What is this?

[cowman]

Down on coffe row the other day this old boy told me you can buy 22 shells without a license! Another guy said yea, he'd bought a case at the Co-op.
If this is true, what happened to the gun laws? Was the whole thing just an expensive joke?
I know about a month ago I bought a case of 22 shells and whipped out my license and the girl never even looked at it and I know she never recorded any numbers, that I could see!

[SW1-32-5-4]

I never wanted a AK47 until the stupid government said that I couldn't have one, now I want a semi trailer full of them.

[SW1-32-5-4]

Not being a gun toting gal, I can't comment cowman. Doesn't make much sense though, mind you, neither did gun control !!

[cowman]

Well emerald I am not a gun nut or anything but I believe having a gun is almost a neccesity on a farm? When the federal government, in all its wisdom, decided farmers weren't smart enough to handle poison the gophers tended to multiply? Not many solutions other than the old .22?
Also if I have to put down an animal, I'm not real keen on beating them to death with a club or something?
Having said all that I do believe there needs to be some sort of gun control? Some idiots shouldn't be allowed to have a gun, as they are reckless and don't have a clue about being responsible with a firearm! A gun is just another neccessary tool on a farm, just like a chain saw or a welder?

[cowman]

cowman, I was a member of the Agricultural Service Board and Council when we made the decision NOT to dispense coyote poison, for the exact reason you just mentioned. Some folks shouldn't have a gun because they are careless, and our reasoning was the same goes for coyote and or gopher poison. Now on the west side of the North Sask. we don't have gophers but we do have coyotes and I agree, farmers have got to be able to protect their stock from predators.
Gun control certainly has not removed guns from the hands of the criminal element, only made it more difficult for the law abiding to own one !

[cowman]

Gopher poison, when used properly, is not a problem...unfortunately a lot of farmers figured if a little bit works fairly well then a whole lot should work better?
2% strychnine works very well. The gopher feels sick, goes down the hole and dies...end of problem. 5% strychnine kills him right now and he lays up there and the hawks, dogs etc. eat him...and they die!
I find it amazing that you don't have gophers...don't they cross the bridges? Also I wonder if you have moles(pocket gophers)? They are a super problem here in the alphalfa fields.

[cowman]

Oh one more thing...Down here you can still get poison for coyotes if they kill livestock from your local Ag fieldman.
Now personally I like coyotes. They do a world of good in my opinion! I've never had them tackle a calf, although they like to cruise through the area at calving time! They give the dog fits at time and they tend to keep the cat population trimmed up, but I figure they weed out the dumb cats!
Unfortunately the local hog barns have become sort of a free lunch for the local coyotes and they are getting a bit lazy at trimming up the gophers and mice...sort of like welfare coyotes or something?

[grassfarmer]

I don't know why people need the high power strychnine as the cheap CO-OP type works perfectly well if you are concientious with it. This place had literally thousands of gophers when I moved here but after treating them for two years they are gone. I very rarely see one now but then again a move to having long grass instead of overgrazed bowling greens tends to make them move out anyway as they can't see the predators coming. We are happy to see the coyote population rising here - no livestock losses but they make a great job of mouse control!I sat down yesterday and watched one set of 6 cubs out hunting and it's amazing how often they were pouncing on things.

[grassfarmer]

cowman, there are no moles here either thankfully.
Disposal of dead animals at any confined feeding operation is regulated by the Regulatory Services Branch of AAFRD.
Most new operations have conditions placed on them with respect to dead animal storage. Some hog operations compost the deads and that is regulated. Most hog operations have a scavenger proof refrigerated dead storage and the rendering truck picks them up.

Any consciencious operator will not allow deads to cause a problem in the community.

[grassfarmer]

PS: cowman with all the oilfield and logging truck traffic on the bridge out in this area any gopher dumb enough to attempt to cross would never make it !!!!