Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters takes stand AGAINST farmers

http://www.ofah.org/News/index.cfm?ID=3&A=GetDoc&DID=492

Folks, this has me about as upset as I can get. For several years now, farmers in the areas where these elk have been "reintroduced" have been forced to deal with significant damage to fences, crops, stored feed, injured livestock, untold personal and financial stresses and in some cases even threats to their own physical well-being from having to work around these animals while going about their business.
They have had no compensation, and no real help from the MNR, OFAH, or anybody involved in bringing these elk here.
These aren't wild animals people. They were penned up for months and fed hay and grain in feeders both before and after being brought to Ontario, then when they were released they immediately started looking for hay in the barnyards nearby. No surprise there. I've seen them, many of the beef cattle in these areas are more wild than the elk are. They simply have no fear of human beings.
Now, FINALLY there is something for these farmers to hope for with the proposal to set the elk up as nuisance animals in the new "omnibus" bill.

Views: 408

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on October 30, 2009 at 1:42pm
These farmers haven't been asking for much folks. The opportunity to apply for a nuisance tag and shoot one animal in one of these pods that are causing damage would probably scare the rest enough that it would start them down the road to being "wild"life again and teach them to stay away from people. A few nuisance elk being shot in the province in a year would probably cut the damage down significantly, and it's hardly a conservation issue with the Bancroft herd growing by leaps and bounds and expanding it's territory every year (with crop damage now at least 80 km from where they were released).
Yet OFAH are using conservation as an excuse to align themselves squarely alongside the animal rights and anti-hunting people to try to deny farmers this very small opportunity. This is the ONLY reason these farmers have had so far to be optimistic that anything might be done. Why would OFAH do this? These farmers can't afford to wait any longer, their family farms will be out of business within another year or two. The only reason I can see for OFAH is because they can't stand to see anyone else get a chance to legally shoot an elk before the season is opened up for hunters in general
Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on October 30, 2009 at 1:47pm
However, even OFAH's own staff have admitted that the elk in the Bancroft area now are domesticated to the point where hunting them wouldn't be "sporting". So what could it possibly hurt to give farmers the opportunity to shoot a very few nuisance elk and teach the elk to fear humans like they should if they're wildlife? What's more, the Bancroft elk are now so numerous they've driven the other large game species (particularly deer but also moose) almost completely out of the area, actually REDUCING hunting opportunities in these areas.

This just makes no sense people. In recent years, we've continuously heard how OFAH want to work with farmers, how they're on our side, and yet when the opportunity comes along they stab us in the back. Don't they realize how many farmers are also their members? Don't they realize how many of their members depend on the goodwill of farmers to provide them with hunting opportunities?

Don't assume this isn't your problem. These elk are expanding rapidly. If farming is going to survive in these areas, particularly the North Hastings area, farmers need at least some limited opportunity to shoot nuisance elk NOW.
Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on October 30, 2009 at 1:49pm
I wish I was still an OFAH member. It would give me great satisfaction to cancel my membership. I have a lot of people hunting on my farm for various species. At this point, I'm seriously considering not allowing any OFAH member to hunt here until they've cancelled their memberships. Why should we put up with being stabbed in the back by a group to whom we've been a great ally? This response to something farmers need is just ridiculous.
Permalink Reply by rein minnema on October 30, 2009 at 2:59pm
Lets face the reality, the greenbelt effect is going all over our province
and our so called rural municapalities are urban governed
Permalink Reply by Roadrunner on October 31, 2009 at 4:00am
The OFAH should be a strong ally to farmers.....do they know the farmers in the Bancroft area are pissed off?

You would think that the OFAH would want to work with the local farmers and pay them to help establish the elk....

I can't imagine the costs would be that great if there are only 500 elk in that large area.

Maybe the farmer needs to import(domesticate a couple of endangered rare wolves and have them hanging around his hay fields....:)
Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on October 31, 2009 at 5:48am
OFAH know very well that the farmers are upset.

As for wolves, the wolves aren't really interested in the elk unless they can catch a young calf or a lame elk. There's no shortage of timberwolves in the area (since there's a hunting ban in the townships around Algonquin.....)

Thanks Roadrunner

Roadrunner said:
The OFAH should be a strong ally to farmers.....do they know the farmers in the Bancroft area are pissed off?

You would think that the OFAH would want to work with the local farmers and pay them to help establish the elk....

I can't imagine the costs would be that great if there are only 500 elk in that large area.

Maybe the farmer needs to import(domesticate a couple of endangered rare wolves and have them hanging around his hay fields....:)

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

U.S. Farmer Sentiment Erodes Further in June

Farmer sentiment declined again in June, as producers became less optimistic about both current conditions and the year ahead, according to the latest Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer on Tuesday. The barometer fell to 113 points in June, down from 119 in May. Both major components of the index weakened, with the Index of Current Conditions dropping five points and the Index of Future Expectations falling seven points. The current conditions measure was 26 points below its December 2025 level and reached its lowest point since December 2024. The June survey, conducted from June 15 to 19 among 400 farmers across the U.S., showed high input costs remain the dominant concern. Of the respondents, 47% listed high input costs as their biggest worry, well ahead of low crop and livestock prices at 23%. In a related question, 42% of farmers said high input costs were the main factor limiting improvement in their farm’s financial situation this year. Low output prices were c

Alberta Crops Continue to Improve, But Too Much Rain Is Becoming the Bigger Concern

Alberta crops are generally in better shape than they were a year ago, but for many producers the conversation has shifted from needing rain to finding a break in it. The latest Alberta Crop Report, covering conditions as of June 23, shows provincial crop ratings edged up to 69 per cent good-to-excellent, comfortably ahead of last year’s 50 per cent and above the five-year average of 64 per cent. While that’s encouraging, excessive moisture is beginning to create a different set of challenges across parts of the province. Frequent rainfall has delayed herbicide applications, slowed crop development and left some low-lying fields saturated. Producers in central and northern Alberta continue to report standing water and uneven emergence, while cooler-than-normal temperatures have limited crop growth despite generally favourable soil moisture. The regional picture remains mixed. Southern Alberta continues to post some of the province’s strongest crop ratings, with timely rainfall sup

Alberta Crops Are Primed for a Big Year—If Farmers Can Get Into Their Fields

By the time the calendar turns to July, Alberta farmers usually have a pretty good sense of what kind of crop they’re growing. This year, the answer depends largely on where you farm. The latest Alberta Crop Report shows much of the province heading into July with excellent yield potential thanks to abundant soil moisture. Provincial crop conditions remain well above long-term averages, and hay and pasture are responding to the moisture. But there is another side to the story. Frequent rainfall, saturated fields and limited spraying opportunities are creating mounting concerns over disease pressure, weed control and delayed crop development in several regions. While moisture has largely replaced drought as the dominant concern, too much water is becoming its own production challenge. Moisture Is No Longer the Limiting Factor Across much of Alberta, crops have access to plenty of water heading into one of the most important months of the growing season. Surface and sub-surface mo

Deere partners with ASW Distillery on spirits

Fiddler Combine Bourbon and Fiddler Steel Plow Rye helps celebrate American ag

Global Oil Output Rebound Expected as EIA Forecasts Lower Fuel Prices Through 2027

The latest U.S. Energy Information Administration outlook points to increased global oil production and lower energy prices over the next two years.

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service