Two days ago there was a farm break-out of Chicken Run proportions.  In fact, there is evidence that Ron McKendrick’s intelligent and resourceful pigs had hidden bunkers and planning rooms.  They had begun construction on at least 3 tunnels out of his farm and finally finished one during the night a couple nights ago.  They had developed a sophisticated system of digging beneath ground while co-conspiritors did pig-like things above ground, including digging wallows, eating corn fed them by the farmer, and sleeping.  There was evidence they were redistributing the dirt on the ground and disguising it by rooting it into existing areas.  Apparently, despite a 16 year record of secure containment of its residents, a few of the hogs were inspired by the recent DNR inspections of their facilities.  They’d heard rumors of 1000′s of their kind running rampant through the woods, destroying farmland and farm equipment, spreading at least 30 different diseases, and terrorizing small children.  They thought perhaps they’d missed out on something and so, despite relative contentment in their current domicile, they hatched this plot to go find their fellow feral pigs and inflict mayhem on Michigan.

Unfortunately, rumors of the “Shoot on Sight” rules hadn’t also reached them.  As soon as word of their escape reached the farmer, help was quickly mobilized.  One pig succumbed to the farmer’s enticements and returned to the farm.  Five were taken under the shoot on sight rule.  Two made connection with their outside accomplices and are resisting capture.  They were tracked by dogs to a nearby road, where the trail ended.  It is hypothesized that they made their escape in a homemade, methane powered vehicle–or were assisted by aliens.

********************************

Tongue-in-cheek fun aside, the irony of contented pigs of any breed digging a 3 feet deep hole overnight (Renegade Ranch’s fences are buried 2 feet) and all leaving their beds to roam the woods, and the implication that the farmer allowed them to do so (see Ed Golder’s comments in the second article), is a bit much.  The two unaccounted for pigs were tracked by the dogs to a nearby road–and there the trail ended.  At a road.  These are the two pigs for which Ron McKendrick will be charged with violating the judge’s order that no pigs leave his property.

Here’s the report by MIRS:

*****

Pigs On The Lam

The Cheboygan County hunting ranch that is being sued by the state for not letting conservation officers check for illegal swine on it property, had an eight-pig breakout Tuesday afternoon, and owner Ron McKENDRICKisn’t convinced they were acting alone.”Somebody helped us get a hole under our fence. I think a person started it and the pigs finished it,” said McKendrick of the Renegade Ranch Hunting Preserve.

In total, eight pigs escaped. Five were shot by neighbors and surrounding property owners. One was captured alive, and two are still unaccounted for.
“It’s certainly a concern that we have that animals in captive facilities can get out, and when they get out they pose a serious threat to the environment and agriculture as well,” said Department of Natural Resources (DNR) spokesperson Ed GOLDER.

The DNR and McKendrick are going head to head in a lawsuit over McKendrick’s swine (See “DNR Sues Ranch; Owners Allege DNR ‘Harassment,’” 4/10/2012).

And this jailbreak will be another matter for the courts.

“It’s a violation of the judge’s order that Mr. McKendrick not allow any animals off his ranch,” said Golder.

Both Golder and McKendrick told MIRS that the Cheboygan County Sheriff got involved when neighbors and property owners started calling about the swine.

McKendrick himself was alerted while he was in town. A neighbor gave him a call and he immediately went home, got corn out to try to bait the hogs back, and assembled a handful of men with trucks and dogs to try and reclaim his herd.

Golder said the DNR was investigating how the hogs got out. But McKendrick is suspicious.

“I’ve had the place for 16 years and I’ve never had a hog get out of here before. Now all of a sudden this is on the news and the media and all of a sudden I have pigs get out,” he said.

****

Here’s the story as reported by the Cheboygan Daily Tribune:

As many as eight Russian boars escaped from a Cheboygan County game ranch on Tuesday, one or two of which are still roaming freely.
The Renegade Ranch, a fenced in Cheboygan County game ranch, was the operation from which the swine escaped. The ranch and its owner Ron McKendrick have made headlines recently for a legal dispute with the Department of Natural Resources over his right to keep Russian boars, which the DNR considers an illegal invasive species, on his property.

“This escape certainly demonstrates our concerns over invasive species being kept on private land,” said Ed Golder, Department of Natural Resources public information officer.
Shortly after escaping, five of the boars were killed by private property owners. Another was captured, but one or two are still at large, according to Golder.

“The five boars were legally killed by property owners,” he said. “Because they had a concealed pistol license, a hunting license, or they were on private property, they could legally shoot the boars.”
The same goes for the boars that remain unaccounted for. If private property owners see them on their property the are free to shoot them.

As far as the implications for Renegade Ranch, those are yet to be determined. The DNR has sought and received an June 1 court date for a show cause hearing where the department will contend swine escape from McKendrick’s property violated a court order issued during a April 20 hearing.

According to Golder, the court order required McKendrick not allow any swine leave his property unless they were going to slaughter and the DNR be contacted before the butcher-bound pigs were transported.
McKendrick did not respond to messages left by the Tribune Wednesday.

Law enforcement officers are still investigating the circumstances that led to the escape.

This is the most recent layer in a multifaceted clash between McKendrick and the DNR.
In April, the DNR filed a civil complaint against McKendrick and his wife Charlene, citing the swine on McKendrick’s 300-acre game ranch as illegal to possess in Michigan as the result of the invasive species order. This eventually led to the court order that required McKendrick keep the swine on his property.

On May 10, DNR officers inspected the swine on Renegade Ranch.

“They looked at a few swine,” said McKendrick shortly after the DNR inspection. “We talked a little.”
McKendrick contended that his swine were not invasive by virtue of where they were raised.

“All my hogs are raised in a pen in Michigan,” he said. “I buy them from a guy in the U.P. As I understand it, something that’s raised in Michigan can’t be an invasive species.”
According to the DNR, the Invasive Species Order is applied based on the strain of pig, not where it was born and raised.

“The Invasive Species Order applies to wild boar, wild hog, wild swine, feral pig, feral hog, feral swine, Old world swine, razorback, eurasian wild boar, Russian wild boar (Sus scrofa Linnaeus),” reads the DNR release. “The order does not apply to domestic swine, Sus domestica, in domestic hog production. A December 2011 declaratory ruling from the DNR defines the physical characteristics used to identify prohibited swine.”

*******

Jill

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For those of you who are just hearing about the pig situation, I thought I’d offer a quick recap.  Mark’s interview with Dave Janda was informative.  That link is in the next post.  Here are a few more links to check out:

Mark’s testimony before the Senate Ag. Committee

MDNR’s Declatory Ruling (read it for yourself)

“Wild” Pigs-- one of my early blogs that lays out the issues at hand.  You can also read up from there to read the story as it has unfolded.

Check out Mark’s videos on our video page

 More FAQ

If you have more questions and don’t see the answers, please contact us!

Jill

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Mark talked to Dr. Dave Janda on the radio yesterday about the latest on the pig situation.

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It seems like a while since I’ve written a post.  It isn’t that there isn’t much to say–there is.  It’s just that we are a family farm in the springtime trying to get everything done.  The pigs are only part of what we do on our slice of the Earth.  Here’s a sample of what’s been keeping us busy:

We raise the tastiest, healthy-for-you chickens in Northern Michigan.  The secret?  Grass.  Our chickens, like our pigs, are raised in outdoor pens where they can scratch in the dirt, eat grass, chase bugs (if they are so inclined, which meat birds rarely are), and bask in the sun.  This rewards us with chicken that has firm texture, enough fat to keep the meat tender and tasty but not greasy, and a reputation for higher levels of vitamins D and E and Omega 3 fatty acids.   We process the birds ourselves right here on  the farm.   We pick them up off the fields at night when they are not alert.  They are handled for processing by people they know, who are invested in taking good care of them.  The kill is quick and as drama-less as possible.  This keeps the birds from getting stressed and releasing adrenaline and other stress hormones into their bodies–ensuring, again, a better quality meat in your freezer.  We hand eviscerate, ensuring cleanliness without needing chlorine baths to kill spilled bacteria. The whole system, from day old chick to the freezer is focused on producing premium quality food for the culinary and health conscious folks we serve.  It is labor intensive, but we all work at it together and make it happen.  That’s one thing we’ve been doing a lot of these last few weeks.

This past weekend the kids performed in a play with a school group.  It was quite a production and they all performed marvelously.

Keeping up with the regular bookwork and management details that go along with running a business is always a challenge for me.  Balancing the farm accounts while boiling noodles for lunch and filling sippy cups with milk is probably unique in the business world–though not so much for other farm families we know.  That is one of the special challenges of a small family farm: the family.  The business involves managing a labor force (at age-appropriate levels) that is not adult in their skills and thinking.  They are years in the training mode.  The egg collector requires daily reminders.  Water spigots get left on by accident when the operator goes to shoot his slingshot at the sparrows.  The smallest family members require someone to fill their sippy cups, read them stories, and ensure they get naps.  Recently Obama’s Dept. of Labor was set to make a ruling (in the DNR’s fashion) that would prevent farm kids from working on the family farm unless they passed a 90 hour government administered curriculum.  What a tragic theft of family, values, work skills, and business training from our children–not to mention the government’s assertion that they are more competent than the parents!  Fortunately, due to public outcry, they decided to postpone action until they can gather more information.  I’m leary of that work “postpone,” but am trying to keep up with it through our Congresswoman, Debbie Stabenow.

I finally ordered my garden seeds this weekend.  Mark made me a broadfork and I’ve started working on fluffing the beds, pulling weeds, and generally getting ready to plant.  I always have high ambitions and then have to settle for reality in the garden, but one must start somewhere!  I found several carrots that I planted last year.  They are doing fine already this spring–much better than they did all of last summer.  There are also onions poking up, turnips sprouting, and the everlastingly prolific rat-tailed radishes sprouting.

The pig issues continue to keep Mark busy.  Defending our rights to keep our property and feed people good, wholesome food against a not-so-wise and frugal government is not an easy proposition.  There are a few well done videos that explain the issues well that came out recently.  Russia Today did two videos: Piggycide (hear Dave Tuxbury interviewed), and Revealed.  Rep. Greg McMasters talked with Rep. Ed McBroom, who’s been involved with this legislatively all along, and gives you a good picture of the political arm twisting and gun-to-the-head attitude the DNR approached the elected representatives with.

 

Jill

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Thought all you serious pig situation followers might like this humorous piece:(No it it not true)

Pigs Sought After Elk Kill

Jill

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Here’s another great petition:   Campaign for Liberty–MI

Petitions remind me of the Whos in Whosville from Horton Hears a Who.  It took every last single voice, all making noise to be heard and save the day.  It’s not hard to make your voice heard with a petition, and when everyone who’s concerned signs the cumulative voice can make a difference.  I offer as an example the Obama administration’s recent initiative to limit how a farmer’s own children can work on his/her farm–”limit” being an magnificent understatement.  Due to the amount of feedback they got, they Department of Labor dropped the rule (it was to be a Ruling much like this feral hog Declatory Ruling with far reaching impact but no representative input).  We all raised our voices and were heard.  No matter how the governor and his “Quality of Life” trio of advisors put their fingers in their ears and sing la-la to ignore us, we have to keep being heard.  They have to keep singing louder and louder to drown us, so it is working.  Keep making your voice heard!

Jill

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For all those who want to sign a petition, here’s one:

http://www.change.org/petitions/governor-state-of-michigan-stop-the-imminent-slaughter-of-heritage-pigs-on-small-farms-in-michigan

Thanks!

Jill

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At long last, I have an updatte for you!  I asked a couple of people who were in the courtroom, Scott Everett and Joseph O’Leary, as well as Mark for their views on last Friday’s hearing for Ron McKendrick.

The hearing in Cheboygan was a question of lifting or keeping in place the Temporary Restraining Order that prevented Ron McKendrick from NOT allowing DNR on his property.  In other words, he was restrained from denying them access.  They could come and go at will, his business was essentially frozen–he couldn’t buy more stock, sell hunts, and could only send animals to a processor if he alerted the DNR (note that they’d already interviewed/intimidated his processor).

Highlights of the day were:

According to several counts, between the Attorney General, DNR and Department of Agriculture there were 17 State of Michigan Employees in the courtroom concerning this case.  The lead characters were all dressed in black (Mark likened it to the Matrix).  Security was intense.  At this small, rural county courthouse everyone was supposed to go through metal detectors, past numerous deputies and State Police Troopers.  An explosive sniffing dog walked through small groups of farmers and supporters.  Mark noticed a couple scruffy looking fellows in overalls and talked to one of them on a couple of separate breaks.  The fellow shared that he was currently unemployed, homeless, and had nothing else to do, so he came to see the proceedings.  Ah, OK.  Mark then asked how an unemployed fellow such as himself made it past all that security into the courtroom with a concealed gun and wearing a Kevlar vest .   The fellow quickly found someone else to talk to.  There were several similar experiences related by others who attended.  As with other meetings with this agency, the farmers and ranchers were “disarmed” with great show (not that there were any arms in the first place) while the agents went to great lengths (and expense) to show their force.

It was interesting to hear the DNR attempt to explain how there is a second species of swine. Even though common sense people believe that all animals that can breed and produce fertile off spring are of the same species, somehow, someway, the DNR believes some swine are a totally different species than others.

The Department of Agriculture talked about all the diseases that swine carry and the risks associated with spreading diseases when pigs are raised outside.  Remember that open ended 9th characteristic?  That was a point Attorney Joseph O’Leary tried to hammer home:  this declatory ruling is simply too vague to be a rule of law.  It lacks sufficient definiteness such that ordinary people can read it and stay within the law.  It doesn’t give objective shoulder height measurements or even describe the “distinct skeletal structure.”  And we won’t touch the “characteristics currently unknown” trait.

The disputed full blood Mangalitsa was used as an example. As presented through expert testimony by Mark Baker, Mangalitsa swine have 7 of the 9 prohibited DNR characteristics, yet DNR Director Rodney Stokes has chosen to attempted to exempt them from the ISO.  It seems a very political move since the Mangalitsa has very politically connected friends.  In another instance, witness Matt Tingstad related that at the Feb. 1st meeting he showed a video of his pigs, “Gretchen” and “Princess Gloria,” whom he purchased from Roger Turunen, to expert Jack Mayer.  Mr. Mayer assured him his pets were exempt.  When Matt showed pictures to a DNR agent at another time, the agent told him they animals were not exempt.

One DNR Conservation Officer that testified said he would never use just one of the prohibited characteristics to classify a pig as an invasive species. The law and a very clear directive letter from Rodney Stokes says any one or more characteristics condemns an animal.   Attorney Joseph O’Leary said, “that is because you are a man of great integrity.”

In the end, the decision was that Ron McKendrick can continue to harvest his animals and conduct business, though he can’t restock.  The DNR is allowed to enter his property one more time before the actual trial (this was only a preliminary hearing, remember) to look for pigs.  They also must give three days notice through Ron’s attorney before conducting their search.  They may not in any way interfere with Ron’s business by interviewing customers, employees, or business associates.

This was only a preliminary step.  The full trial has yet to be scheduled, but is expected to be within the next month.  Stay tuned…

Jill

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I was asked yesterday for a response to the DNR’s latest release.  I figured others may have the same question, so I’ll share my answers here.

The Cheboygan News wrote a helpful article as well:  Invasive Swine Prompts DNR visit to Renegade Ranch…

Here is my take:

Note in the paragraph they say “the vast majority….”  There are cases to the contrary, and I shared a couple of those stories earlier on our blog.
                        They have not, themselves, shot any pigs.  Mr. Tuxbury shot his own pigs because the DNR, in a Feb. 1st meeting, expressly told the farmers and ranchers present that they would arrest noncompliant operators and charge them with a felony as the Invasive Species Order is based in the federal Invasive Species Act.  The DNR also directed those present to violate the Invasive Species Act and depopulate by selling out of state or butchering.  Note on my blog that Ron McKendrick’s butcher felt too intimidated to be comfortable taking his hogs after they visited her–”harboring” an invasive species is punishable with fines and felony charges.  This is how the law is written.  Those who voluntarily depopulated, as Mr. Tuxbury did, simply didn’t want to risk the fines and a felony record.  In the Feb. 1st meeting, the DNR was VERY clear about the consequences of non compliance.  They have a history of using intimidation tactics to ensure compliance.
They have not “arrested” anyone.  Mark is in Cheboygan this morning to testify in the hearing for Ron and Charlene McKendrick.  The DNR has brought suit against him rather than arrest him.  Since Mark follows this very closely while I am managing the farm and behind scenes, he knows more about this.  Nonetheless, they’ve avoided the arrest scenario, but are pressing civil suits.  I know part of the suit is billing him for the enforcement action against him.  I expect you’ll hear about this in the news and I’ll post it on the blog when Mark gets home and I can debrief him.

“The (ISO) is not an attack on farms.”  The DNR has repeatedly sought to characterize a breed of pig as a whole separate species.  In fact, the Boar breeds (there are several strains) produce fertile offspring when crossed with other pig breeds.  High school biology, anyone?  That makes them the same species, different breed.  They are the most heritage of heritage breeds, the root stock from which all breeds have been line bred.  They are not Asian Carp. Note that the kills they claim happened over 10 years and the photos of Russian Boars loose in the wild are all from Texas or Florida–NOT Michigan.  The DNR has not made a solid case for a massive feral pig problem requiring the elimination of an industry, no matter how distasteful it may be.  Bottom line on the ISO, though: it is poorly written and needs to be rescinded.  As it is written right now, ANY pig possessing floppy ears and a curly tail may be a Boar hybrid and is forbidden.  If you have an erect or floppy eared, curly tailed pig on your farm, you are in violation.  They may not be after you now, but the law is written in such a way that the door is open should they discover that the 9th characteristic currently not known to the DNR is that feral hogs put on weight while living on dirt and eating grass–wherever such pigs may occur.

Please ask your questions!

Jill

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For those of you who have asked when and where so you can support The Cause, Ron and Charlene McKendrick’s hearing  is at the Cheboygan County Court House in Cheboygan starting at 9:00 am on Friday April 20th.  We’d love to have a court room full of peaceful, law abiding, constitution honoring citizens as a show of support!

Jill

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Our friend Kyle made another video regarding what is happening here in Northern Michigan.  His first video had over 70,000 views.  Thank you Kyle for spreading the word and sharing with the world what the government in Michigan is doing.  Every farmer, gardener, 4H student, agriculturalist, biologist, naturalist, ecologist and red blooded American should be shocked at how the Michigan DNR and Republican Governor Rick Snyder are attempting to shut down every family farm in Michigan, one at a time. If you grow your own food or if you enjoy locally grown food, now is the time to get involved. Please help the Bakers help the rest of us here in Michigan.

Tim (Friend of the Bakers and fellow farmer)

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Here is the Latest Video from Mark.  Thank you all for asking about Donating and if PayPal doesn’t work for you, you can send to us directly.  We really appreciate all of your support.  The legal fight is hard, but we will overcome.

We can be contacted at:

 

Baker’s Green Acres

Mark & Jill Baker

1579 Brinks Rd.       

Marion, MI   49665

Bakers

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Wanted to share an e-mail from one of the farmers who was raided on Friday.  Note at the end of his message what the DNR observed about his facility.

Subject: search warrant

I was served a search warrant yesterday at 7: 45am.

After 8 guys 3 four wheelers, and 4 hours, DNR decided I was correct. I have killed all my hogs. They gave me papers that say I do not have any hogs on my property. All they saw were dead hogs laying around from my mass slaughtering. It took 12 guys 4 times in there to kill all of them, sows with young, Pregnant sows, dozens of piglets, and old mature boars. It has been a sad few weeks.

Does anyone know what it feels like to open fire on 20 baby piglets in one group which weigh between 5lbs and 15 lbs. They are so adorable and cute.

They commented to everyone that they never saw a fence built so tough and no way would a hog get out of this area. I trenched 2′ then installed chain link fencing, then a 10′ high tightlock fence on top of that. ( 200 acre area ) They never saw a fence like that.

Dave Tuxbury

deer tracks ranch

 

Jill

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Mark was on the Alex Jones show on April 10th.  Mark has a good conversation with Mike Adams who was filling in for Alex.  You really need to listen to this.  Mike summed up the image that the nation and the world have of Michigan.  It is really sad that a few government employees can ruin a states image so terribly.

 

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OPPORTUNITY FOR ACTION: In a recent article from the Gongwer news service, director of the MI Dept of Ag and Rural Development said, “Director Stokes is moving ahead with a common sense plan.”  The Dept of Ag has been given a pass so far, but Dirctor Keith Creagh needs to know that the DNR is not implementing a common sense plan.  His phone number is:  517-373-1052.    His e-mail is:  creaghk@michigan.gov.  We do not need ear tags, fees for permits to raise food, or pigs-can-fly regulation.  We need the DNR on their side of the fence and common sense solutions on the agriculture side of the fence.

 

OK, some more Frequently Asked Questions:

1) The DNR are implementing “reasonable measures” to deal with a very real problem, right?

There is a tried and true tactic to get people to feel good about oppressive measures: create a problem (fabricate it or make a mountain out of a molehill) and then offer the solution.       ***There are feral pigs in Michigan.  They have escaped or been released from various sources.  However, the DNR claims that in 2009 (or earlier) there were up to 5000 feral swine–all Russian Boars– breeding like rabbits in the state.  So how many are there now?  Per DNR numbers, around 132 were sighted and 42 shot last year.  Where are the thousands and thousands that should be out there???  Michigan does not even come close to a Texas or Florida size problem.  So, IS there a very real problem?     ****The solution: “shut off the faucet.”  The DNR made a rule to try to headlock the legislature into getting rid of swine hunting facilities, for no other good reason than that they want to.  They ignore their own law to permit some people to keep their pigs (ie: the Mangalitsa pig question).  The facts are irrelevant to them.  The legislature offered a solution CRAFTED BY ALL CONCERNED PARTIES that was REASONABLE and appropriate: Shoot on sight any pig outside a fence.  Note that this is a more generous solution than Texas or Florida possesses.  Even as late as the Read the rest of this entry »

Jill

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Listen to Mark on the Power Hour – April9th – 2nd Hour of the show.   Click on this This To Listen

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One of the best articles written yet.  It is factual, well sourced, and you get the picture accurately.  Way to go Cadillac News!

Local Farmer Takes Fight Against Swine Mandate to Lansing

Jill

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Another account of Mark’s visit to the Capital and a lesson in politics:

http://hartkeisonline.com/animal-husbandry/big-pig-lobbyist-uses-cloakroom-tactics-to-foil-small-farm-defense/

Jill

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“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”  The opening line of Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities often comes to my mind when things get tight, as my way of keeping perspective.  This past week was one of those times.

It started with our visit to the Capital in Lansing and Mark’s testimony to the Senate Ag Commission.  Because of this issue and the strength of Mark’s testimony, we got to see the legislative process in action from the inside.  It was a major roller coaster ride.  We had the inside scoop as we spent the day with a lobbyist (and learned how that whole facet of government works) and two legislative staffers (for Sen. Booher and Sen. Casperson).  In the end, we decided that government is a strange and wonderful entity that tries to operate with ties to reality.  It’s like a labyrith of truth for legislators to discern what is true and good when so many divergent interests have their own inputs.  I gained a great deal of respect for Senators and Representatives who attempt the maze.  We were glad to pull into the driveway on Brinks Rd. and see our big white dogs greet us. Read the rest of this entry »

Jill

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Hello, this is a friend of Mark and Jill.  They are very busy, so I asked if I could update everyone on what is going on.  I helped Jill set up the website, so I had access and they said it would be OK if I posted a status update.

To begin, I would like to ask all of you that you pray for Mark, Jill and their family.  The situation has been very stressful for the family.  Pray also for all those in the Michigan Government that are involved and that they do the right things regarding this issue.

Status update:  We spent a very long day on Sunday waiting to hear trucks come down the dirt road in front of Mark’s house.  Mark, Jill, the children and a few friends that Mark wanted to have with him, if the situation unfolded and the DNR came to kill his pigs.  The conversations were filled with emotion.  Not Read the rest of this entry »

Bakers

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