Wow...guess the 7 different ranches (including ours) around here that had people surrounded by them were all hallucinating! I've heard all that government prepared BS from lots of different sources for years now.... usually the same ones that act totally suprised and amazed when someone suggests that they kill not only what they eat. None of us here in this area have been attacked.......but like I said, we've damned sure been trailed, stalked, surrounded...... I guess you forgot to let these critters read the same books you read. One big difference is that your wolves are and have been managed...you said yourself you are trapping and some are shooting.... we still have 2 days to go before we can do that legally here in MT. Wolves are extremely smart, and just a slight amount of "negative human contact" (that's the politically correct term according to the local officials) will give them much more respect for humans...right now, even the local wolf lovers admit they have almost none. Amazingly, after the 3rd person complained enough about being surrounded by one pack here, they took 19 wolves out of a pack that the "official" wolf recovery folks swore was only a pack of 7.... guess they musta forgot to tell those animals that they didn't exist . As far as the ranchers being compensated for the livestock losses, that's about the biggest crock of BS since the tooth fairy. As far as all the claims of attacks on livestock and humans, well the government and wolf lover BS can sure throw that onto something else, as they have.... they've claimed almost all the wolf problems we've had around here are bears too... funny, but we've been here on this ranch since the 40's and until the "reintroduction of wolves" (which was shoved down our throats bigtime) we didn't have those losses......and our range and calving processes haven't changed.... but I guess we just haven't read the right books...... My Great Grandpa was a government wolf killer.... I think we could use some of those guys again...they damned near got the job done last time.
JH

There have been 2 troublesome wolves harvested by F&G in Idaho recently. One weighed in at 190# The other over 150. Guess the wolves in MN must be smaller. The wolf population in Idaho has blossomed. There were wolf tracks all over the river bed at cabin creek when I was there this year.

I've seen quite a few of both wolves and coyotes up here in God's Country the last 37 years. That is a shot of a young wolf (very, very curious too), not a coyote.

lowlevelops wrote:Either way.....sling lead at it!

Why? I assume you were just joking.

Regardless, if you are quiet enough (most aren't) and lucky enough (even fewer are) to see wolves out in the wild that don't know you are there, just lie quietly and watch a wolf pair or a small pack working a mountainside trying to make a living. I was moose hunting at the time and could have shot one or both. I chose not to and just sat there and watched and got some more education from Mother Nature that was both fascinating and awesome.

Another time, I was sitting on a mountainside glassing for moose and saw a cow moose frantically calling for her calf. I could also hear the calf bleating for it's mom. A wolf heard her also. They next thing I knew I could hear a pack in the valley working toward the cow and calf. They had the entire valley surrounded and covered. You could hear them closing in vocally. If you are fortunate enough to experience this just shut up, sit down, close your eyes and listen. Their sound as they talk to each other on the hunt is fascinating as they signal to each other as they close in....simply awesome. I've experienced both and consider myself very fortunate to have done so. Had I just slung lead, I would have missed out on both. I would also be like most folks and never have seen the wolverines in the wild like I have. And no, I'm not a bunny lover or a tree hugger. I'm an avid hunter.

appreciate that perspective, ak. i guess here in idaho we tend to look at it differently. having seen quite a lot of destruction by wolves, and we are now legal to shoot, i believe they definitely have a place but need some definite control. we have more and more encounters of wolves and live-stock, and i would not want to see our ranchers donate their "inventory" to the wolves due to mis-management...along with our rather large elk herds definitely suffering. with over 1000 wolves in id. now, that number needs reduced...!

I agree with you jomac. We also have problem in a few of our game units due to wolf and bear depredation on the moose population. As a result, the State has a aerial wolf control program and the limit on brown bears in one unit has been raised from one bear every 4 years to one a year. The limit on blacks has also been raised. Where I was coming from was in response to the quite prevalent "shoot everything that moves or that we might feel threatened about due to our ignorance" attitude approach that some folks espouse to. I agree fully that, where there is a problem, population control should be swift and effective, bunny huggers be damned. I also believe that the clowns in the lower 48 that want to stop our aerial wolf hunting ought to be made to fund it as a live hunt so that we can capture the wolves and deliver them to those folks homes at their cost. That would sure change their tune.....

I was working on an oil rig in northern Alberta, Canada a number of years ago and we shut down early one day. I was pumping fuel from the tank in the pick-up to the rig and looked back and a full size adult wolf was standing ten feet behind me watching fearlessly. Startled the hell out of me! It hung around the whole time we were on that well. In talking to other guys it was there all winter (likly guys sharing their lunches with him). It would head into the thick bush and re-enter on the other side of the lease without so much as peep or a snapping twig. what a rare encounter and a magnificent animal but they can certainly be problematic. The coyotes are a huge pain where I live. Too bad the fur isnt worth anything anymore (around here anyway) Dam tree huggers!
My granddad always swore up and down he had to fend off a pack of wolves by throwing flaming sticks at them one night alone in the bush. But his stories get pretty tall after a few glasses of whisky!

Search the records....they are getting close to the 200# mark. Timber wolves are a smaller breed than the gray wolf.
While in Yellow Pine, this summer, I talked to a local guide that had 3 of his pack string eaten by wolves....he had to shoot 2 of of his pack string because the wolves only ate the hind quarters and left them alive...fulling eating one.
They follow the 3 S's rule...Shoot, Shovel and Shut up. Some will say that's wrong, but Fish & Game has not been able to control it... until this year with the issue of wolf tags.
I don't always agree with Fish & Game, but I think they try to do what's right....until people that don't know anything about game management take control.
Look at the big game population numbers in Idaho in the last few years because of wolves.
They are crossing the Snake River into Oregon looking for more territory, personally, I don't want them. Fish & Game just recently had to kill 2 wolves because of live stalk kill ( these 2 wolves were photographed and one had a collar for tracking) no doubt what killed the live stalk. We already have a bear and cougar population problem. Fish & Game would like to control their population, but can not... how could they ever control wolves?
For those who want nature to take over, you can take my hunting license fees and stock up on wolf ammo to protect your dog.
Sorry, it's happy hour here.

dawgdriver wrote:There have been 2 troublesome wolves harvested by F&G in Idaho recently. One weighed in at 190# The other over 150. Guess the wolves in MN must be smaller. The wolf population in Idaho has blossomed. There were wolf tracks all over the river bed at cabin creek when I was there this year.

Now you're really going to confuse the "facts" as stated above with the truth..... they (the parasites) can't handle that!!
JH

avgas wrote: Too bad the fur isnt worth anything anymore (around here anyway) Dam tree huggers!

That's probably due more to the fashion industry than tree huggers. For some reason coyote fur just isn't in this season...err decade..err what's the word for 50 years? Oh right, quinquagenary. <= Wikipedia at work.

That's probably due more to the fashion industry than tree huggers. For some reason coyote fur just isn't in this season...err decade..err what's the word for 50 years? Oh right, quinquagenary. <= Wikipedia at work[quote

yeh, and those PETA folks don't help matters either..........squirting people with spraypaint as they walk down the street in thier fur coats!

Everyone knows what PETA really stands for........People for the Eating of Tasty Animals"

Due to financial troubles, I had to move to Seattle this year to find work. I do my best to find the most remote places to go. This weekend, I drove to the east side of the Cascade mountains and hiked up to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. I knew I was in for a bad day when I got to the trailhead and there were over 50 cars there. I must have seen a hundred people, and not one sign of game. I'd prefer wolves any day!

AKGrouch wrote:Everyone knows what PETA really stands for........People for the Eating of Tasty Animals"

If God didn't want us to eat animals, he wouldn't have made them out of meat.

Eric

My goodness, there are sure a lot of "definite" opinions about this poor critter. I don't know if it is a coyote or a young wolf, I have seen quite a lot of both but before I called any man a lair by looking at a rather ambiguous picture I would have to be alot more sure of myself than i am.

You know what it means when someone say "I am sure of it"??? Usually means they are dead wrong.

If they want to call if a woof OK by me,

Several years ago I was in Oklahoma and I saw a lot of the ugliest damn coyotes I have ever seen, the locals said there were hardly any pure coyotes there at all, these were all coy-dog crosses. I have seen some fairly funny looking wolf -dog hybrids too.

Fun to argue about as long as nobody gets upset.

Love to watch wolves, hear them, see them, get pissed about all the "disney" type nonsense you hear. They are an apex predator and will kill whatever they can whenever they can with the least amount of risk to themselves. If you truly think that predators only kill what they need, the sick and the lame, just throw most any old alley cat into a cage full of mice and watch him kill every single one!

In today's news:

AK hunter attacked by rabid wolf, survives
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An Alaskan hunter has survived a rare attack by a rabid wolf.

Roderick Phillip and three hunting partners were at a bonfire when Phillip went down to the river to look for moose.

Without notice a wolf trotted toward the camp site and as Phillip yelled 'wolf' the animal charged toward Phillip, biting him. The wolf and Phillips wrestled for a few moments before his brother managed to kill the animal with his rifle.


Phillip told the Anchorage Daily News that he received a shipment of rabies vaccine. He will need five shots over 28 days to ward off the disease.

Rabies is more common among foxes in Alaska, but cases in wolves have been known to happen.
(Anchorage Daily News)

gbflyer wrote:In today's news:
... as Phillip yelled 'wolf' the animal charged toward Phillip, biting him....
(Anchorage Daily News)

And that's what happens to boys who cry 'wolf'!

Wolves are close, Roderick works for the same outfit I am working for this summer, He's a local from there and a pretty out spoken kind of guy. Will have to hear what his story is?
Those darn pesky things?
GT

There aren't any wolves in PA that I'm aware of.

I happen to like wolves. Or at least the idea of wolves. I think they have a place in the natural scheme of things. They are usually not a threat to humans. It's kind of nice having them around. At a distance!

But, like most people who don't really know anything about them, I have only my personal opinion.

I don't think any animal should be shot on sight, unless you're hunting for meat. Of course, if something comes after you, blast away!

As an Easterner, and never having raised livestock, I can't say how I'd feel if a predator started taking my animals. I suppose I'd want to put a stop to it the best way I could. As an American, I feel a man has to do whatever he thinks best to do to protect his property.

I think many of the Fish & Game and other Federal wildlife folks are doing a pretty good job. The problem is they don't give the orders and the ones who do usually do have a bloody clue! I say leave dealing with problem predators up to the people who are out in the wild areas and have to live with them.

Man o Man RC you can't go on being a reasonable person like that! You will completely destroy my opinion of easterners Don't you know you have to shout and scream the loudest about the things you know the least.
good on ya man