You Still Here

[{"type":"text","text":"Meet the Hercules of horses ..."}]

You still here 1 17 copy

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>You Still Here? Friday, Janurary 17, 2025 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Meet the Hercules of horses ...

You Still Here? Friday, Janurary 17, 2025

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's general assignment reporter, Clair McFarland.

Clair McFarland

Crime & Courts

Courts

Wyoming, 14 other states, a handful of gun advocacy groups, and individuals beat the Trump administration in court this week when a Texas-based federal judge called significant portions of the 1934 National Firearms Act unconstitutional.

U.S. District Court Judge James Wesley Hendrix ruled Wednesday that major portions of the act are unconstitutional and can’t be enforced on Wyoming’s government and a number of other plaintiffs. 

Those provisions restrict suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and firearms classified as “any other weapons.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Gov. Mark Gordon called the ruling a win."}]

“This is a great win for gun owners across the country, including here in Wyoming where our gun rights are an important part of our heritage,” said Gordon in a Friday email statement. “It is absolutely essential that the 2nd Amendment be respected and protected. I am delighted to see a judge recognize overreach when it is this clear.”

Gordon congratulated Wyoming Attorney General Keith Kautz and Kautz’s team “for their solid work and wish them the best as this case continues moving forward.”

Hendrix stayed his order until at least Aug. 12, in case the federal government wants to appeal. It hadn’t appealed as of Friday morning.

The judge also did not overturn the NFA’s restrictions on machine guns and destructive devices.

Mark Jones, Wyoming resident and national director of Gun Owners of America, told Cowboy State Daily the ruling represents a big win — but not an invitation to go make short-barreled rifles, at least until the dust settles.

“We’re advising people to be very careful about looking at a headline and running out and engaging in practices related to this until we get more information and there’s some decision on this appeal,” said Jones. 

He also said that though Wyoming is a plaintiff, he doesn’t believe the injunction extends to every Wyoming citizen.

But, added Jones, “I still think it’s the biggest win against the NFA in the NFA’s history, and we'll see what happens.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Trump Stance ‘Frustrating’"}]

Gun Owners of America is one of the plaintiffs.

Hendrix’s order bars the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) from enforcing the enjoined parts of the National Firearms Act against plaintiffs and the plaintiffs’ “agencies, political subdivisions, members, and customers — both current and future.”

Jones said that leaves protections for Wyoming residents in doubt because “residents” aren’t listed under the people the order protects. But, he said, a Wyomingite who is a member of the Gun Owners of America will be protected if the order is upheld.

It’s been frustrating that the Trump administration has been defending the National Firearms Act, said Jones.

“Very frustrating,” he said. “Because the president ran, obviously, as a strong 2nd Amendment supporter.”

Jones said GOA has been “openly concerned about that: why his administration is defending the National Firearms Act.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Gun Control Act Remains"}]

David Kopel, a senior fellow at the University of Wyoming College of Law Firearms Research Center, emphasized that though the NFA will be diminished if the injunction is upheld or remains in place, the Gun Control Act of 1968 is still law.

“Even if the National Firearms Act of 1934 had never been passed, if you wanted to go into a store and buy a short-barreled rifle or short-barreled shotgun or even a suppressor, you’d have to go through the same process as to buy any other gun,” said Kopel. 

[{"type":"text","text":"That includes background checks and federal paperwork."}]

But this ruling removes a noteworthy layer of federal paperwork, requirements and delays, added Jones.

Congress passed the NFA in 1934 to tax and regulate Prohibition-era “gangster weapons,” including short-barreled shotguns and rifles, silencers, and “any other weapons” – a term the government has treated flexibly over the years.

[{"type":"text","text":"The law also covers machineguns and destructive devices."}]

It imposes taxes, but also recordkeeping and registration requirements geared toward enforcing the tax.

A person who violates the law by owning or transferring one of the covered firearms without fulfilling the requirements can face up to 10 years in federal prison and $10,000 in fines, plus the loss of gun rights for life.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 1937 upheld the act because the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to tax.

The Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 lifted the taxes from the short-barreled rifles and shotguns, silencers and “any other weapons.”

Hendrix ruled Wednesday that removing the taxes also removes constitutional justifications for law’s other paperwork, registration and recordkeeping requirements, which were ostensibly in place to enforce the tax.

He also wrote that in 1934 the commerce clause — the portion of the Constitution giving Congress authority over interstate commerce — would not have been seen as justifying the NFA in 1934.

But the Gun Control Act of 1968, regulating gun commerce, remains in place. It’s based on the commerce clause.

[{"type":"text","text":"Wyoming’s Defiant Little Law"}]

Wyoming law says a personal firearm, accessory or ammunition manufactured in the state, that stays in the borders of the state is not subject to federal law, taxation or regulation, “under the authority of the United States congress to regulate interstate commerce.”

Kopel had opined, however, that a person who makes a short-barreled rifle in Wyoming still cannot sell it to his next-door neighbor, because intrastate commerce affects interstate commerce.

[{"type":"text","text":"Jones said Kopel is probably right."}]

Gordon Trump 8 7 26

<title>Wyoming Scores 'Win' In Landmark Gun Rights Case Against Trump Administration | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A federal judge overturned parts of the National Firearms Act this week after Wyoming and other plaintiffs sued the Trump administration, which had defended the act. Gov. Mark Gordon on Friday called it a "great win for gun owners across the country."

Wyoming Scores 'Win' In Landmark Gun Rights Case Against Trump Administration

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's managing editor, Greg Johnson.

Greg Johnson

A Douglas man facing 72 charges relating to child sex abuse and pornography will spend at least the next month in a San Francisco jail after he was arrested there on a fugitive warrant just hours after skipping out on a Wyoming court hearing.

John Charles Smallbone, 38, indicated Thursday that he intends to fight extradition to Wyoming to continue facing his charges in Converse County District Court.

During his first hearing in San Francisco Superior Court since his July 28 arrest by San Francisco police officers on a Wyoming felony fugitive warrant, Smallbone declined to waive extradition back to Douglas.

That’s despite signing a document June 24 when he was released from the Converse County Detention Center after someone posted a $250,000 cash bond to get him out of jail in the first place.

Signing a waiver of extradition was a condition of Smallbone being released on bond, court documents indicate. That waiver means he voluntarily gives up his right to fight extradition and agrees to be transported back to Douglas if he’s caught elsewhere.

“I hereby willingly agree and consent to place myself in the custody of any authorized Wyoming law enforcement officer and to freely return, without contest, to Converse County, Wyoming, from any jurisdiction where I may be found … to answer the charge(s) against me,” reads the waiver, which has Smallbone’s signature on it.

While Smallbone signed a waiver, that doesn’t necessarily mean he can’t fight being sent back to Wyoming anyway, said Steven Titus, a Gillette-based defense attorney.

It all depends on the other state a fugitive is being held. Some states and courts honor those waivers, while others don’t.

In Colorado last month, a Fort Collins magistrate didn’t when she allowed Smallbone out of jail on his own recognizance when picked up on another fugitive warrant.

That set the stage for him to miss his July 28 arraignment and arrest in San Francisco four hours after that hearing ended.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘That Was Crazy’"}]

, where he follows developments of Wyoming cases involving alleged child abuse and exploitation crimes.

He’s followed Smallbone’s case since his arrest, and said it’s so far been unlike any case he’s followed.

“You can call him the gift that keeps on giving,” he said. “It just keeps going.”

That includes after posting a $250,000 cash bond June 24 to get out of the Converse County Detention Center and being caught last month on a fugitive warrant in Colorado. Gallaway said he was watching a livestream of that hearing and was shocked he was allowed to go free.

“That was crazy,” he said, adding that he hopes the San Francisco court “does the right thing.”

Unable to attend in person and without a video or audio option available, Gallaway found a volunteer in San Francisco to attend Smallbone’s hearing on Thursday.

The San Francisco Superior Court said Thursday that Smallbone admitted that he’s the person named in the Wyoming fugitive warrant, and he declined to wave extradition back to the Cowboy State.

A hearing on the extradition was set for Sept. 3, and Smallbone will remain in the San Francisco jail without bond until then, the court said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Feared For His Life"}]

 on 72 child sex and pornography charges in a Wyoming district court on July 28, Smallbone was arrested on a fugitive warrant in San Francisco.

The 38-year-old Douglas man told Judge F. Scott Peasley through his public defender that he feared for his life if he were to show up for his plea hearing.

In the meantime, it seems he was on his way to San Francisco, and was arrested by police officers there about four hours after his 3:30 p.m. hearing ended in a Douglas courtroom, according to the Converse County Sheriff’s Office.

That Smallbone had been caught twice in less than a week fleeing Wyoming and the dozens of felony charges he faces here, Converse County Sheriff Clint Becker said he hopes there isn’t a repeat of what happened in Colorado.

“That was my comment when I got called to let us know he was in custody,” the sheriff told Cowboy State Daily at the time. “Hopefully …”

After Smallbone was released in Colorado, officials in that state and Wyoming who worked to track him expressed frustration with that situation.

Kylie Masserman, a spokesperson with the Larimer County District Attorney’s Office in Colorado, told Cowboy State Daily via an emailed statement that the court had the proper documentation to hold Smallbone.

“The District Attorney’s Office strongly believes that this bond setting is dangerous and has put the communities in both Colorado and Wyoming at risk,” she said. “Giving a free pass to dangerous out-of-state offenders fleeing to Colorado sets a terrible precedent and risks further harm to the victims in the Wyoming case.”

Now that he’s been caught again, Becker said he’s confident Smallbone will be returned to Wyoming to face his charges.

And there will be more of those to face, Converse County Deputy Attorney Nate Shumway said during the July 28 hearing.

He told the judge that his office has filed amended charges against Smallbone that include the 72 he already had been hit with, plus more that he’s since picked up.

Those amended charges have so far not shown up in Smallbone’s public-facing court file.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Charges"}]

The list of charges against Smallbone is long, including:

• 1 count of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor.

• 36 counts of possessing child pornography.

• 16 counts of using a video camera to record intimate areas of another person without consent.

• 18 counts of knowingly manufacturing, generating, or creating child pornography.

• 1 count of possessing more than 3 ounces of marijuana (1.3 pounds).

He landed on the radar of the Converse County Sheriff’s Office after the mother of an underage girl reported concerning interactions her daughter had with Smallbone on May 9.

The girl was in a vehicle with Smallbone and others when he allegedly typed “if you suck me, I’ll lick you” on his phone and showed it to the girl, according to an affidavit of probable cause written by Peech.

“He also mouthed the words, ‘I want to see you naked,’” the affidavit says.

Smallbone later denied mouthing anything or showing the girl any messages.

That, along with other alleged disturbing interactions with the girl at Smallbone’s home that evening, started an investigation that revealed a trove of photos, videos and other child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on his electronic devices, the affidavit says.

The investigation also showed Smallbone had been convicted in 2002 of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust in Douglas County, Colorado.

He also had registered as a sex offender in Wyoming in 2014, but it was “later determined not to be required to register in Wyoming due to him being a juvenile at the time of his adjudication in Colorado,” according to the affidavit.

That was in reference to a 2001 case when Smallbone was 12 and was accused of sexually assaulting a 5-year-old girl, the affidavit says.

While in treatment for that incident, he disclosed he also had sexual contact with at least seven other children, and five were younger than him at the time of the sexual contact.

Smallbone and san francisco 8 7 26

<title>Wyoming Man Facing 72 Child Sex-Related Charges To Stay In San Francisco Jail | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Douglas man facing 72 charges relating to child sex abuse and pornography will spend at least the next month in a San Francisco jail after a court hearing there Thursday. John Smallbone indicated he intends to fight being sent back to Wyoming.

Wyoming Man Facing 72 Child Sex-Related Charges To Stay In San Francisco Jail

Law Enforcement

CHEYENNE — A man trying to run away from police after crashing a car near downtown Cheyenne in the early hours of Thursday morning made the chase easy for law enforcement by unknowingly trying to break into the Laramie County jail.

“You ever wonder what happened to that kid that always lost at hide-and-seek?” asks an amused Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak in a video response to the incident.

[{"type":"text","text":"“I think he’s in our jail,” he quips."}]

Kozak goes on to explain that the man came onto the radar of sheriff’s office deputies when they saw him running around the detention center at the intersection of 20

 Street and Pioneer Avenue in downtown Cheyenne.

The man seemed frantic and was trying all the doors around the building, trying to get in, he said.

“On the camera system, they saw some guy running from door to door on the outside of our jail trying to get in — wiggling the doors and just trying to get in the jail,” the sheriff said.

Those watching the cameras alerted jail deputies, “who went outside and found this guy hiding near the intake door,” Kozak said. “You know, where the police officers drive into the sally port to book people into the jail.”

The man was “hiding there in a corner” when deputies found him, then gave a false name when asked for identification, Kozak said.

‘Didn’t Have Far To Take Him Into The Jail’

That’s when the deputies learned that there had been a vehicle crash a few blocks away, “and the police department was looking for the suspect who fled,” the sheriff said.

So, the Cheyenne Police Department was contacted to arrest the guy, after which they “didn’t have far to take him into the jail, so that’s one good thing,” Kozak said.

The driver, later identified as a 44-year-old transient named Adam Scott, was arrested on suspicion of falsely identifying himself, driving under suspension, driving the wrong way on a one-way street, no proof of insurance, and hit and run, reports CPD spokesperson Alexandra Farkas-Schulz.

Cheyenne police were dispatched just before 12 a.m. Thursday to a report of a vehicled that crashed near the intersection of West 19th Street and Brent Avenue, she says in an email to Cowboy State Daily.

"The preliminary investigation shows the vehicle was traveling in the wrong direction on West 20th Street before attempting to turn south onto Brent Avenue," Farkas-Schulz wrote. "The driver failed to make the turn, causing the vehicle to leave the roadway and strick a building.

"The vehicle continued into a parking lot south of the building, where it came to a stop."

Scott, fled the scene and asked a passerby to report the crash, and he was later found outside the jail. He was taken to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for an evaluation before being booked into the local jail.

Kozak said that besides the incredibly bad luck of trying to get away from police by attempting to break into the jail, the suspect may have been guided there.

“I’m guessing maybe what happened was he saw the flashing ‘VACANCY’ sign and thought maybe it was a hotel,” he said. “But it wasn’t.”

 that’s perpetually flashing above the northeast door to the jail.

“However, he did find out the ‘vacancy’ thing – that’s legit,” the sheriff added. “So, he’s in our jail.”

Vacancy at jail IMG 2027 1 8 24

<title>Oops! Man Running From Cheyenne Cops Tries To Break Into Laramie County Jail | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A man trying to run from police in Cheyenne early Thursday morning made the chase easy by unknowingly trying to break into the Laramie County jail. “You ever wonder what happened to that kid that always lost at hide-and-seek?” the sheriff asked.

Oops! Man Running From Cheyenne Cops Tries To Break Into Laramie County Jail

Mac Watson

Daily Video News

It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming for Friday, August 7th.  I’m Mac Watson.

This newscast is brought to you by the Wyoming State Fair. Wrap up your summer at the Wyoming State Fair, August 11th through the 15th in Douglas!

Rodeo, demolition derby, live music, entertainment and fair food await. Learn more at 

. See you at the fair! This ad was paid for by Converse County Tourism.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"},{"type":"italic"}],"text":"–"}]

Although campaigning against data centers, Chuck Gray voted yes on a data center generation facility easement in June. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that Gray indicated Thursday that his aye-vote was Gov. Mark Gordon's fault.

“What the governor actually said is he's sounding like a jackass in a tin barn, a rather visceral quote referring to Gray, indicating that Gray's ‘aye' vote on granting an access easement to a data center feeding facility was essentially the governor's fault. He's saying that Gordon has a way of hiding the nature of these votes, and board members aren't properly apprised. And you know, there wasn't a clear understanding of this data center vote in June. The governor responded, noting that the State Board of Land Commissioners has access to the documents at least a week before the meeting, and they also get the chance to confer with their administrative office before the meeting. He said that Gray appeared distracted by his phone in Thursday's meeting, falls short of the expectation of Wyoming elected officials.”

In his campaign against eight other Republicans for the GOP nomination to U.S. House, Gray is the only candidate voicing outright opposition to data centers. Many of his opponents have said it’s the state and local governments’ role, not the role of Congress, to dictate policies on data centers.  

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"– "}]

During a vote at the State Board of Land Commissioners to allow Tri-State Generation access to a power substation, Secretary of State Chuck Gray announced he would block it. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports Gray changed his mind after Curt Meier brought up that Tri-State supplies “power to practically every irrigator and farmer in the state.”

“During the meeting, people indicated they didn't know at that point it was an existing substation. Secretary Chuck Gray worried aloud. You know he asked for information like, does this access road have anything to do with data centers, wind projects, solar projects? And during this discussion, Treasurer Curt Meier said, you know, something to the effect of, ‘We're going to block access roads for a power generator now that serves Wyoming irrigators, are we just doing a futile attempt to stop capitalism?’ And Secretary Gray came back and voted for the access road. He said that's because of the assurances he received that it wasn't for data centers or wind or solar projects.”

Tri-State is a wholesale power supplier serving eight electric cooperatives in Wyoming including High Plains Power, Carbon Power and Light and Big Horn Rural Electric Company. Tri-State applied for a five-year, temporary-use permit for a 288-foot access road in remote Natrona County for $250 a year.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"–"}]

The Wallop family's legacy Quarter Circle Lazy B Ranch in Sheridan County is for sale for the first time in 135 years, listing for $24.5 million. Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that the ranch hosted Queen Elizabeth II, supplied cavalry horses to Britain, and helped build Wyoming's polo scene.

“This is kind of a continued trend of, you know, we've seen this wave of legacy ranches that have been in families for multiple generations-three, four, sometimes five generations-coming to market. This is just a continued progression of that trend where people are retiring out of agriculture, and the next generation coming up doesn't want to give that a whirl. It's not a very easy business to get started in. It's pretty expensive, and families are seeing that. Hey, you know, we can cash this out.These guys have been the stewards of this ranch for four generations. It is a ranch with a lot of history. The original guy who came over from England and homesteaded this in, like, 1889.”

The historic ranch is tucked just under the Bighorn Mountains at the mouth of Little Goose Canyon. Its sale will mark the end of an era for one of Wyoming’s best-known legacy ranches.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"–"}]

Wyoming State Engineer Brandon Gebhart told state legislators Thursday that if the seven Colorado River Basin states can’t come to terms over a dwindling water supply, lawsuits or federal intervention could result. Cowboy State Daily’s Mark Heinz reports that Gebhart is hoping the states can solve the issues, not Congress.

“He appeared before the legislature's Select Water Committee to kind of give them an update on what's going on, and the big question one of the members of the committee posed to him was, you know, he said, 'I keep hearing about there's going to be lawsuits over this.' There's going to be lawsuits, and Gebhart's answer was, if we could just keep talking, keep negotiations going between all seven states, he's really hopeful that we can still avoid that. Gebhart is worried that it's either going to end in lawsuits between the states or Congress is going to step in, and he doesn't want either one of those things to happen. ”

The U.S. Department of the Interior, through the Bureau of Reclamation, recently released its final Environmental Impact Statement for Colorado River operations, including plans for operations from 2027 to 2036. That proposal doesn’t include any immediate cuts for the Upper Basin states: Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico.

I’ll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this.   

Cowboy State Daily News continues now….

President Donald Trump endorsed governor candidate Megan Degenfelder for the fourth time Thursday in a rally held by phone. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that Trump touted Degenfelder as a staunch conservative and said voters would look back and say, “President Trump gave me a good idea.”

“This is the fourth, at least, at least the fourth time the president has endorsed Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder in her run for governor. She's had the original Trump endorsement since January, but on Thursday, Trump also held a tele-rally where he really touted her as a staunch conservative and said that she was going to cut property taxes and that she was going to protect children and foster a love for America in schools, among other goals.”

The rally kicked off with the Lee Greenwood song “Proud to Be An American” and ended with the moderator asking attendees to push one to signify if they’re voting for Degenfelder, who is the state Superintendent of Public Instruction, or push two if they’re not voting for her.  

If stern warnings and rules won’t keep kids from bringing their cellphones and devices to school, maybe cash fines will get their attention. Cowboy State Daily’s Kate Meadows reports that’s the idea behind a new Lincoln County rule that will fine students $25 if they keep bringing them to school.

“Kemmerer Junior-Senior High School Principal Shawn Roberts said that he hopes that, you know, they won't get to that point, that students will not commit the offense three times. Reaction on social media was mixed. Some parents are saying they're in full support of this policy because students really need to be learning and focused at school, and cell phones are a distraction. Other parents said, you know, it's a matter of personal property, and their phones belong to them, and they want to be able to reach their kids anytime during the school day, and what happens if there's some emergency like a school shooting or something? How do they get a hold of their kids?”

School districts across the state are enacting smart-device policies after the Wyoming Legislature passed a bill earlier this year requiring the adoption of formal policies to address the possession and use of smart devices by students while on school grounds.

However, district board chair Kristi Dearden said she is not aware of any other school districts whose policies include a fee for repeat offenders.

Wyoming is among 27 states that were hit by a recent salmonella outbreak traced to jalapeños served at chain Mexican restaurants. Cowboy State Daily’s Kolby Fedore reports one Park County health officer says, “it’s just the cost of doing business” in today’s modern food system.

“This outbreak is different from the cyclospora outbreak that Cowboy State Daily reported on over three weeks ago in the cyclospora outbreak that was linked to contaminated lettuce that was distributed to several fast food chains. Park County Health official Dr. Aaron Billen says that this is the cost of doing business in today's modern world. Because of large-scale food systems, one contamination can now spread so quickly to different parts of the country.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday that 345 people have been sickened by the outbreak strain of 

. Thirty-six have been hospitalized, but no deaths have been reported.

The Montana Department of Livestock said it could take action against Meadow Gold Dairy Products of Billings after "black mold" in cartons and prematurely spoiled milk were reported. Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that Meadow Gold also stocks shelves in northwest Wyoming.

“The Montana Department of Livestock is pretty rigorously investigating this. They've actually pursued a suspension of Meadow Gold's license in Billings, and we're not sure how the company is going to respond to that. None of this has been reported in Wyoming yet, although we have confirmation that someone in Cody purchased a milk carton where the mold developed in the same time frame is the ones they're reporting in Montana. If anyone has any of these cartons, or they had a carton that was forming black mold, you need to report it to the Wyoming Department of Agriculture so they can respond, then investigate, and take necessary actions if needed.”

According to reports, Meadow Gold received the notice on Tuesday and had 48 hours to respond.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"—"}]

And that’s today’s news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on 

 - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our 

 channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app.  Thanks for watching - I’m Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.

Thumbnail 8 6 26

<title>Cowboy State Daily Video Newscast: Friday, August 7, 2026 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Friday's headlines include:
* Gordon: Gray Sounds Like ‘Jackass In A Tin Barn'
* Wallop Family Ranch For Sale For First Time In 135 Years
* More Explosive Diarrhea: This Time It’s Mexican Jalapeños

Cowboy State Daily Video Newscast: Friday, August 7, 2026

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Wildlife

A Yellowstone bull bison with a gigantic abscess on its right rear quarter probably isn’t suffering much pain and will likely survive, one of the county’s top bison ranchers says.

But the recovery process is going to be good, said Ken Klemm, past president and a lifelong member of the National Bison Association.

After seeing a photo of the bison, taken early Wednesday in Yellowstone National Park’s Lamar Valley, Klemm said a gushing rupture of the abscess is imminent.

“It looks like a 5-gallon bucketful of stuff will come out of that one,” Klemm, who has managed some of the world’s largest bison ranches, told Cowboy State Daily.

The abscess probably formed around a wound, he said.

The bison rut, or mating season, is on in Yellowstone. The bull might have suffered a puncture during a fight with another bull, Klemm said.

Lauri Foster lives just outside of New York City and loves coming to Wyoming to visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks.

Early Wednesday, she was on a wildlife-viewing drive through the Lamar Valley when she spotted the bull sporting a huge, bulbous mass near its backside.

Foster works with horses and is familiar with injuries to large animals, so she knew what she saw on the bison must be something serious.

“I thought it had to be a hematoma or an abscess,” she told Cowboy State Daily.

Foster couldn’t see any visible cuts or sores that might indicate exactly where it was wounded, she said.

To keep safe, Foster stayed in her vehicle to photograph that bull and other bison.

The bulls were raising a ruckus as they competed for mating rights.

“They were headbutting each other and chasing each other down,” Foster said.

The bull with the abscess was taking a break, though she surmised he had probably been recently wounded in a fight.

She added that despite how hideous that abscess looked, the bull didn’t seem sick or weak.

“He was walking along normally,” she said.

The rut has made bull bison extra agitated lately. In the most dramatic incident, a bison flipped and seriously injured Washington state resident Carl Isom-McDaniel, 65, in July.

A massive abscess on a Yellowstone bull bison’s right rear quarter likely is the result of an infected wound from a rut battle. When it ruptures, “a 5-gallon bucketful of stuff” will gush out, a top bison rancher says, adding the bison should be fine.

You Still Here? Friday, Janurary 17, 2025

In case you missed it

More in You Still Here

Today In Name That Tune: Friday, August 7, 2026

Bonus Video 1: Friday, August 7, 2026

Bonus Video 2: Friday, August 7, 2026

Today In Centenarians: Friday, August 7, 2026

Most read