Project Stigma represents an on-going probe into the relentless wave of animal mutilations and mutilation-deaths, and is an attempt to coordinate and assist in informa¬ tion-gathering activities on the part of the pertinent and responsible investigative agencies and individuals . NUMBER THREE MAY 1973 THE PROJECT STIGMA REPORT ON THE CONTINUING INVESTIGATION INTO THE OCCURRENCE OF ANIMAL MUTILATIONS One Issue - One Dollar It is with sincere regret - and an ever- shrinking pocketbook - that we announce a subscription price for STIGMATA. Until further notice, STIGMATA will con¬ tinue to appear one-edition-at-a-time and the cost for each issue will be $1.00 (cash preferred - a receipt will be issued)* This should help to alleviate our expenses - but it will also allow us to improve and en¬ large upon future issues of STIGMATA - with the use of photos or drawings and length!er, more in-depth articles. To receive the next (July) issue of STIGMATA, send $1.00 to; Project Stigma (or STIGMATA) P.0, Box 1094 Paris, Texas 75460 Mutilation reporting forms are still avail¬ able upon request and without charge from Project Stigma. MUTE INQUIRIES ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS FROM READERS AND INTERESTED PARTIES ‘ QUESTION; Are mutilations confined to the United States* or have they been reported in other countries, as well? ANSWER: By far, the greatest percentage of mutilations of which we are aware have occur¬ red In the continental United States, but ac¬ counts have emanated from other countries. Frequently, insufficient information is avail¬ able on these cases to allow us to determine if they are much the same as what we have come to call "classi* mutilations 11 , the neat, al¬ most shrewdly-immaculste and sometimes blood¬ less acts committed in the U.S. STIGMATA INQUIRIES Earlier in this century, the redoubtable Charles Fort reported that livestock mutilations of a mysterious nature occurred in Kenya (Africa) as well as in England. More recently, reports have reached us from Puerto Rico, Canada, Brazil, Bolivia, Sweden, Australia and Scotland, Most of these accounts are unfortunately noted for their lack of detail. If readers know of others, we shall be happy to pass them along. We are especially intrigued by reports from neighboring Canada, In 1975 there were rumors from Ontario and in 1976 from Quebec. A series of livestock slashings and mutilations in the Mount Forest area of Ontario In mid and late 1976 has apparently been attributed to aberrant human individuals. Blame has similarly been placed in other areas, as well, sometimes with¬ out firm foundation. In Ontario, a suspect was apparently apprehended. Attempts to gain details regarding Eastern Canadian mutes have been less than fruitful. It is said that an interesting incident occurred in Spring 1976 on a farm near Wildwood, Alberta. The owner of two healthy horses found both of the carcasses In a snowbank one morning, each minus their uterus and left eye ("surgical"re¬ moval) . The only tracks or marks nearby resem¬ bled lf duck prints 11 , but they were three times the size of normal duck tracks. The Royal Can¬ adian Mounted Police investigated and it is al¬ leged that as many as two dozen RCMP constables were present to cordon off the area and examine the site. The carcasses were reportedly flown to Winnipeg for analysis. We would wish for the opportunity to learn more about this incident and to examine the photographs which surely were taken at thesite. QUESTION: Have any of your research teams been successfully . dispatched to the site of a fresh mutilation through your u Hot Line 1 ' number? If a rancher requests an investigation of a possible mute on his property , is there a charge to him for this service? (continued on next page) 9 MUTE INQUIRIES, continued ANSWER: Since the Initial publication of STIGMATA, these have been among the more fre¬ quently-asked questions. The '“research teams" do not exist as a formal investigative unit- Project Stigma represents an Informal network of researchers and inves¬ tigators - both "civilian" and “'official" in¬ dividuals and groups. The majority of these investigators are available to probe mute incidents which occur in their immediate areas, and some have consented to travel to out-of-state sites if feasible. The Inves¬ tigators are well-informed and are aware of what to look for when examining a possible mute site. For this operation to "work", it Is Impera¬ tive - although often difficult - to learn of fresh mutilations as soon as possible after discovery. We would prefer to place an in¬ vestigator on a site within 24 hours of the mutilation itself, and certainly within 48 hours. If we learn of an older incident, we will still Inform the nearest Investigator so that they can pursue the matter at their convenience. And - no, there is no charge to ranchers and animal owners if an investigation should be requested and conducted on their property - except in the case of fees that may be charg¬ ed by veterinarians, licensed private Inves¬ tigators or other professionals who charge fees for their services. Since STIGMATA # 1 appeared, few mutes have been reported, and none have been reported soon enough to justify an on-site investiga¬ tion, The names of animal owners reporting mutilations will remain In confidence, but we would anticipate passing along the results of Investigations to STIGMATA readers. If you discover or learn of a fresh mutila¬ tion In your area, please call: (214) 784-5922 If you have knowledge of older incidents, please contact us by mall at: P,0. Box 1094 Paris, Texas 75460 A Rancher’s Report In an upcoming issue, we will untertake a chronological review of the mutilations which have been reported during the first half of 1978, Accounts thus far seem sparse, but we are convinced that many more mutilations actually occur than are reported to the media, law en¬ forcement or Project Stigma, However, mutes occurred in at least five states in the first quarter of 1978: Wyoming, Arkansas, Texas, Alabama and Nebraska. We ate grateful to the Western Nebraska rancher who sent us the following account; "In early January (1978) we had what you refer to as a classic mutilation. We found a 1700-Ib, bull mutilated in our cornfield. One ear was cut off, his tongue was cut out and a big patch of hide was cut neatly off of one side. There were marks on his chest, like that of a needle, and there was little blood left In the carcass. "I checked the cattle at least once a day in the field and I might have missed this bull one day but It is doubtful. The cattle were all In a good healthy condition so we think the bull was also killed by the mutilators although we're not sure just how. "I called the county sheriff and a veterinarian and they talked about coyotes or other predators. The ground and cornstalks were all packed down from 3 to 6 feet around the bull, but there wasn't a track of any kind. How dumb can some people be; coyotes couldn't possibly chew up a critter the way this bull was cut up and I've never seen one that didn't leave a track,,.I can't figure out why some people don't want to face up to reality. What are they afraid of? "We couldn't see any signs of where a helicop¬ ter landed and took off but we're sure that they operate from some kind of a helicopter. My wife saw two helicopters fly over Chat area the day before I found the dead bull. Our neigh¬ bors also saw them. In all the checking I've done I could find nothing to indicate anyone needing to be In the area with helicopters." To Decompose or not to Decompose Classic mutilations - though they may be readily identifiable as such - are not without divergent features, even opposing characteristics among the Individual events themselves. The acts may be bloody or bloodless. There may be tracks, bum marks. Indentations or other strange ground markings - or no ground traces at all. Viscera may be turned to "mush" or some organs may be hard as stone. Numerous unmarked helicopters may haunt some mutilation-infested areas, while no choppers will be reported from other equally- plagued regions* (continued on next page) ■m lO TO DECOMPOSE, continued Another curious element is the varying rate of decomposition of mutilated carcasses. Some decay slowly, others rapidly* We offer the following examples: 1975: Upon discovery, no signs of rigor mor¬ tis were noted in a mutilated cow. Although the sheriff's men "immediately 11 took the carcass to the state diagnostic lab in Cen- tralia, 100+ miles away. At the lab, a Dr. Hill found the carcass "badly decomposed 11 when he examined it. There were, in fact, other "interesting aspects" about the case which Dr, Hill refused to discuss. Logan County, Colorado - December 1976; A cow was found mutilated in a pasture in which an¬ other mute would be discovered a few days later. Investigators from the sheriff's office found the animal "badly decomposed", despite freezing nights. Cassia County, Idaho - October 1975: Meat on the carcass of a mutilated cow appeared fresh more than a week after death, although it had lain in the "hot daytime sun". Fumas County, Nebraska - October 1975: Des¬ pite unseasonably warm weather, a~ mutilated cow failed to decompose normally. The odor of the animal was slightly noticeable, hut was never strong or unbearable. Despite the pre¬ sence of a feedlot only a few yards west of the site, no flies had appeared on the carcass within ten days of discovery. The carcass had not bloated during this period. NE Colorado - late 1977; A rancher showed an investigator the carcass of a bull that had been mutilated in a remot* area in mid or late 1976. The investigator was 'amazed at the lack of decay and at the presence of fleshy, moist tissue on the carcass. The rancher, no strang¬ er to mutilations, said he noted an almost immediate and rapid deterioration to a certain degree in mute carcasses in his area. At that point, the decay would slow markedly, almost stopping. Project Stigma asks animal owners and investi¬ gators to observe the rate of decomposition in mutilated carcasses of which they are aware, STIGMATA © Copyright 1978 by Thomas R, Adams Defining the Problem? In spite of our statement above - that "classic" mutilations may be readily identifiable as such - it is possible to encounter difficulties in def¬ ining the problem with which we are dealing. Most observers are of the opinion that the "ani¬ mal mutilations" are frequently bloodless attacks, but with typically "neat" surgical incisions. But the following example is not unique; it may or may not be related to the "other" mutes, but such events cannot be Ignored. We quote In part from a letter received by Dr. Richmond Barbour and reprinted in his "You And Your Froblems" column in the San Diego (CA) EVENING TRIBUNE of 1/7/78 (our thanks to Jerome Clark for sending it along): "...Only something with satanic power could have done what I saw. I visited my uncle. In New Mexico. He manages a cattle ranch. One night something unbelievable happened. A tremendously strong force of some sort pulled the head clear off a young steer. One of the hind legs was pulled out, too. The Innards were scattered around." "The scariest part of what I saw was the absence of blood. The body and the ground near It should have been drenched. But there was no blood any¬ where. There were no tracks on the ground, and no tooth or claw marks,,." The original letter was apparently lost among Dr. Barbour's voluminous mail, so the name of the writer and the location of the incident have been lost. If any readers can supply us with further data on this or similar incidents, we shall be grateful. Witnesses It is said that at least four witnesses have encountered mutilations-ln-progress, One rancher's wife was harrassed; one woman burned by a beam from a helicopter; a photo was reportedly taken of a mutilator. In another event, a helicopter with Oriental occupants is encountered in a Western state. The validity and substance of these incidents will be explored In a future issue of STIGMATA, In STIGMATA #2 we reported our Interest In any mutilated carcasses which undergo a color change. Tills is at least similar to molybdenum poisoning, though there may be no connection. If molybdenum has contaminated a pasture, the underbelly will be affected first. More about this next issue. 11 12