04/27/07 Changes

Changes Parts of the Western landscape are changing and I'm not so sure I like it. I'm Jeff Keane; I'll be right back after this to explain. I read a column by cattle industry person and humorist, Lee Pitts that explored the changes taking place on a lot of the country that used to be working livestock ranches. While the story still had plenty of Mr. Pitts's humorous writing style, the theme of the column was a little melancholy. More and more ranches that used to provide a living for their owners by supporting herds of livestock are being sold. People with enough money who don't need to worry about making any more and would rather use the newly purchased ranch for a vacation destination buy these ranches. They could care less about any production capabilities of the property. Lee Pitts points out that around 80 per cent of land buyers in Texas bought the land for non-agricultural purposes. Nearly 60 per cent of Montana and Wyoming lands are sold to people looking for a lifestyle and not a cow ranch. You know, I can't blame the actual ranchers for selling out for a profit and more power to people who have made enough money in their life to buy these ranches, but I think it does work an economic hardship on rural communities when a producing ranch is not producing. Personally I've seen this change in my nearly, yearly trips to Montana. I'd sure rather see cows grazing on a hillside than see that hillside cut up by roads to a whole lot of houses and ranchettes. I'm Jeff Keane. Western Livestock Reporter 4/11/07