Raising a reindeer ruckus

July 24,

2007

By Will Elliott/Frontiersman

MAT-SU - Before Crunchy, there was Jiff. And Skippy before her, named not for peanut butter, but because that first frisky reindeer loved to jump around.

The naming scheme took off on its own from there, said owner Phil Meyer, a Wasilla veterinarian. Phil and Anne Meyer own the three reindeer under a legal loophole first exploited by Tom and Jene Williams of the Williams Reindeer Farm in Butte. Normally only Native Alaskans can own reindeer, under the Reindeer Act of 1937, a Depression-era federal law. That's a law both couples say should have been repealed a long time ago.

Jene Williams described the Reindeer Act as a projectionist move made at the behest of Outside cattle ranchers. At that time, an Alaskan reindeer magnate owned more than 600,000 reindeer and made regular meat shipments to San Francisco, Chicago and other cities. When the cattlemen started losing out to Alaskan competition, they petitioned Congress for protection, Williams said.

&#8220There's whole lot of politics involved in this,” Williams said.

The result is that in Alaska, only Native Alaskans can own Alaskan reindeer, while in the rest of the United States anyone can. Phil Meyer mentioned a Texas buyer who rents out Alaskan reindeer to Christmas tree sellers in that state. The Reindeer Act left the legal status of non-Alaskan reindeer undefined, such as those from Canada or Scandinavia. Therein Tom Williams, a law school graduate, found his loophole.

&#8220I always say, you have to be a native, a lawyer or buy them from a lawyer to own reindeer in Alaska,” Meyer said.

Tom Williams grew up on a dairy farm, but was disappointed with how poorly suited cattle were to the Alaskan climate. From the federal government's original underwriting of dairy farming in the Matanuska Colony to the state's intervention with the struggling Matanuska Maid Dairy today, government assistance has often been necessary to make raising cattle feasible in the state.

&#8220It sure would have been smarter if the government had set us up with reindeer. They're the cattle of the north,” Jene Williams said.

Tom Williams decided to set things right by getting reindeer himself - legal reindeer from Canada.

After what Jene Williams described as a harrowing journey there and back, the Williams family began raising reindeer for meat, antlers and to attract tourists to their Butte farm. Meat was sold to local sausage makers like Alaska Sausage Co. in Anchorage.

In time, the Reindeer Act became less significant as a protection for Lower 48 cattlemen and more significant as a protection for Alaska Native herders, Jene Williams said. That caused trouble for the Williams Farm.

&#8220Western Alaska Natives sued [the Bureau of Indian Affairs] for allowing us to get reindeer,” Williams said. &#8220They said we have an unfair advantage because we're on the road system.”

The Williamses spent around $100,000 during the ensuing seven-year legal battle, finally establishing their right to own the Canadian reindeer in Alaska. Meyer's reindeer came from the Williams herd, as well as the reindeer of a handful of other non-native Valley residents, putting them under the protection of the Williams ruling.

Meyer said the Williams herd alone isn't enough to seed reindeer ranching in the state; however, so as long as the Reindeer Act stands, only a handful of native herders and a few owners of Canadian reindeer benefit, while everyone else in the state loses.

&#8220Economically, if there is going to be agriculture in Alaska, reindeer is the only option for red meat,” Meyer said.

That's because cattle simply aren't designed to live in a place like Alaska, while reindeer thrive here, he said. Reindeer subsist off local foods and burn fewer calories than cattle in the cold. Those and a host of other traits specifically tailored to maximize efficiency in the northern climate also make them more economical than horses for pets.

&#8220At 20 below they'll be out there lying in the snow, happy as can be,” he said.

Meyer's reindeer have accompanied his son on walks through the neighborhood, and the Meyers are training the youngest reindeer to pull a sleigh. The Williams Farm also offers sleigh rides.

The Point MacKenzie Correctional Facility once had a reindeer herd that went over great with the prisoners, Meyer said. Protests arose that the herd violated the Reindeer Act, so the operation was shut down. Today, Meyer estimates there are less than 10 non-native reindeer owners in the Valley, a number that Jene Williams said causes supply problems for local processors like Alaska Sausage.

&#8220If they were more available, there would be no question [about more people choosing to raise reindeer],” Meyer said.

Repealing or amending the Reindeer Act of 1937 requires an act of Congress. Both Meyer and Williams agreed that won't happen without public pressure.

To visit the Williams reindeer herd or learn more about raising reindeer in Alaska, call 745-4000 or visit www.reindeerfarm.com..