The Hen House

Whether you folks know it or not, the proverbial "weasel" that watches the hen house is now inside the hen house and has taken the gray wolf in with him. In 1995, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service introduced the gray wolf into Yellowstone National Park calling for a population objective in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem of 700 of the fuzzy little creatures.

Since the reintroduction, the populations have exploded to current (conservative) estimates of 1,500 animals. Some wildlife experts estimate the number could exceed 2,000 and the numbers are increasing by 24 percent a year. Since the reintroduction in the mid 1990’s, 724 wolves have been killed legally by service personnel, ranchers and other wildlife agency personnel and roughly the same number have been killed illegally.

Add up the numbers, it doesn’t take a PH.D. to figure out that the gray wolf has found Wyoming, Idaho and Montana a very nice place call home. But the three aforementioned states are not good enough for the gray wolf as they have been found far, far from their original plant site. Obviously, wolves could give a hoot where they roam. Tagged animals from the Yellowstone plant have been destroyed killing cattle in southern Wyoming along the Colorado border, in Oregon and killed trying to cross Interstate 70 west of Denver. Who know where else they will pop up? Rest assured they will.

As I’m writing this, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is planning to delist the gray wolf and turn management over to the state game and fish departments of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. These three states have management plans in place to start hunting the gray wolf as soon as this fall with sound well-constructed management plans designed to reduce the expanding numbers of wolves and further reduce the numbers to insure protection for other game species.

This plan follows the same process used by well-educated, experienced game managers, the same folks that so adequately manage the rest of our game species. But not so, says Doug Honnold attorney for Earth Justice, who is filing a lawsuit to prevent the U.S.F.W.S. from delisting the wolves. Several groups of “Defenders” in a petition filed February 20, 2008 with the Department of Interior (even before the actual delisting) say no and wants to expand the gray wolf range. This august group of fine outstanding American citizens argue not only should the delisting not be allowed but that new wolf populations should be established in “Maine, New York, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Washington and possibly in New Hampshire, Texas and portions of the mid-Atlantic states."

For you good folks that live elsewhere (other than Wyoming, Idaho and Montana) and thought this was our problem, think again! They’re coming after you! Remember what the good old boy on the Dodge TV commercials says, "This ain't gonna be good."

Game populations in the west have suffered considerably since the reintroduction. Cattlemen and other stock growers have gone through hell dealing with wolf depredation. Conservatively, $27 million of your tax dollars have been spent on the reintroduction process and the “Defenders” want more.

Sitting on our hands won’t stop the carnage that the wolf reeks on the land while the "bunny huggers" keep coming and bringing the wolves to yet another part of the country that simply dose not need or want them. I would suggest that all concerned sportsman everywhere take a close look at this situation and study up. It’s all on you computer, in the news paper or at the library. This is a situation that all of us need to address, whether it be through local sportsman clubs or with a letter to elected officials in Washington.

Folks, we are not dealing with “wolves in sheep’s clothing." We are dealing with attorneys in thousand-dollar suits and wolves in wolf clothing and neither care about our rights or sport hunting activities. 

Until next time, take care and remember to take a kid hunting or fishing this spring.

- John Rinehart
Co-Founder of The Outdoor Pursuit