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November 29, 2021 \u2014 In the two weeks since a mountain lion killed two goats at the high school farm in Boonville, the remaining goats have been listening to a.m. radio all night long, and scarecrows have been giving off offensive odors to deter further losses. \nBut the long-term solution is a high fence, ideally twelve feet tall, with a five-foot visual barrier around the bottom so predators looking for an easy meal won\u2019t be as easily tempted.\n Project Coyote, an organization dedicated to promoting coexistence between wildlife and humans and their livestock, has offered to get together volunteers to help build a more lion-proof fence at the eight-acre farm, which includes about 15 goats and a herd of sheep. The farm is at the Anderson Valley High school in Boonville, which is a populated area, but it\u2019s also adjacent to a creek, in a corridor where similar attacks have happened in the past.\nIn August, the Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to end the county\u2019s contract with USDA Wildlife Services, a relationship which, according to Supervisor John Haschak, had already ended. Haschak serves with Supervisor Glenn McGourty on a committee to develop a non-lethal wildlife policy for the county.\nWildlife Services offered non-lethal services as well as trapping and killing, which led to lawsuits and controversy. According to Dr. Michelle Lute, the National Carnivore Conservation Manager with Project Coyote, attempts at getting rid of carnivores have far-reaching effects.\n\u201cYou see this a lot with coyotes and mountain lions,\u201d she explained; \u201cwhere you remove a resident adult, and it opens up a vacancy for a new individual to come in. That new individual may be younger, may not know how to hunt as well, so that can create increased conflict, where there was low potential for conflict in the first place. So that\u2019s why we say the evidence suggests that removing individual carnivores can sometimes increase conflict, despite the purported purpose being to decrease conflict...and that\u2019s why it\u2019s been done, cyclically, for decades and decades, without reduced conflict.\u201d\nLouise Simson, the new superintendent of Anderson Valley School District, is concerned about safety. She says that during the season when goats and sheep are giving birth, students and staff could be at the farm at all hours.\n\u201cThere was a similar attack, about five years ago, and the animal was trapped,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd we didn\u2019t have any further incidents. But this is a safety issue, and that\u2019s why I\u2019m involved. I know it\u2019s a very political issue, and there\u2019s many points of view, but my job as a superintendent is to keep the kids safe and that\u2019s why I\u2019m advocating for some help...to me, if there\u2019s an animal with an attack behavior \u2014 and this is not an isolated incident, there have been numerous incidents all up and down this creek; that the authorities need to take this into account and maybe look at this as a special situation, because it is on school grounds. However, if that is not to be, I have lots of folks who have given me a lot of advice and no resources. My school district has a $400,000 deficit in operating expenses next year. I\u2019m happy to implement solutions, but those solutions need to come with funding.\u201d\nLute says that \u201cif the school is interested in collaborating, we\u2019d happily hold a workshop, virtually or in person, if possible, to talk about additional resources and protections at the school. And we can also help find volunteers if there\u2019s a volunteer workday possible where some enhanced fencing could occur or the pasture and enclosure could be moved away from the creek. As I understand it, the goats are currently grazing pretty close to a creek, which is a natural corridor for all kinds of wildlife, including mountain lions, that like a lot of cover and want to stay away from humans.\u201d\n\nTen days before the November 15 attack, the county put out a request for proposals from potential contractors to provide some non-lethal services. Haschak said, \u201cthat\u2019s mostly for those animal encounters of the small type, like the skunk under the house or the raccoon in the dog pen. What we\u2019re looking at, as far as a model, is that the person would go out and visit the site and then provide some expert opinions, but if the person really needs some infrastructure done, like a one-way door put in or some mesh or whatever kind of construction work, that would be outside the county\u2019s purview. So that would be an opportunity for the person to make some more money, outside the contract with the county.\u201d\nHaschak also suggested saving money by using recycled materials to build a sturdier fence and assembling a lending library of deterrence items so every farmer doesn\u2019t have to stockpile equipment. Simson, the superintendent, says she\u2019s open to partnerships, but when it comes to making improvements on school property, like building a bigger barn, there is a long permitting process that involves multiple agencies. But she thinks fencing is a little more doabl...