No more yuks over yaks on loose in Wyoming

[June 14, 2010]  BUFFALO, Wyo. (AP) -- Cattle ranchers in the foothills of Wyoming's Big Horn Mountains are no longer yukking over a herd of yaks that keeps getting loose.

John and Laura DeMatteis of Buffalo, Wyo., raise the woolly, cattle-like animals on their 300-acre Yak Daddy Ranch.

They sell the animals, which are native to Asia, for their meat and wool. Problem is, the herd keeps wandering off -- more than a dozen times in recent years.

Local cattle rancher Scott Rogers says the roaming yaks were funny at first. Now he says they eat his grass and he worries they could mate with his cows.

Local officials say they're pursuing an ordinance against "yaks at large."

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Information from: Casper Star-Tribune -- Casper, http://www.trib.com/

[Associated Press]

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