[MeganC]

We live on a ranch with over six hundred head of cattle and I’ve got close to 1,000 chickens. They’re not a hobby and they’re not pets. We depend on them for part of our income.

When some stray dog makes one of our breakers break a leg that costs us in vet bills or it can cost us in the loss of sometimes two or three thousand dollars. A round from the .308 costs us only eighty cents or so.

When a stray cat comes on the ranch and fights with one of our barn cats that costs us a vet bill and if the stray kills a laying hen that’s a loss of $5 per dozen eggs and the $3 to $5 we get from the butcher for the hen. Again, the .308 only costs eighty cents.

Maybe you can afford to be sentimental but we can’t. I know it sounds cold but someone’s stray animal is not worth as much to me as food on our table.

Sorry that sounds harsh but that’s the way it is and we’re just like pretty much everyone else around here.

[Sarajevo]

I have to say, I'm envious of the size of your operation. OTOH, I also use my livestock for producing income (IMHO - you're charging too much for your eggs. My wife charges $4/doz for free range chicken and duck eggs). Yes, I'm small fry and fill a niche market, so the cost for a loss in productivity is actually a lot more. I have no issue with stray cats and the birds. All cats stay away from the birds. Dogs are a different subject beyond the thread topic, so I won't go there.

BTW- Where are you getting 7.62 at that price? Do you reload?