Soon after I started my career as a deputy sheriff, I quickly realized this profession wasn’t just about traffic stops, enforcing state statute, or investigating complex cases. With less than a week on patrol, I found myself face to face with a very large cow in the middle of Beaver Creek Road. My field training officer was grading my every move as I tried to corral the cow back into a nearby pasture. I’m happy to say everything went off without a hitch!

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The story I just shared is a weekly, if not daily, occurrence our deputies face while out on patrol and one the sheriff’s office gladly takes on. In 2021 our office responded to a total of 149 calls that encompassed animal calls, animal welfare checks, animal cruelty, and livestock loose.

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I’m not sure how many people are aware, but in 2017 the Wyoming Livestock Board’s budget was greatly reduced which resulted in over a 50% reduction to the number of Livestock Investigators across the state. This left a void in investigating livestock crimes and a big part of that responsibility was placed on local sheriff’s offices. While livestock crimes are a small number of what a sheriff’s office investigates, even a few livestock crimes can be very detrimental to our local ranchers and producers. In 2019 our office saw an uptick in livestock crimes and increased crime activity in the rural areas of Sheridan County.

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While working side by side with a state Livestock Investigator on a local cattle theft case, our office began discussing the possibility of a partnership with the livestock board and that came to fruition this past summer. In July of 2021, the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office and the Wyoming Livestock Board entered into an agreement that allows extra patrol for our deputies to focus on the rural ranch community utilizing funds from the Wyoming Livestock Board. Because of this partnership, our deputies are able to provide targeted livestock patrols in all of Sheridan County, but particularly the border of Montana, Summer and Fall livestock ranges and any other area identified. These patrols are conducted by our deputies outside their regularly scheduled shifts. This is very similar to our dedicated Mountain Patrol which is through another collaborative effort with the Bighorn National Forest Service.

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This newly implemented program has been very beneficial for our county and I’m excited to see it continue for years to come. It’s allowed our office to primarily focus on patrolling county and rural roads, being more visible and deterring crime while making meaningful contacts with our rural community.  

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Since our office began Livestock Patrol in July of 2021, our deputies have spent 106 hours patrolling 2,284 miles of rural and county roads dedicated specifically to the rural and ranch community. During those patrols, deputies have had 45 producer and carrier contacts. Those contacts include deputies stopping in and visiting with local ranchers. We are proud to say these contacts have been very well received and much appreciated.

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The Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office is committed in finding unique and purposeful ways to better serve Sheridan County while building and maintaining local, state, and federal partnerships.

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