Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries' examines Oregon's cattle mutilation cases

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A recent episode of Netflix’s “Unsolved Mysteries” dives into the cattle mutilation phenomena that perplexed rural Oregon communities a few years ago.

“Mysterious Mutilations,” the third episode in volume five of the streaming giant’s true crime series, premiered in early October. Several ranchers, law enforcement workers and other experts from Oregon and across the U.S. shared their first-hand experiences with the puzzling cases.

Grant County rancher M.T. Anderson recalled the moment in June 2021 when he found a young, female cow deceased, with her face skinned, tongue removed and an incision straight behind her shoulder.

“I was taken aback,” Anderson said in an on-camera interview. “I’d never seen anything like that ever. There was zero tracks anywhere. There was no noticeable blood anywhere around the animal and no sign of a struggle.”

Fellow ranchers Mat Carter and Herschel Lantis told similar stories of finding animals that were seemingly mutilated, but with no immediate signs of struggle.

When the Associated Press reported on the five bulls found dead in Eastern Oregon within just days of each other in 2019, there were several theories on what caused the deaths. While some residents guessed a cult or other groups aiming to harm the ranchers were behind the mutilation, Anderson said law enforcement determined a bear was behind the attack that killed one of his cows.

“We’ve never had anything killed by a bear ever,” the rancher said. “We do have bears around here, but it was this almost-surgical cut. I mean, it’s like a two-foot cut and in a perfectly straight line right behind their shoulder. Bear, last I checked, don't pack knives.”

Over in Wheeler County, Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jeremiah Holmes told interviewers the county has had five confirmed mutilations since 2019 — and he was “absolutely convinced it's not predators.”

Others have raised the idea that aliens are somehow behind the cattle mutilations. According to “Stalking the Herd: Unraveling the Cattle Mutilation Mystery” writer Christopher O’Brien, this hypothesis dates back to the ‘70s when Coloradans reported helicopters were “harassing” cattle herds.