Fresh wolf kill, outskirts of town

[Guy Miner]

Well heck, after numerous reports of wolves near town, the toll is mounting.

Fresh kill this morning of a mule deer, near a few homes on the outskirts of town. Wolf still hanging around the homes.

Two elk killed on a ranch not far from town in the past few weeks.

One cow (cattle type) down too, on a ranch near town. Though "they" say it wasn't killed by the wolves. Right...

Sheesh... I hope I draw that tag for the big late-season mule deer bucks this year, while there's still quite a few of 'em.

Guy

 

[runtohunt]

Guy, sorry to hear that. I am glad that we don't have the wolves down here. It is tough enough down here with the lack of control of the mountain lions. I could guarantee that when wolves show up here there will be no deer what-so-ever.

 

[35 Whelen]

Have not seen a wolf yet that could stand more than one shot from the 270 with either the 130gr BT or SST............... maybe you should open the season up a little early???

 

[SJB358]

Hopefully Washington gets on them faster than the other Western States did, it is only a matter of time they start trimming your deer and elk down.

 

[Guy Miner]

I think it's going to be a real struggle to get a season opened on wolves and start managing them like any other wild animal - by hunting.

Washington politics are largely dominated by the huge, liberal, population base in the Seattle-Tacoma area.

Of course the wolves are over here in central & eastern Washington, which is mostly a conservative area. The battle lines have already been drawn. Those of us with wolves in our backyards have a rather different view than the people in Seattle.

We'll see how it goes. I suspect our elk and deer herds are going to take a big hit before we get a handle on the wolf population.

There's a small herd of caribou in Northeast Washington. I think they're the only, or one of the few herds of caribou in the lower 48. I hope they can survive the wolves...

Guy

 

[BeeTee]

Montana hunters were behind the awareness curve for what was happening in the late 1990s, and we didn't know (and they didn't tell us) that there was an active transplant operation in effect for the entire intermountain west. Most of us thought the transplant operation was restricted to Yellowstone and would be more or less contained due to the overwhelming number of elk in and around Yellowstone. As it turned out, the Yellowstone transplant operation was just a first step.

In hindsight, we should have organized a massive and longterm protest....

It's been a while, but I remember reading that the environmental groups who were at the forefront of the wolf introduction wanted to expand the project to all corners of the country. The Cascade range may already be lost. BT

 

[DrMike]

Guy,

I can't see Sea-Tac permitting a wolf hunt w/o a real battle. It is a constant battle with Vancouver/Victoria to keep hunting wolves and/or grizzly bears in BC.

 

[Guy Miner]

Here's a link to the article in today's paper. Small town paper... What can I say? :grin:

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2013 ... -2-canyon/

We're used to the bears, mountain lions and coyotes. These wolves are new to the area, and it's going to be interesting, getting used to them. That's right up where I hike once every week or two all year round. Cool. Maybe I'll get a good photo of one sometime in the next few months!

Guy

 

[BeeTee]

Here's a link to the article in today's paper. Small town paper... What can I say? :grin:

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2013 ... -2-canyon/

From the article:

She said officers talked to people living in the canyon and found that "nobody was hyper-excited" by the presence of a wolf.

:wink: "First come the oohs and aahs. Then it's the running and screaming." chaos theoretician Dr. Ian Malcolm - Lost World Jurassic Park

BT

 

[Vince]

Here's a link to the article in today's paper. Small town paper... What can I say? :grin:

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2013 ... -2-canyon/

We're used to the bears, mountain lions and coyotes. These wolves are new to the area, and it's going to be interesting, getting used to them. That's right up where I hike once every week or two all year round. Cool. Maybe I'll get a good photo of one sometime in the next few months!

Guy

Guy,

All legalities aside, and I know you wouldn't be dumb enough to talk about any wolf you took out of season that wasn't a threat to you and your's, I hope that picture is of one that is DRT.

I'm not a fan of wolves and I make no bones about that. From a livestock standpoint I resent that they have been crammed down our respective throats by unknowing and unitelligent people.

Vince

 

[gerry]

Guy,

I can't see Sea-Tac permitting a wolf hunt w/o a real battle. It is a constant battle with Vancouver/Victoria to keep hunting wolves and/or grizzly bears in BC.

I was going to say the same thing but Mike beat me too it. I wish they would just mind their own business.

 

[super-7]

I would think a domestic cate producer would be able to get a problem predator permit or something. Once it's starts with your lively hood well the three SSS come to mind.

 

[Guy Miner]

Photo Vince, photo... :mrgreen: I honestly like taking photos of critters, and have never taken a photo of a wolf.

I'm not shooting a woof, or anything else, unless it's legal to do so.

Guy

 

[BeeTee]

I would think a domestic cate producer would be able to get a problem predator permit or something. Once it's starts with your lively hood well the three SSS come to mind.

If we use Montana as an example, in the beginning the various agencies will quickly compensate ranchers for the loss of livestock, and will provide agency managers with the means to trap or remove problem wolves. Ranchers are not given permission to shoot them. Then, once the wolf population has saturated the area/region, the various state/federal agencies abandon the ranchers.

Ranchers here in Montana now operate with a 24/7/365 shoot-on-sight mentality, and they tell hunters (who have permission to hunt on their land) to shoot-on-sight any they see. No one has been prosecuted.

People's attitudes change when they see what they love coming to an end. BT