# From The Owner Of Lonesome Bull Ranch



## Rack Ranch (May 25, 2004)

There is two sides to every story, and it sounds like TPWD will be in court.

Thought this was interesting....

My name is Laney Sloan and I am the owner of Lonesome Bull Ranch on Lake Corpus Christi, Texas. I would like to make a statement regarding the recent incident at the ranch with Texas Parks & Wildlife Department and the Deer Breeder that was leasing the deer pens located on the ranch property.

The deer pens were being leased to a licensed Deer Breeder that was not associated with the ranch in any way, nor with any of our ranch personnel. They had their own employees and took care of their own day to day operations at the breeder facility without our involvement (much like a mall that merely leases a space to a retail store).

On December 23, 2013, TPWD came to the ranch and began an investigation into some violations pertaining to the deer breeding facility. They claim the Deer Breeder was not up to code on certain regulations and was therefore shut down.

TPWD has very strict regulations regarding CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) testing and deer identification, among other things . TPWD often uses the Chronic Wasting Disease scare-tactic as a means to shut down deer breeder facilities, when in fact there has never been one whitetail deer test positive for CWD in the entire State of Texas.

On May 7, dozens of TPWD Game Wardens showed up at the ranch like a swat team, and shot and killed hundreds of breeder deer inside the leased deer pens, and on my ranch land, due to some deer escaping from the pens. They used a helicopter to chase deer out of the thick brush and into the open to shoot them. This also caused many deaths and injuries to our exotic animals that ran from the helicopters into fences and cattle guards. The Game Wardens were also shooting tame bottle-fed deer very near to the Ranch House, where my cousin , Fred Rich lives with his children.

As expected, not one deer of the hundreds killed tested positive for CWD.

Fred Rich is also my Ranch Manager, and we are in no way connected to the Deer Breeder that was leasing the pens on my ranch. However, on the same day, Mr. Rich was charged with a completely unrelated TPWD violation that we expect to be cleared up very soon.

Because of the damage caused by Texas Parks & Wildlife Department and the Deer Breeder, we will not be having whitetail hunts in the 2014-2015 season, in order to replenish the herd and improve our stock.

http://www.lonesomebullranch.com/

For legal reasons I cannot give further details or reply to comments. Thank you for taking the time to read this statement.


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## Pablo (May 21, 2004)

Wow!


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## WillieT (Aug 25, 2010)

That stinks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## DCAVA (Aug 5, 2013)

Terrible PR for that fella, now he's got to explain to everyone and try to keep clients coming back....


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## AvianQuest (Feb 7, 2006)

Very similar to other incidents. There was one where TPWD personnel showed up and bushed the lady co owner aside and started shooting all the deer with .22 rimfire magnum and .17 rimfire rifles. Both calibers illegal for mere citizens to use for deer.

It was a bloodbath lasting something like 8 hours and the shooters were driving around in pickups shooting the same deer many times before they finally died. 

They removed all the brain stems for testing, and of course no CWD was found. All of the deer carcasses were buried.


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## catfishinbeerdrinkin (May 3, 2011)

Thats just ridiculous

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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

You know why there is no CWD in Texas? Because TP&W guards against it and monitors all the breeders and ranches that buy and sell white tail deer.

If they had deer in their pens that they couldn't prove were not imported from out of state and their records were suspect then all the deer had to be killed in order to see if CWD was present. A deer has to be dead to test for it...they have to examine the brain.

If deer escaped from pens and were part of the suspect group then yup they had to kill all of the deer within the high fence.

Terrible thing for the ranch owner but we sure don't need CWD in Texas.

TH


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

Trouthunter said:


> You know why there is no CWD in Texas? Because TP&W guards against it and monitors all the breeders and ranches that buy and sell white tail deer.
> 
> If they had deer in their pens that they couldn't prove were not imported from out of state and their records were suspect then all the deer had to be killed in order to see if CWD was present. A deer has to be dead to test for it...they have to examine the brain.
> 
> ...


X2


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## DCAVA (Aug 5, 2013)

FREON said:


> X2


 x3

Pretty much sums it up.....


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## July Johnson (Mar 23, 2014)

Uh oh...


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## jtburf (May 26, 2004)

I sent them a message this morning looking for a couples dove hunt,

I trust what they have said, hopefully I will hear back from them and we can go shoot some dove down there.

Best of luck to them.

John


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## txwader247 (Sep 2, 2005)

I understand the need to test for CWD, but I do have a question. Are the carcasses just disposed of even if the test shows there is no CWD or is meat salvaged for hunters for the hungry or what have you? If not, why is that?


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## Tx_Biologist (Sep 7, 2012)

txwader247 said:


> I understand the need to test for CWD, but I do have a question. Are the carcasses just disposed of even if the test shows there is no CWD or is meat salvaged for hunters for the hungry or what have you? If not, why is that?


Because we are dealing with a disease issue it would not be prudent to offer these deer for consumption. Little research has been conducted on CWD as it pertains to deer and safe consumption, and no creditable information exits on if it is harmful or safe to consume the meat. Since the disease is akin to BSE (mad-cow)and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and cannot be destroyed by cooking the only safe protocol is to destroy the carcasses.

RVS


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## sotxks (Jul 10, 2011)

My cousin had the same problem. Only, he had some does that had messed up or missing tags and some had tattoos that were unreadable. He was told to kill these deer and dig a deep hole and bury them. Last I talked to him, they haven't told him to kill for sure, but he said he isn't killing them in the pens like they wanted him to. He doesn't want to scare any of the others. He said he was going to release them into a 30ac "pen" and shoot them there. He asked if I wanted some deer meat because he wasn't just going to bury 60 deer. He refused to waste that meat! To me TPWD is the "wasting disease", not the disease itself! 


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## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

If you have the business savy to own and operate a ranch like Lonesome Bull, then why lease space to someone who could destroy your operation?

_On December 23, 2013, TPWD came to the ranch and began an investigation into some violations pertaining to the deer breeding facility. They claim the Deer Breeder was not up to code on certain regulations and was therefore shut down._

His zeal for profit may have been too great. Like the OP stated, there are 2 sides to the story. (maybe 3 sides .... the ranchers .... the TP&WD .... and the truth) But it seems the owner took an unreasonable risk.


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## Law Dog (Jul 27, 2010)

Wow!


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## Dukman (Sep 21, 2007)

Tx_Biologist said:


> Because we are dealing with a disease issue it would not be prudent to offer these deer for consumption. Little research has been conducted on CWD as it pertains to deer and safe consumption, and no creditable information exits on if it is harmful or safe to consume the meat. Since the disease is akin to BSE (mad-cow)and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and cannot be destroyed by cooking the only safe protocol is to destroy the carcasses.
> 
> RVS


I could understand your reasoning if the deer actually had CWD.


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## Cynoscion (Jun 4, 2009)

I have taken clients to this place for exotic hunts in the past. I will just say that I never got the feeling that ANY part of it was on the up and up. I read what the owner said in that statement but I find it hard to believe that Mr. Rich makes no profit on the deer sales or has nothing to do with the breeding operation. He has tried to sell my clients bred deer hunts on multiple occasions and I personally know the first consulting biologist the place ever had and he worked directly for/with Fred.

As for their dove hunts, I would be very wary. With the feeder density they have there and the small size of the place it would be very easy for a warden to write a hunting over bait citation no matter where you are hunting on the place. I've been there before and seen their "guides" sit their dove hunters UNDER their feed bins.

I have no skin in the place. Just saying buyer beware.


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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

sotxks, I say this with the most sincerity after reading your post. 

You're an idiot plain and simple.

TH


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## Cynoscion (Jun 4, 2009)

Also remember that this guy is part of the reason for the "no mold claims" clause on our homeowner's policies.

http://www.caller.com/news/2006/mar/18/mold-made-men-money-now-prison/

How does a convicted felon "manage" a ranch without carrying a firearm? Just a thought


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## DCAVA (Aug 5, 2013)

I don't pay for dove hunts, since we have our own property to hunt here in the valley, nor have I ever hunted a high fence ranch, since we have a lease and I have opportunities to kill B&C caliber deer on a ranch close to the LANWR refuge here. No beef on these who do, but after reading on the possibilities of this disease infecting our native 'wild' deer breeds in Texas, and the history/posts on this ranch I would not get anywhere near the ranch above mentioned, personally.

Jus sayin'....


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## Cynoscion (Jun 4, 2009)

I also find it odd that Mr. Sloan is listed as the owner/president of Platinum Whitetails (a licensed scientific breeding facility) and it is located on the same county road as Lonesome Bull Ranch.

Soooooo....are there 2 separate deer breeders on Lonesome Bull ranch property? One of which Mr. Sloan has nothing to do with and the other (Platinum) is his and has a good record? Orrrrrr.....is there only one (more likely) and he lets his cousin (convicted felon-remember cooking houses) run it into the ground.

Still thinking


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## Cynoscion (Jun 4, 2009)

http://www.bizapedia.com/tx/PLATINUM-WHITETAILS-INC.html

http://www.lonesomebullranch.com/#anchor_128

Sorry, forgot to cite my literature.

For those not familiar with the area, Lonesome Bull sits on county road 364 which is not a thriving metropolis.

I tried to use Platinum Whitetail's website to get information but apparently their page is down and you must have a password to look at it?????

http://www.lonesomebullranch.com/platinumwhitetails.html


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## Johnny9 (Sep 7, 2005)

I know of another breeder that has never had any problems with TPWD and there must be more to this story.


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

There's more than 2 sides to this story,and I aint heard enough!In all my years of living in Texas and hunting,I've never heard of TPW screwing up like that.Sure,I've known a couple wardens that I wouldn't wizzed on if they were on fire,but to have a bunch just drive up and start blasting away,I don't buy it.


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## sparrish8 (Jul 13, 2013)

This place has a horrible rep. And have screwed lots of people, don't hunt there and it sucks the deer were killed because of there ignorance.


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## HELOLT (Aug 1, 2013)

Now how does that happen, that sounds awful.


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## HunterGirl (Jan 24, 2011)

Trouthunter said:


> You know why there is no CWD in Texas? Because TP&W guards against it and monitors all the breeders and ranches that buy and sell white tail deer.
> 
> If they had deer in their pens that they couldn't prove were not imported from out of state and their records were suspect then all the deer had to be killed in order to see if CWD was present. A deer has to be dead to test for it...they have to examine the brain.
> 
> ...


X4. I have no symphathy for deer farmers.


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

HunterGirl said:


> X4. I have no symphathy for deer farmers.


Agreed!!!! If they want sympathy they can find it in the dictionary between ****e and syphilis!!!!


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## captain sandbar (Dec 9, 2011)

Tx_Biologist said:


> Because we are dealing with a disease issue it would not be prudent to offer these deer for consumption. Little research has been conducted on CWD as it pertains to deer and safe consumption, and no creditable information exits on if it is harmful or safe to consume the meat. Since the disease is akin to BSE (mad-cow)and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and cannot be destroyed by cooking the only safe protocol is to destroy the carcasses.
> 
> RVS


 My step mother-in-law died to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and it was the most horrible thing one could imagine. To prove it, they also had to send a portion of her brain to the Mayo clinic for testing. ANY possibility that this type of wasting disease infects the TX herds has to be eliminated, even if it results in other types of "waste". And as another reader stated, i know someone who breeds deer, and he is very aware that you follow the rules or it all goes to hell; as it should!


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## Rack Ranch (May 25, 2004)

Its a shame things like this have to happen. Greed I guess, but you would think that someone who has the money to own such a magnificent ranch wouldn't care enough about the money he made from the deer breeding facility to break the law. Most of us would give our left nut to own such a place and thank God everyday we had it. I just don't get it. Fred on the other hand is a sorry POS who should still be in the pen. I guess maybe the land owner is to given everything that has happened. Birds of a feather flock together.


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## Josh5 (Jun 27, 2007)

So we all see pics of these deer breeder places with tags in the ears on EVERY deer there. A breeder can't prove where he acquired a few deer, so the gubment kills them all. 

Hmm....if there are 300 deer in this facility and 5 don't have proper 'papers', why don't they just kill the 5, test the dead deer, and then if all test negative, leave the other 295 deer (assets) alone. 

The "escaped undocumented" deer are a different issue. 

I'm not a deer breeder fan. 

I am also not a militarized police zone fan either. This smacks of gubment power gone crazy at worst, a lack of common sense at best. Incrementalism at its finest.


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## willydavenport (Jun 4, 2004)

What I don't understand is, if the deer breeder was operating his facility completely separate from the ranch, why is Lonesome Bull having to cancel all hunts to rebuild THEIR herd?


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## budreau (Jun 21, 2009)

willydavenport said:


> What I don't understand is, if the deer breeder was operating his facility completely separate from the ranch, why is Lonesome Bull having to cancel all hunts to rebuild THEIR herd?


where else do you think they get all the big deer for the cleints.


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## AvianQuest (Feb 7, 2006)

Josh5 said:


> Hmm....if there are 300 deer in this facility and 5 don't have proper 'papers', why don't they just kill the 5, test the dead deer, and then if all test negative, leave the other 295 deer (assets) alone.


There you go talking common sense. Next thing you would want is for the government to go after the criminals who use guns to commit their crimes and leave the other 99.9% of us gun owners alone.


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