Dust-up over roaming cattle in northern B.C. spurs call for changes to the law

A woman in northwest B.C. is challenging a law she calls antiquated and aggravating after a neighbour's cattle got loose, soiled her water source and damaged her property.

Telkwa-based artist KaarenSoby says the damage from neighbouring cows was upsetting enough, but finding out she's responsible topayfor thosedamages is unacceptable. Soby says her neighbour paid $200 for a tent the cows crashed into even thoughshe didn't have to under the law.

"She wrote me back and said, 'Well, we're not doing this again because the law says we don't have to,' " says Soby.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development says it's true that the laws around livestock say it's not the responsibility of cattle farmers to keep cows on their own property. Instead,it's the responsibility of others to build fences to keep cattle out.

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Sobywon't accept that without a fight."A lot of people, they're afraid to talk about it. I'm not afraid to talk," she says.

She's collecting signatures onapetition to get the law changed and gathering anecdotes from other neighbours who have also experienced unwelcome intrusions from cattle.

Not an isolated issue

Rancher Shelley Dycklives southeast of Vanderhoof, about 100 km west of Prince George,with as many as 900 cattle on her farm, but even she was disillusioned by B.C.'s laws around roaming cattle after moving to the province from Alberta.

"We had no idea that this was the way that things ran in B.C.because we never heard of such nonsense," she says.

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Dyckcomes from Alberta where she says damage caused by wandering cattle is solved collaboratively by farmers on both sides of the fence. She moved to her B.C. farm thinking she had found a peaceful place to retire, but soon found out loose cattle are a nuisance when their owners aren't responsible for the damage they can cause.

On to greener pastures

Dyckhas sold her property to a younger couple she hopes has more energy to either put up with wandering cattle or fight the laws around them.

"I'm not scared of fighting, but I'm 62 years old. I wanted to get away somewhere peaceful," she said, adding that she'd stay and challenge the law, "if I was younger."

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As Dyck leaves the area, she warns others.

"You know if you moved from the city and think you bought a nice, quiet little quarter in the middle of nowhere to get away peaceful and quiet, that's not the case. You're going to have cattle on top of you all summer."