Free Republic

In April, Rocky Matthews started finding dead lambs on his farm near Murtaugh Lake. At first, Matthews thought someone had killed the animals with a pellet gun. The animals all had puncture wounds the circumference of a No. 2 pencil. It wasn’t until he saw an eagle attack his flock that he realized the true culprit. A large eagle nest has existed on his property for more than 20 years, but the birds have never affected his farming operations. Currently, the nest is home to two adults and at least two babies. “They’ve never crossed paths till this year,” he...

The udders appeared to have been removed with precision — straight, even cuts, as if made by a sharp object. The reproductive systems had been cut out cleanly as well, and without disturbing other organs. There was no indication of predator activity and perhaps strangest of all, scavenging animals appeared to have hardly touched these six cow carcasses found in a seven-day span this year on ranchland in rural Crook County. But the mutilated cattle might be more ordinary than they seem, according to Brian Dunning, a Bend-based podcaster committed to deflating wild claims. “This reads like a very typical...

Following the mysterious death of seven cattle near an oil field in Kansas, public health authorities are investigating whether oil drilling could be the cause. In late December, seven dead cattle were found near an oil field in the Cimarron National Grassland, Kansas, and authorities believe that cows inhaled something toxic, prompting them to deny public access to the 2,500-acre Cimarron National Grassland until at least May. Six of the cattle were discovered together in a low-lying area, while a seventh was found a short distance away, with local veterinarians identifying the ingestion or inhalation of something toxic leading to...