYTHING!

Now that I'm older, I understand nature more, and I understand checks and balances in nature more. There HAS to be checks and balances in nature. It HAS to be maintained. As much as it twists our tender hearts, not every animal can live forever. It can't happen. Mother Nature is CRUEL when there's more than a sustainable amount of animals in a given area. It's not personal. It's nature. it's how it has to be.

Wild animals aren't like Disney animals. That's not how life works.

If it had already been rejected, which I didn't read anywhere, then there could very well have been a reason. That we don't know b/c we're not bison. We're emotional humans who anthropomorphize animals. For all we know, the calf contracted something that could've spread to the entire herd and decimated it.

Again-we don't know.

 

[MollyMalone]

If, and I DO mean IF, humans were not the reason the mother rejected it then let nature take its course * * *

kenny, bison won't turn their back on one of their own just because it's come into contact with a human. But there are bison mamas who rebuff a eager-to-nurse, newborn offspring -- or a somewhat older yearling will keep its new sibling from approaching the mother, may even kill the baby. The fact that there were no other bison in the immediate vicinity suggests to me that the baby had indeed been rejected/abandoned before it made its way to the Yellowstone roadway.

I never understood why they had to euthanize it. There has got to be some kind animal rescue in the area. Since it had already been rejected by its mother/herd it really could have been saved. The park rangers just didn't want to be bothered.

If the newborn bison does not receive colostrum in its very first hours, its chances of survival are slim to none, even with human intervention. It's not as if the US Park Service keeps bags of frozen bison colostrum and milk & newborn calf-appropriate nursing bottles at the ready. Bison calves often reject the bottle's unnatural nipple anyway, so the next step is to insert a special feeding tube -- again, not standard equipment at a Park ranger station. Plus, that's a procedure destined for failure (if not death to the baby bison) when undertaken by someone who's not performed the procedure themselves or even seen it done.

* * * There is a reason why they did what they did. We aren't the all knowing bystanders. Again. Really. We're not. If someone says "hey, this is my job, I've had schooling, training, I know what is going on here, this is what happened, this is what happened as a result of that, this is what occurred because of those instances" I kind of tend to believe them.

For whatever reason, we can not accept the fact that sometimes *we* (especially the *we* who are unschooled and uneducated in a particular area) don't know best, and there is a reason why we have people who are "in the know". Arm chair quarterbacking. Again. * * *

THANK YOU, packie, for saying this so concisely!
~ Molly, whose great-uncle had (after he retired as a wildlife conservation officer) a small herd of bison on his farm.

 

[jordyonbass]

They don't mention in the article that the calf had already been rejected by its mother when they found it. They stupidly believed that the park rangers cared about saving the bison. They do not. If the calf is rejected, it will die a slow terrible death by starvation if the wolves didn't get to it first.

If, and I DO mean IF, humans were not the reason the mother rejected it then let nature take its course.

Wolves vultures, flies and maggots and all those other critters deserve food just as much as attractive animals do.

Exactly, many people seem to forget that those animals also need to eat as well and while it may seem gruesome to some it's still nature doing what it does. I've seen some predation in the wilderness and at sea that would give some people nightmares and it may seem cruel but that's how the anomal kingdom works.

Whenever we are in the wild we have a motto we try to adhere to; 'take nothing but photos and leave nothing but bootprints'. It essentially means that we don't disturb anything native if we don't have to, we may catch or gather food etc but it's only for immediate consumption and not to be taken out with us. The main reason we try to interfere as little as possible with natives is disease and issues with animals making a social association with people.

 

[missy]

Ugh, people are everyone's worst enemy.

Whenever we are in the wild we have a motto we try to adhere to; 'take nothing but photos and leave nothing but bootprints'. It essentially means that we don't disturb anything native if we don't have to, we may catch or gather food etc but it's only for immediate consumption and not to be taken out with us. The main reason we try to interfere as little as possible with natives is disease and issues with animals making a social association with people.

Amen to that Jordy but for some reason there are so many people who cannot get it into their thick stupid skulls not to interfere with wildlife.

 

[BeekeeperBetty]

If, and I DO mean IF, humans were not the reason the mother rejected it then let nature take its course * * *

kenny, bison won't turn their back on one of their own just because it's come into contact with a human. But there are bison mamas who rebuff a eager-to-nurse, newborn offspring -- or a somewhat older yearling will keep its new sibling from approaching the mother, may even kill the baby. The fact that there were no other bison in the immediate vicinity suggests to me that the baby had indeed been rejected/abandoned before it made its way to the Yellowstone roadway.

I never understood why they had to euthanize it. There has got to be some kind animal rescue in the area. Since it had already been rejected by its mother/herd it really could have been saved. The park rangers just didn't want to be bothered.

If the newborn bison does not receive colostrum in its very first hours, its chances of survival are slim to none, even with human intervention. It's not as if the US Park Service keeps bags of frozen bison colostrum and milk & newborn calf-appropriate nursing bottles at the ready. Bison calves often reject the bottle's unnatural nipple anyway, so the next step is to insert a special feeding tube -- again, not standard equipment at a Park ranger station. Plus, that's a procedure destined for failure (if not death to the baby bison) when undertaken by someone who's not performed the procedure themselves or even seen it done.

* * * There is a reason why they did what they did. We aren't the all knowing bystanders. Again. Really. We're not. If someone says "hey, this is my job, I've had schooling, training, I know what is going on here, this is what happened, this is what happened as a result of that, this is what occurred because of those instances" I kind of tend to believe them.

For whatever reason, we can not accept the fact that sometimes *we* (especially the *we* who are unschooled and uneducated in a particular area) don't know best, and there is a reason why we have people who are "in the know". Arm chair quarterbacking. Again. * * *

THANK YOU, packie, for saying this so concisely!
~ Molly, whose great-uncle had (after he retired as a wildlife conservation officer) a small herd of bison on his farm.

Agreed!

When I first read the news reports, before the animal was euthanized, I could not figure out how it was possible that they got this calf away from its mother unless it had been rejected. Mama bison are incredibly aggressive and very powerful. There is no way a couple of guys could have loaded that calf up unless the herd was no where around.

They regularly cull the bison herd, so raising and bottle feeding a bison calf is just not something that the rangers would do. There are a lot of tensions between Yellowstone and the local ranchers with regards to the bison, and they are actively hunted once they cross the barrier. It's obvious that these tourists have no idea how wildlife is actually managed in the Park, but it's not what they think. This isn't a zoo where they save animals, it's an ecosystem, and that includes letting animals die.