wolves are ravaging Idaho backcountry

Like to hear from Idaho.

Recent reports to the contrary, the government does not have a handle on the number of wolves in Idaho. Not even close. Earlier in April, the state Department of Fish and Game released a report that said there are at least 770 wolves in Idaho. If you believe what the department had to say, there were 26 breeding pairs, down from 49 six years ago. I don’t believe them at all. There are more, way more, than the government lets on.

Listen to what Jim Hayden, a biologist and wolf counter at the Department of Fish and Game, is telling us about his wolf numbers, as reported in The Spokesman-Review newspaper: “The 770 is a number we’re very confident with. We know the actual truth is higher than that, we just don’t know how far higher.” Read that line again: “We just don’t know how far higher.” He also went on to say that the agency stopped looking for breeding pairs after surveying 43 packs “because it’s expensive” and they had enough data to suit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

There’s no doubt in my mind that Idaho’s backcountry is being overrun by wolves. Wolves are ruthless predators. They’re super smart, constantly breeding and constantly on the prowl for food anywhere they inhabit. Throughout history, man has fought back because man had no choice but to do so. Wolves have long created problems for farmers, ranchers and urbanization. Wolves kill, slaughter, invade and destroy. Some of the earliest laws passed in the new American colonies were laws allowing for bounties to be paid for each wolf killed.

In the late 1800s, wolf depredation was so bad, some states also adopted bounty programs to eradicate the animal. That wasn’t enough, and that’s the reason why Congress, as early as 1915, sought the removal of wolves from lands in the West by appropriating $125,000 to drive them out.

Now, of course, environmentalists claim we have too few wolves. The problem with the wolf count is that we have too many. We have so many wolves that they’re destroying wildlife. Traditional trophy deer and elk habitats have been sacked. They’re destroying livestock. Wolves — and far more of them than just the 770 the government claims exist — are leaving a trail of destruction in Idaho’s backcountry. And while government bean counters and pencil pushers claim they have the problem well at hand, they don’t.

We’re not “managing” wolves. We’re being inundated by them, and the government is pretending to have a grasp of how many we have in our midst. The biologists either have their collective heads in the sand or they’re willfully and wantonly misleading the public. Meanwhile, environmentalists are ignoring the history contending that somehow, miraculously, wolves have stopped doing what they always do with precision — propagate the species — and that the wolves deserve even greater protection.

Our vast natural resources are being jeopardized, our hunting grounds are disappearing, our wildlife are being ravaged. And the Department of Fish and Game and the governor’s office are doing nothing. When will the so-called “leaders” of this state wake up to the great farce that is wolf reintroduction and annual wolf counts, and do something to stop the rape, pillage and massacre taking place by the predatory wolves that are growing in number?

Maurice Clements served in the Idaho Legislature in the 1970s and was a founder of the Center for the Study of Market Alternatives. He is a farmer, outdoorsman and real estate agent.


Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2015/05/22/3816590/guest-opinion-big-bad-wolves-are.html#storylink=cpy

Wolfs are pretty big!

I didn't write the below, found it on line.



p.s. it's just a matter of time before one of our granola loving green peace hikers goes out on a hike and runs into a pack of these killers and becomes part of the food chain. If you are going into the Blues, Cascades, or up above Spokane hiking, game scouting, mushroom hunting, or something else you better start carrying a side arm. Can you even imagine being out by yourself and having 8 to 12 of these monsters surround you! Think about what kind of appetite a dozen of these must have and remember they are the only predator in our nation that kills for fun along with for food. The amount of animals they take are just a partial portion of what they need to eat. When elk are calving they will kill the calves just for fun after they have had all they can eat and leave the rest to rot.

I don't know. I do not go in the woods other than with DH and DS for firewood and that is close to the road. I swear I saw one in a field. It was either a wolf or the biggest coyote I ever saw, but I have seen a lot of coyotes and it just looked different. A friend has a small farm about 2 miles or so from there and his neighbor has had 2 pet dogs taken from the yard. They say coyote jumped fence, got the dog and jumped back over fence with the dog. A few months later they got a new dog and it happened again, both small dogs. Then, one night DS and I were getting ready for bed. We went out to check on the rabbits and I heard what sounded like a wolf. We live in town far, far, from the woods. DS was on the other side of the house and I thought, I bet that scared him. He is 15. It about made my hair stand up. He went in the house and I was still outside and heard it again, this time closer and I hurried into the house. I am not afraid of coyotes and enjoy the sounds they make, but this sound was eerie. I asked DS when I got in the house if he heard that dog and he said yes and made a face and I said it did not sound like a dog did it and he said no.

The guest opinion author ran for state senator in the recent Republican primary and lost.

His "market alternatives" business is billboards. He set up one last year so as to compare the Aurora Colorado theater mass murder to the US president.

Information sources are important and there are local opinions and alternative opinions.

Within just a few yards from me is a lady who keeps dogs. Her first dog when she moved here was some sled dog cross. When he couldn't get through the 5' chain link fence to get to passersby, he would tear things up in her yard. It was quite humorous to see him rip down her yard ornaments or shred a chair cushion but a little terrifying when he was doing that because elementary school kids were walking by.

Her next dog was a Doberman ... but he was the tallest Doberman I've ever seen. I don't know how that 5' fence held him. With a great deal of public grumbling, her backyard neighbor set up a solid board fence set back about 2' from her chain link one. They have a daughter about 10 and a small dog.

The Doberman went and was replaced by a German Shepherd. That dog often appears frantic to get out but she doesn't allow him in front of the house where the kids walk by. The paths he is making from one corner of the backyard to the other are banked from his near continuous racing about. Thankfully, her dogs are kept in her house at night.

Just a little local comment on canines and people's apparent desire for "protection" from the wider world.

Steve

We are being driven crazy by coyotes that are suppose to be crossed with wolves. Pure wolves would be a nightmare .

There is no doubt that wolves are increasing in numbers and boldness around here. I live out of town and have spoken with some of my neighbors (experienced woodsmen) who have sighted them in the mountains 10 miles east of me. There have also been reported wolves in a town 10 miles west of me. In the outskirts of the larger urban area south of me there was an incident of a domestic dog that was staked out to a dog house, the wolves pulled him out of his collar. A tracker that came to investigate said he had no doubt it was two wolves from the tracks left in the snow.
There are no stray dogs or cats in the small towns to the east on the main highway heading towards Montana.
Elk don't bugle during the rut any more because it brings the wolves in.
People have recorded wolves on trail cameras bringing down elk and leaving them. Not returning to clean them up even after several days. Apparently they are training their young, not hunting for food.

I agree that sources of information are important. The sources for most of what I have related comes from face to face conversations with people I trust who have first hand experience. Not a rumor mill.

I have several family members in north Idaho who are small herd cattle ranchers -- herds only large enough to be of partial financial support their own families. There are serious issues w/ wolves in their area. And like you said, thistle... the wolves don't seem to be hunting for food. They kill and leave the cattle just laying there, never returning to eat.

I was impressed with the size of them.

They're monstrous.

Nyboy said:

We are being driven crazy by coyotes that are suppose to be crossed with wolves. Pure wolves would be a nightmare .

Click to expand...

They ARE crossed--they are called, "CoyWolves" and they originated from an isolated clan of wolves living outside of Toronto who bred with coyotes. They are GS/Collie height, lanky and rangy. We have them here, In Central Illinois, I have seen one, and a friend shot one, ONLY bc the animal was chasing two deer and didn't see HIM hunting. They see you, you pull out your gun and they are gone. Only way to nail them is at night with scopes.
They are more aggressive than coyotes and will eat your cats and your small dogs. Some IDIOTS in the NE accept losing their small pets HAPPILY (What the fudge?!?!?).
I am up to 5 cats, now, 3 feral in the barn (ok with me bc two are kittens), and I don't want to lose any more cats!!
My two dogs are 60 and 70lbs, respectively, and I won't let them out at night without me. These coywolves will lure a pet dog out to "play" and then the pack will attack the dog, sometimes for food, sometimes for sport.
It is a REAL problem, but most people can't see it yet.