DOW Counting Sheep

(Powder horn   No Camping Here News   October 14, 2016 )

The Colorado Division of Wildlife will engage in its annual sheep count starting mid-November said a source in Denver. The yearly tally, focused solely on bighorns and not domestic woolies, is not expected to interrupt traffic flow although some hold-ups in remote spots may occur.

The idea behind the count is to determine how many bighorn sheep live here.
“We realize that these beasts often run away and hide when they see people, especially people with badges and uniforms,” said Hillary Gote, a registered pantheist from the San Luis Valley. “It’s OK though since we’re not planning to interview them. We only want to count them.”

Plans to tabulate sheep numbers from the air were harshly criticized by animal rights groups since the noise of intruding aircraft is said to create inordinate stress in the herds. The practice of tagging stragglers has also been condemned for the same reasons.

Hey, if you’re gonna make an omelet you’ve gotta break some eggs,” quipped Gote, “and since sheep don’t lay eggs we’ll have to bring home the bacon on our own.”

The DOW apologized for any inconvenience caused by the program.

“The state counts tourists, why shouldn’t we count sheep?” said Gote. “Besides, many of our bighorn clientele would be lost without these statistics. If you were a sheep wouldn’t you want to know how many more of you were out there?”

– Ripple Van Winkle