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Wolfwatcher

16 hours ago

Rancher details wolf challenges to Parks, Wildlife panelbit.ly/3iZUy2HAfter more than a year of dealing with the threat of wolves killing his cattle, Walden-area rancher Don Gittleson has gained some hard-won perspective on where to turn to for insights on wolf behavior and how to protect his livestock from them.Mr Gittleson has been the first to interact and been on the receiving end of a pack living near his ranch. He has experienced the movements and tactics of the wolves as they have encountered some of his herd.The first encounter and defense of the pack was to stay up all night and that continued to neighbors in helping as Colorado Parks and Wildlife who are as new to the experience as he has been were involved.Gittleson says he has lost cows and calves to wolves. A wolfpack established itself in the North Park area after adults traveled there from out-of -state and two adults produced the first wolf litter born in the wild in the state in some 80 years.Gittleson described the emotions of worrying about wolves and losing animals to them. He’s said ,it’s not just hard for him, it’s hard for Parks and Wildlife staff.”While it’s difficult to cope with animals being killed by wolves, “the really bad ones are the ones that are not dead, that I have to put down,” he said. “Those are the ones that are the worst.”Gittleson described for the commission a long list of measures he has tried, with varying levels of success. He said fladry, which consists of fenceline with waving ribbons hanging from it, worked well. But he told The Daily Sentinel in May that he couldn’t get enough of it to surround his pasture, and the wolves had gotten used to it. Fox lights weren’t a deterrent, Gittleson said this week.He has deployed donkeys as a deterrent to wolves, though he worried about public backlash depending on how that turned out.As of the writing the article does not mention the results of havingdonkies on his ranch.He was asked by Parks and Wildlife Commissioner Dallas May, who also is a rancher, asked Gittleson how long he could sustain losses and costs related to wolves if they continue mounting.He has incurred some wolf-related expenses not reimbursed by the agency, spending about $12,000 to $15,000 for on non lethalmeasures. He stated to the Commission that he was denied claims for the loss of two calves, and has a claim pending for one animal.He has had plenty of experiences with the wolves and their tactics. During the beginning he had people up running theirtrucks to keep the wolves away, but they quietly slipped innear the herd with out being noticed.His comments to the staff at the meeting referring to the wolf plan’s education section, Gittleson also said agency staff on the ground need to be able to talk to the media to improve transparency regarding wolves.As time moves forward this year the experiences of this rancherwill help others,but each experience at different areas of the statethe conversations and complaints of will be many and some citizens at a loss about wolf behavior. It’s extremely difficult toknow or plan about the wolves activities as they are animalswho need to feed their families and their tactics will be many toacquire “food on the table” to meet their needs.As a humans we can understand the stress of the not knowingthe next step of the animals or what will prevail in the defense oftheir animals. Photo: Dogbible.com ... See MoreSee Less

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Wolfwatcher

23 hours ago

Gianforte directs FWP to create new wolf management planbit.ly/3Xdc02tGiven the public and legislature’s engagement in wolf management, it is an appropriate time to revisit the Wolf Plan,” Gianforte wrote in a letter to FWP Director Hank Worsech. “Accordingly, I am directing FWP to collaborate with the citizens of Montana to form a new Wolf Plan.”During the 2021 legislative session, the Montana Legislature passed three bills revising laws on harvesting wolves, making it easier to hunt wolves in the state and directing the Fish and Wildlife Commission to manage populations at “a sustainable level.”Changes that allowed for the harvest of up to 450 wolves in the 2021-2022 hunting season which was around 40 percent of the total estimated population in the state.Killing of Yellowstone wolves has stirred public comments from state citizens and those from the nation. Yellowstone wolveshave been studied for years and the taking of the valuable wolveshas not been welcome.Montana at one time in history had a decent reputation,but the recent attitude towards the wolves does require another thought.The governor himself is anti wolf and many are surprised by any comment of “let’s take another look” at the wolf situation.Photo: Pinterest ... See MoreSee Less

Gianforte directs FWP to create new wolf management plan

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On Thursday, Gov. Greg Gianforte announced he’d directing Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to develop a new wolf management plan for the state.

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