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Animal Damage Control Program: Efforts to Protect Livestock from Predators

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date Oct. 30, 1995
Report No. RCED-96-3
Subject
Summary:

Efforts to protect livestock from predators, mainly coyotes, constitute the major activity of the Agriculture Department's Animal Damage Control Program. In 1994, more than 100,000 predators were killed by the program's field personnel. GAO found that Agriculture field personnel in California, Nevada, Texas, and Wyoming used lethal methods in essentially all instances to control livestock predators. Agriculture's written policies and procedures call for field personnel to give preference to the use of nonlethal methods when practical and effective. However, according to program officials, this aspect of written guidance does not apply to the control of livestock predators. These officials said that in controlling livestock predators, nonlethal methods, such as fencing and the use of herders and guard dogs, are more appropriately used by ranchers, have limited effectiveness, and are impractical for field personnel to use.

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