Just when ya think ya seen it all!!

D

d4dave1

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Okay, we live in west central Alberta in the foothills and over the years we have become somewhat accustomed to wildlife sharing our living space. The deer and elk drive us nuts eating our crops, the moose stand in our yard in the winter and wreak havoc on our trees. We had a grizzly show up and stay for supper last March and he stayed for a month eating a horse that had died in the winter. The cougar population is healthy and about 4 years ago my son in law was forced to shoot one in self defense. The cougars work my hay yards every winter and kill approximately a deer every week or ten days. Black bears are not common but we usually get pics on our trail cams every year.

Today my wife and I were out puttering in our front yard garden. We had just put our two year old grandson into the house for a nap. Suddenly our German Shepherd and my son in laws chocolate lab EXPLODED and when I spun around there was a Bison coming straight at us about 60 yards away. My brain was toast...trying to process what I was seeing...A BISON!!??

Fortunately the two dogs did their jobs and turned the bison at our gate and it took off down the side road. I made a couple of phone calls and let the correct people know about the stray "livestock" ?? Of course Fish and Feathers says "Not ours...that's agriculture." and Agriculture says "Not ours...that's Fish and Feathers." Evidently some people 15 km.'s or so away from us lost their entire herd of bison and they are scattered to the four winds.

Generally when we go for walks, or I go around and check my trapline of trail cameras, or I am out fixing fence, I carry my .223.
Evidently I need to re-consider caliber...LOL

Life never gets dull around here.
Dave​
 
That will wake you up for sure.

Years ago I was heading into wood buffalo park. A car flashed it's high beams at us and as we crested the hill, a large herd of bison had chosen to occupy the road way. Not nearly as strange as meeting one in the yard though. Even now, when someone flashes their high beams at me I always wonder if I should be on the lookout for bison.
 
Had a similar experience here a while back. Quite the jolt isn't it ? :) Lots of Bison farms in Alberta,, so it's not unexpected. Bison go anywhere they want to, fence or no fence and you can't herd them like cattle. Few years back, some rancher, near Rocky, facing foreclosure, just released his and there were a bunch running at large. F& W didn't want them running at large, but the question was Question was, if you shot one, as stray livestock, was it yours or the banks ?

Grizz
 
I don't know if we could "legally" shoot one (or more) as feral livestock or not? Obviously, or perhaps not because this IS Canada??, a person could shoot one in your own yard if you felt threatened, but out and about on your property or crown land....I simply don't know??

I feel for the people who have lost them because they represent a lot of hard work and money, however I am told that all exotic livestock farms ( bison, elk,deer etc) must, by law, keep all gates locked 24/7/365.

It was very surreal watching a live bison running straight at us. I don't believe it was actually charging but think perhaps it was simply running in our direction. It was tough to attempt to explain that idea to a frightened Gramma who had minutes before put our 2 year old grandson in the house. My wife is a true western woman however, and her loaded Defender was leaning on the garden fence for the rest of the day while she worked outside.
Dave​
 
Give it time, you'll wake up one morning and have a herd of NDP milling around in your yard waiting to be tended to.
 
The Gang Ranch in BC raised bison and were able to have guided hunts on ranch property.
Some had escaped and I saw two on Crown land. On crown land they are protected.
Shot on Ranch land and they can charge a "trophy fee" but that was as I recall from a few years ago.
As to the Fish and Feathers versus Agriculture . . . shoot one and they will both be so far up your "ar$e" all three of you will be wearing the same necktie.
 
tinbird said:
Give it time, you'll wake up one morning and have a herd of NDP milling around in your yard waiting to be tended to.
Click to expand...

Aaaaarrrrrrggggggg....you just took a rough day and turned it into a NIGHTMARE!! :runaway:

Althoughhhhh...if I quick put up a high fence I wonder if I could book private hunts?? I could become a very rich man! Laugh2
Dave​
 
d4dave1 said:
Okay, we live in west central Alberta in the foothills and over the years we have become somewhat accustomed to wildlife sharing our living space. The deer and elk drive us nuts eating our crops, the moose stand in our yard in the winter and wreak havoc on our trees. We had a grizzly show up and stay for supper last March and he stayed for a month eating a horse that had died in the winter. The cougar population is healthy and about 4 years ago my son in law was forced to shoot one in self defense. The cougars work my hay yards every winter and kill approximately a deer every week or ten days. Black bears are not common but we usually get pics on our trail cams every year.

Today my wife and I were out puttering in our front yard garden. We had just put our two year old grandson into the house for a nap. Suddenly our German Shepherd and my son in laws chocolate lab EXPLODED and when I spun around there was a Bison coming straight at us about 60 yards away. My brain was toast...trying to process what I was seeing...A BISON!!??

Fortunately the two dogs did their jobs and turned the bison at our gate and it took off down the side road. I made a couple of phone calls and let the correct people know about the stray "livestock" ?? Of course Fish and Feathers says "Not ours...that's agriculture." and Agriculture says "Not ours...that's Fish and Feathers." Evidently some people 15 km.'s or so away from us lost their entire herd of bison and they are scattered to the four winds.

Generally when we go for walks, or I go around and check my trapline of trail cameras, or I am out fixing fence, I carry my .223.
Evidently I need to re-consider caliber...LOL

Life never gets dull around here.
Dave​
Click to expand...

Sounds to me like you live in a corner of paradise. Its interesting that the bear moved along once the food supply disappeared rather than sticking around to be a nuisance. The bison thing is astounding, I can well imagine your brain trying to process the image that your eyes produced. A .223 is a useful coyote/pest gun, but even if loaded with TSXs its probably a little on the weak side to deal with grizzlies and bison. The challenge though is to find a rifle that's easy to carry, that is accurate enough for coyotes and other pests, but has sufficient horsepower to deal with the big guys. Probably a .30/06 fills the bill, with 125 gr bullets at 3300 fps for small stuff and 180, 220, or 240 gr slugs for the big uglies. Big uglies . . . Looki must be rubbing off on me, although I suppose he'd have said bigulies, or buglies, or something .:redface:
 
d4dave1 said:
Okay, we live in west central Alberta in the foothills and over the years we have become somewhat accustomed to wildlife sharing our living space. The deer and elk drive us nuts eating our crops, the moose stand in our yard in the winter and wreak havoc on our trees. We had a grizzly show up and stay for supper last March and he stayed for a month eating a horse that had died in the winter. The cougar population is healthy and about 4 years ago my son in law was forced to shoot one in self defense. The cougars work my hay yards every winter and kill approximately a deer every week or ten days. Black bears are not common but we usually get pics on our trail cams every year.

Today my wife and I were out puttering in our front yard garden. We had just put our two year old grandson into the house for a nap. Suddenly our German Shepherd and my son in laws chocolate lab EXPLODED and when I spun around there was a Bison coming straight at us about 60 yards away. My brain was toast...trying to process what I was seeing...A BISON!!??

Fortunately the two dogs did their jobs and turned the bison at our gate and it took off down the side road. I made a couple of phone calls and let the correct people know about the stray "livestock" ?? Of course Fish and Feathers says "Not ours...that's agriculture." and Agriculture says "Not ours...that's Fish and Feathers." Evidently some people 15 km.'s or so away from us lost their entire herd of bison and they are scattered to the four winds.

Generally when we go for walks, or I go around and check my trapline of trail cameras, or I am out fixing fence, I carry my .223.
Evidently I need to re-consider caliber...LOL

Life never gets dull around here.
Dave​
Click to expand...

cool story but makes me wish we had a elk problem
I really need make sum friends with sum Alberta farmers having Elk problems
 
Dave. I got charged yesterday by a cow with a calf on the long lake road. She was mad when we rolled up on her with our quads. I thought it was a grizz at first. Figured the got out of pasture by the t intersection. I had my 35 whelen and was going to shoot but her calf was brand new so she got a round at her feet. She took off south towards long lake. Im thinking the buffalo are wild now. :)
 
Deer, elk, moose, grizzly, cougar, black bear and bison? Dang, you got me with the grizzly. No antelope?

Those areas where the ranges of practically everything overlap are very special.
 
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