Casper has finally had enough of marauding turkeys – a trap-and-release program has netted 145 of the birds so far, and wildlife officials plan to keep going.
“We hope to remove as many pockets of wild turkeys as possible to reduce property damage and (improve) public safety on roads,” Janet Milek, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s Casper Region spokeswoman, told Cowboy State Daily.
The goal isn’t to clear turkeys out of Casper completely, she added. That would be impossible.
But after “extensive complaints” about turkeys tearing things up, blocking roadways and even harassing pets and people, Game and Fish last year started trapping the birds and hauling them off for release back into the wild, she said.
Last year, 137 turkeys were nabbed from Casper. And during the first week of 2025, another eight were caught.
The total number of turkeys in Casper isn’t known.
Turkeys are managed by Game and Fish and therefore aren’t in the purview of the city’s animal control program.
However, it hasn’t been uncommon for Casper residents, at their wit’s end with the obnoxious birds, to call animal control asking for help, Casper Metro Animal Shelter Manager Jodi Decker told Cowboy State Daily.
There have been fewer turkey complaints coming in, so it appears that the trapping program is working, Decker said.
“We haven’t had as many complaints come in for turkeys,” she said. “I don’t know if there is a correlation with the trapping program, although I would like to think so.”
Turkey Federation Donated Traps
The turkey trapping program got off the ground thanks in large part to a $2,000 donation from the National Wild Turkey Federation, according to Game and Fish.
“This donation will enhance ongoing efforts to manage and relocate wild turkeys that have ventured into urban areas of Casper and beyond, ensuring the safety and well-being of both the birds and residents,” according to a statement from Game and Fish.
Like some other towns in Wyoming, such as Sheridan, Casper has long had a resident population of street turkeys.
Patience Runs Out
For the most part, humans and fowl got along just fine in Casper. But as the number of turkeys steadily increased in recent years, tolerance from the human side was starting to wear thin, Milek said.
“Public complaints drove us to begin extensive trapping efforts in 2024,” she said.
“(There were) extensive complaints of property damage to vehicles, trees, houses, gardens, greenhouses, etc. We began the investigation of wild turkey populations and issues. Dog and property owners have been concerned about feces from areas where wild turkeys have been roosting. Public safety on roadways is also an issue,” she added.
Milek and Decker said that the city’s cemetery was a favorite gathering place for turkeys.
Gobblers were also congregating around some schools, which led to trouble, Decker said.
“Specifically around the schools, there were reports of turkeys chasing people,” she said.
Complaints seemed to increase around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, she added.
That might have been because people were wondering if they could go out and throttle or club an annoying neighborhood turkey for a holiday dinner.
But that wouldn’t be legal – turkeys may be legally hunted in Wyoming only with bows or firearms in the wild, and during specified spring and fall hunting seasons.
Supplementing Wild Populations
Game and Fish has been using either “a drop net or a large live box trap for wild turkeys,” depending on locations and circumstances, Milek said.
The traps are baited with cracked corn and scratch grains to tempt the gobblers in, she added.
Game and Fish takes the turkeys to remote locations in Natrona, Converse and Niobrara counties, where they’re released back into the wild to rejoin their kin.
“Wild turkeys trapped in Casper are always relocated to provide wildlife viewing and hunting opportunities to the public. They are relocated to areas with wild turkey populations that need to be supplemented,” Milek said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
