Vern and Denise Lafrentz are taking it personally and they're offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to the capture of the person or persons responsible for the death of one of their prize purebred Simmental calves.
The four-month old calf, an embryo implant daughter of an award-winning dam and sire, was "the best of the group of calves out there," said Denise Lafrentz, commenting on the shocking discovery that her husband and their son Cody made when they went out to check on a small herd of cows and calves that they were intending to move to another pasture early last Wednesday morning.
The Lafrentz family (Vern, Denise and sons Cody and Riley) operate Wheatland Cattle Company south of Bienfait. They said they've never lost calves or cows before, even to predators, so this particular theft and death left them particularly devastated as well as financially hurt since the calf was not insured at this point.
Vern and Cody arrived to move the cows and calves early Wednesday morning and came across a pool of fresh blood with evidence of a second pooling of blood close to tire tracks indicating that the calf had been shot and then loaded into a truck that was brought in through the ranch gate. The carcass was then carted off. They feel that they just missed spotting the cattle rustler(s) by just a few hours since the blood was still fresh.
"We didn't see the blood at first, but the mother cow of the calf that was shot was refusing to move and was quite agitated. She kept wanting to go back to a certain spot, so we followed her and that's when we saw the blood," said Vern.
The calf's dam and sire from Alberta and Saskatchewan based purebred Simmental operations, were valued and previously sold at auction for $32,500 and $32,000, respectively, so their offspring was "not just some $600 market animal," said Vern.
RCMP investigators don't feel this was just a "thrill kill" otherwise the carcass would not have been loaded up and removed. Those who do the senseless killing usually leave their victims right where they drop. The consensus of opinion is that the calf was taken either for meat or for bait.
All had been well earlier in the day with the herd, a small grouping of about 30 young calves and cows in the Wheatland 120 head purebred Simmental cow operation.
"It happened not even 250 feet from the road. We saw the vehicle tracks going up to the fence then to the gate and where it made a U-turn. The two pools of blood convince us the calf was loaded up, not even a mile from our home," said Vern.
He figures the four-month old calf, a late January birth, would have been about 350 to 400 pounds.
"We're offering the reward, because whatever was going on, someone may have seen it since you could see the pasture from the highway." He said, referring to Highway No. 18. A PFRA pasture is also not far from the Wheatland pasture.
The young calf, Wheatland Lady 050X (ear tagged), was not destined to be anybody's hamburger within the foreseeable future.. She would have been a vital and valuable addition to the company's detailed breeding program.
"It's just so low and so senseless and we're offering the reward for that reason. Hopefully it will help the RCMP in their investigation," said Vern.
Const. Erin Beaulieu said the local detachment has opened up an investigation into the matter and are seeking the public's assistance in their attempts to find the culprits, since it is believed that it would have taken more than one person to remove the carcass. They said the incident must have occurred sometime between 6 p.m. on June 1 and 7 a.m. June 2.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477 to report what they know anonymously or notify the local detachment at 637-4400.
