The Carcass Pick Up Program

During the springtime calving season, ranchers lose some calves to natural causes. Calving is an exhaustive process and requires constant oversight, so, historically, dead livestock would often be moved to a boneyard located close to the calving lot, which in turn was often located not far from the rancher’s home. In the past, carnivores were not as prevalent on the landscape as they are today and this system worked fine. However, once grizzly bears began emerging from their dens at the same time of year as calves were being born, conflicts increased. In 2002, shortly after realizing these boneyards were essentially serving as a “welcome mat” to scavenging grizzly bears, the Blackfoot Carcass Pick Up Program was born.

Weekly during the calving season from mid-February through mid-May and on an on-call basis the rest of the year, a driver visits area ranches up to two times per week to pick up dead livestock. The driver drops off the carcasses at a centrally-located composting facility operated by the Montana Department of Transportation.

Today, approximately 120 livestock producers throughout the Blackfoot as well as outside the Blackfoot in both Granite and Powell counties voluntarily participate in the program. Those carcasses collected outside the Blackfoot currently go to the Powell County landfill in Deer Lodge. In the Blackfoot alone, more than 90% of livestock producers currently participate.

Living and ranching in the Blackfoot means sharing the space with a diverse array of wildlife. We have to be willing to modify old habits and adapt as we go. As we do, we become ever-better stewards of this landscape.

-Justin Iverson, Iverson Ranch, Potomac

Partner contributions are critical to the ongoing success of this program: the US Fish & Wildlife Service provides the truck and fuel, the Blackfoot Challenge hires the driver, the Montana Department of Transportation provides the use of their compost facility, and numerous participating landowners provide monetary contributions to keep this service going.

If you are interested in learning more about or participating in the Carcass Pick Up Program, please Contact Us.

For more details about Carcass Pick Up scheduling and who to call, please click here for our annual letter to Blackfoot landowners and to Avon/Drummond/Philipsburg landowners.

“Living With Carnivores: Boneyards, Bears and Wolves” is a short documentary film telling the story of the Carcass Pick Up Program in the Blackfoot watershed. Co-produced by Seth Wilson and Jason Kauffman, Alpenglow Press Productions