Ag in the News: Rancher in Hot Water Over Hybrid Sheep
On September 30, 2024 a livestock rancher was sentenced to six months in prison for two felonies. He was convicted of two wildlife crimes: conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and violating the Lacey Act. These convictions came from his attempts at creating a giant hybrid sheep.
A Rancher and His Ranch
Arthur Schubarth, called Jack, was 81 when he was convicted of violating federal laws. He is the owner of a 215 acre livestock ranch in Vaughn, Montana called the Schubarth Ranch. Also known as Sun River Enterprises the ranch specializes in acquiring, breeding, and selling livestock for game ranches.
The Motive
Over the course of eight years between 2013 and 2021, Jack Schubarth along with five others attempted to create a new hybrid species of sheep. The goal was to combine the DNA of the largest sheep in the world, Marco Polo sheep, with sheep on his ranch. This would allow him to create even larger sheep by crossbreeding them with the Marco Polo sheep DNA. These new hybrid sheep could then be sold for large amounts to game ranches in the United States.
His Crimes
In the process of creating the hybrid sheep, dubbed the “Montana Mountain King” (MMK for short), Schubarth violated numerous laws. The first criminal act was when Jack had his son go to Kyrgyzstan to kill a Marco Polo sheep, cut it into parts, and smuggle them into the United States without telling the authorities. His next crime was extracting DNA from the Marco Polo sheep parts at a lab, creating cloned embryos, and implanting ewes at his ranch. This produced a Marco Polo sheep in the United States which he used to collect and sell semen for breeding other sheep. In addition he purchased bighorn sheep parts and sold them in several states.
Penalties
As a result of his actions, Jack Schubarth was charged with and convicted of his two felonies. He also had to pay $20,000 to the Lacey Act Reward Fund, $4,000 to the National Fish and Wildlife Service. He will also spend six months in prison. The federal government did cull several of his sheep for disease prevention but the meat was given to the community.
Potential Dangers
Not only were Schubarths’ actions illegal, they were also dangerous. Two of the sheep involved in his experiments died of Johne’s disease. This disease is a chronic wasting disease that spreads easily through animals and is fatal.
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And Another Thing 03 Illegal Sheep Cloning
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