# Cattle Mutilations **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 26, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408 "2022-08-26T19:46:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/1 "2022-08-26T19:46:48Z")
I keep seeing things on these strange cattle mutilations. It is very obvious that small animals are simply going for the soft tissue as thy can’t chew through the thick hide of cattle. I can’t figure out why they are calling this a mystery? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/2 "2022-08-26T20:10:49Z")
What are you talking about? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/3 "2022-08-26T20:15:17Z")
Dead cattle are found with things like eyes and genitals missing. Some people say aliens are doing it, others that rats mice and other small animals eat the tender parts of the dead animal. ---
**Author:** ![Nyvaak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nyvaak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nyvaak)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/4 "2022-08-26T20:17:42Z")
Cecil the Great wrote [a column on this](https://www.straightdope.com/21341694/what-s-the-story-with-cattle-mutilations) way back in 1984. I presume that this is the definitive word on the subject simply because of its source. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/5 "2022-08-26T20:18:49Z")
Even something as large as a coyote would struggle with a cows hide. My guess would be skunks, foxes, weasels, possums, raccoons and coyotes. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/6 "2022-08-26T20:26:09Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I keep seeing things on these strange cattle mutilations. Where are you seeing this? I haven’t seen anything on the well worn subject for many years. ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/7 "2022-08-26T20:30:44Z")
Maybe he just saw [this documentary](https://southpark.cc.com/video-clips/a898es/south-park-inside-out-cows). ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/8 "2022-08-26T20:34:58Z")
Coast to Coast has done at least three reports on the subject this year, like this impeccably researched documentary: > **[Series of Mysterious Cattle Mutilations in Argentina Spark Chupacabra Concerns...](https://www.coasttocoastam.com/article/series-of-mysterious-cattle-mutilations-in-argentina-spark-chupacabra-concerns/)** > > A series of mysterious cattle mutilations on a farm in Argentina have given rise to concerns that a chupacabra could be behind the unsettling slayings. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/9 "2022-08-26T20:38:12Z")
OTTOMH Dark Skies had an episode about it. Cattle mutilation and black helicopters get a section of GURPS Warehouse 21 (fun book. I recommend it). ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/10 "2022-08-26T20:47:54Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Where are you seeing this? I haven’t seen anything on the well worn subject for many years. The other day fox news had something on it. I didn’t bother to watch it. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/11 "2022-08-26T22:57:32Z")
If you never see another millisecond of Fox “news” for the rest of your life you will be much more grounded in reality, not in sensationalist fiction. Try it, you might like it. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/12 "2022-08-26T22:59:16Z")
I’ll look for a link quick, but there was a large cattle die-off in Kansas a couple of months ago or so. Apparently there was a big conspiracy theory. Don’t remember what the theory was, but of course it was stupid. Edit: Aw hell, you can do it. Just Google “Kansas cattle die off conspiracy.” Too many to link. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/13 "2022-08-27T00:45:15Z")
Who else remembers our own Carol? > [@Ok,Im new here,Carol is the name](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-im-new-here-carol-is-the-name/536534): > > and cattle mutes is my game,so is anyone?Game that is…:slight\_smile: ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/14 "2022-08-27T11:32:22Z")
I thought for sure this was an old zombie Carol thread that had been resurrected from back then. Her posts were … ah, memorable. ---
**Author:** ![Retzbu\_Tox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/retzbu_tox/32/11829_2.png) [@Retzbu\_Tox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Retzbu_Tox)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/15 "2022-08-27T18:44:26Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > My guess would be skunks, foxes, weasels, possums, raccoons and coyotes. You could probably add various insects and carrion birds to that list as well. A more out-there theory I heard recently on a podcast was that the government is sampling livestock for signs of chemical weapons or radiation exposure after accidental leaks or secret weapons testing. Now I am curious what the _ **craziest** _ theory might be… ---
**Author:** ![GWF\_Hefel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@GWF\_Hefel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GWF_Hefel)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/16 "2022-08-27T19:26:20Z")
For fans of Grade-B science fiction films, all the answers are in a 1982 Alan Rudolph film with Peter Cayote & JoBeth Williams. > **[Endangered Species (1982 film)](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endangered_Species_(1982_film))** > > Endangered Species is a 1982 science fiction film starring Robert Urich, JoBeth Williams, Peter Coyote and Hoyt Axton, that was directed and co-written by Alan Rudolph. > Thriller about a burnt out New York ex-cop Reuben Castle (Robert Urich) and a female sheriff (Jo Beth Williams) who begin to fall in love while investigating a string of mysterious cattle mutilations in a small Wyoming town. Castle is a retired alcoholic police lieutenant out visiting the town with his tomboy daughter. At first h... (Hint: it’s the government making an omelet. 'Cause we’re all cattle, when you get right down to it.) ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/17 "2022-08-27T20:34:10Z")
According to my coworker, it’s communists attacking our food supply. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2022, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/18 "2022-09-01T12:53:31Z")
_I’ve_ heard it’s a satanic cult using a helicopter to move the dead animals from place to place to avoid suspicion. ---
**Author:** ![Retzbu\_Tox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/retzbu_tox/32/11829_2.png) [@Retzbu\_Tox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Retzbu_Tox)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2023, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/19 "2023-04-24T16:20:04Z")
… and cattle “mutilations” have apparently become newsworthy yet again. My conspiracy theory is that some Texans are trying to deflect attention from other issues in their state. > **[Cows turning up dead with tongues, sex organs removed. Texas officials aren't...](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/04/24/dead-texas-cows-cattle/11726978002/)** > > Several dead cows have been found in Texas with their body parts mutilated. Officials aren't sure why. > **[Texas authorities investigate mysterious cases of dead, mutilated cows](https://abcnews.go.com/US/texas-authorities-investigate-mysterious-cases-dead-mutilated-cows/story?id=98794152)** > > The mysterious death and mutilation of cattle along a Texas highway has left local authorities puzzled. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2023, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408/20 "2023-04-24T17:47:38Z")
If I was a teen in rural Texas, mutilating a few already-dead cattle just to see if my handiwork would make the news sounds like good mild-delinquent fun. I’m assuming finding already-dead cattle isn’t too hard in places where cattle are common. If not, everybody has a rifle and knows how to hunt. It’ll be already-dead by the time we git to a-mutilatin’. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cattle-mutilations/970408.md?page=2)