Cattle mutilation
Cattle mutilation is the killing and mutilation of cattle under supposedly unusual, usually bloodless circumstances. Reportedly removed parts often include an ear, eyeball, jaw flesh, tongue, lymph nodes, genitals and rectum. Reports began in the late 1960s and continued into the 1980s. In that era, mutilations were the subject of multiple independent investigations in the United States.
Many so-called mutilations are explainable as natural decomposition and normal predation. Multiple lines of evidence suggest some of the deaths might have been the result of an organized effort. Meanwhile, conspiracy theorists suggest cults, aliens, or cryptids were responsible.
Overview
Reports of mutilations began in 1967, and by 1973, "waves" of mutilations were being reported.While many so-called mutilation are explainable through entirely natural means, multiple lines of evidence suggest that some portion of the cattle mutilations in the 1970s and 1980s might have been the result of an organized effort by humans. Lab tests found some animals had been sedated with known drugs. Unidentified aircraft, said to sound like a quiet lawn mower, were reported near mutilation sites. Cattle were found to have been marked with a chemical that glowed under fluorescent light, suggesting some animals were pre-selected for the procedure.
Decades later, it was revealed that stealth helicopters had secretly been developed and deployed in the early 1970s. 21st-century authors speculate so-called "mutilations" might have stemmed from covert monitoring of threats to public health or perhaps some sort of secret weapons test.
Early history
The earliest known documented outbreak of unexplained livestock deaths occurred in early 1606 "...about the city of London and some of the shires adjoining. Whole slaughters of sheep have been made, in some places to number 100, in others less, where nothing is taken from the sheep but their tallow and some inward parts, the whole carcasses, and fleece remaining still behind. "Of this sundry conjectures, but most agree that it tendeth towards some fireworks." The outbreak was noted in the official records of the Court of James I of England. Charles Fort collected many accounts of cattle mutilations that occurred in England in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.The "Snippy" horse death of 1967
Unexplained livestock deaths were relatively unknown until 1967, when the Pueblo Chieftain published a story about a horse called "Snippy" that was mysteriously found mutilated in Alamosa, Colorado.On September 9, 1967, Agnes King and her son Harry reportedly found the dead body of their three-year-old horse. The horse's head and neck had been skinned and defleshed, and the body displayed cuts that, to King, looked very precise. No blood was at the scene, according to Harry, and a strong medicinal odor was in the air.
The story was republished by the wider press and distributed nationwide; this case was the first to feature speculation that extraterrestrial beings and unidentified flying objects were associated with mutilation. A subsequent investigation by Wadsworth Ayer for the Condon Committee concluded that "There was no evidence to support the assertion that the horse's death was associated in any way to abnormal causes".
Alamosa County Sheriff Ben Phillips suggested that the death was probably due to "a lightning strike" and never bothered to visit the site. Early press coverage of the case misnamed Lady as Snippy. Snippy was Lady's sire and belonged to Nellie's husband, Berle Lewis. Later press coverage mentions that the horse had been shot "in the rump". However, two students from Alamosa State College confessed to sneaking out into the pasture and shooting the horse several weeks after the case was publicized.
Cattle mutilations 1973–1980
Waves of cattle mutilations were reported in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and New Mexico.In April 1973, sheriffs in Western Iowa reported unidentified helicopters involved in cattle and pig rustling. In August, similar rustling was reported in Missouri and authorities warned farmers not to fire on helicopters.
1973 Kansas wave
On June 10, 1973, Cloud County sheriff Fred Modlin warned the public about a series of telephone calls from a caller identifying as a USDA official conducting a survey of herd population and locations. After the USDA denied such a survey, Modlin advised that the calls might be coming from rustlers.On June 14, a 700-pound heifer was found butchered on the Ray Vizner farm near Munden, Kansas. Its right ear had reported been removed and right rear quarter butchered; Republic County sheriff Bob Blecha argue the death was not the work of predators. Two weeks later, on June 18, a second butchered cow was found on the Lowell Darcy farm, twenty miles away from the first butchered cow; Like the first, its right ear was removed. Local press initially speculated about a 'Mad Dog' or 'phantom' Butcher. On August 9, a third butchered cow was found, this one in South County. On August 30, a fourth butchered cow was reported, this one on the Larry LeBlanc farm south of St. Joseph in Cloud County; the right ear was again removed.
On October 25, three cows in Harvey County were discovered with their sex organs removed. On November 15, press reported a slain cow on the Don Peter farm near Munden, the seventh animal death attributed to the "butcher". The November 22 issue of the Belleville Telescope again referenced the "Mad Dog Cattle Butcher".
On December 4, 1973, law enforcement including Modlin reported a wave of cattle deaths in seven counties across Kansas and Nebraska. Sexual organs were reported having been removed. An upcoming meeting on the mutilations was announced. On December 6, a killing on the Lavern Hiner farm in Cloud County was reported to be the butcher's ninth. By December 13, Kansas law enforcement reported having investigated total 40 mutilations, most occurring on land near US Highway 81. On December 20, State Senator Ross Doyen reported a cattle mutilation on his ranch.
On December 22, the Kansas Brand Commissioner's office determined that most of the deaths and removal of sex organs were the result of natural causes including predation, "shipping fever" and blackleg. Modlin and others vocally disagreed with these conclusion and denied that local ranchers would mutilate dead animals for insurance money, calling them "honest and respectable".
1974 Nebraska wave
Reports resumed in April 1974, when a Nebraska cow was discovered mutilated and drained of blood. That month, the North American Newspaper Alliance reported on the 1973 mutilations along with sightings of unidentified helicopters.In May, two mutilations were reported in Mills County, Iowa; An AP story argued coyotes were responsible. By June 1974, mutilations were reported in Lancaster County, Nebraska. Custer Country reported similar helicopter sightings and armed patrols. On August 14, 1974, the Cascade County, Montana Sheriff's Office received its first report of a mutilated cow.
On August 20, press reported a "new twist" in the mutilations: Days prior, near Agnew, Nebraska, an unidentified helicopter had been spotted hovering 400 feet above where a mutilated cow would later be discovered. The helicopter was reported shining a spotlight into the field; FAA and National Guard reported no knowledge of helicopters operating in the area. Knox County Sheriff Herbert Thompson reported that armed civilians had begun patrols in response to repeated helicopter sightings. Cloud County Attorney William Walsh told press of a jailhouse informant who claimed to be a former cult member and opined the mutilations were likely the result of devil-worshiping cultists. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Kansas Brand Inspectors were reported to lean toward predators as the cause. Amid the cattle mutilation jitters and drought, Oakland, Nebraska experienced as spate of "beast" sightings as residents feared an unidentified noisy night-time animal. State Sen. John Decamp called on authorities to coordinate an investigation into the mutilations.
As on August 28, there had been 25 mutilations reported across five Nebraska counties.
On August 28, press reported that a rancher near Hartington had apparently thwarted a mutilation in progress when he found a helicopter above his field was spotted by a neighbor who summoned the sheriff; All three reportedly witnessed the helicopter as well as a car that also seen shining a spotlight into the field. The following morning, a dead cow was found near where the helicopter had been spotted, but the cow had not been mutilated. Authorities cautioned the public not to shoot at aircraft. On September 5, it was reported that authorities had ordered helicopters to fly above 1000 feet after a commercial helicopter took two bullets during a power line inspection.
On September 11, a supposedly-mutilated cow was revealed at autopsy to have died of natural causes, i.e. bacterial infection. It was the third such mutilation disproved by authorities as the University of Nebraska's Department of Veterinary Science. On September 17, over 50 law enforcement officials from 24 counties attended a meeting at the Knox County Courthouse in Center, Nebraska to discuss the mutilations. Participants, who dismissed the cult theory, estimated that out of 80 cow deaths under discussion, about 27 were suspected mutilations.
On September 19, press reported three cases of alleged mutilations in South Dakota: Two in Moody County and one in Lake County. On the advice of the Sheriff, patrols were organized and farmers were instructed to check their herds every 12 hours. On September 30, papers reported on an unusual cow death where the animal was shot with a firearm, incised, and set aflame with fuel oil. Unlike other cases, removed body parts were left on site and no parts of the animal were taken.
In the September 30, 1974 issue of Newsweek, the magazine became the first national outlet to cover the ongoing mutilation story; Its story reported 100 cattle mutilated in Nebraska, Kansas, and Iowa since May.
On October 2, 1974, South Dakota Attorney General Kermit Sande told press that a number of mutilations had been reported in the state. Mutilations had been reported in three counties, and a psychiatrist argued the person responsible might be psychotic. After five mutilations were reported in Day County, a $500 reward was offered.
It was reported that UFO conspiracy theorists considered cattle mutilations might be related to flying saucers; On November 15, UFO expert J. Allen Hynek released a statement denying any link.
On December 2 1974, press reported on the Minnesota mutilations: two in Kandiyohi County, six in Swift County, and one in Meeker County. The Meeker animal was reportedly drained of blood. Between 1970 and 1974, twenty-two mutilated cattle were reported in Minnesota.