Wolf Management Breakthrough!?

In a move in the right direction the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Pet and Livestock Protection Act yesterday. The bill now moves to the Senate where 60 votes are needed to keep it alive. This bill would effectively delist wolves in the Lower 48 and return management to the States. Certainly a move in the right direction but will it actually happen? 

While I applaud the U.S. House for getting this bill passed I fear that it will either die by filibuster in the Senate or be gunned down by liberal judges before States like Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan get the relief they so desperately need when it comes to curtailing their swollen wolf numbers. If the judges don’t kill the bill we can rest assured that animal rights activist groups, who’ve hijacked the term “conservation group”, will sue to stop the rightful handing over of wolf management to the States. 

That may sound cynical but it has become reality for the management of apex predators like wolves, to the detriment of ungulate populations in the Great Lakes states. I have many friends from that region who have literally quit deer hunting from their historic “deer camps” because of the lack of deer and prevalence of wolves thanks to zero scientific wolf management in the North Woods. The situation in Colorado is trending in the same direction and that state’s wolf reintroduction debacle is under scrutiny as you read this, thanks to overspending, wolf depredation and the fact that those wolves were shoved down the throats of hardworking rural folks without their consent. 

While we here in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming enjoy the benefits of proper wolf management other folks do not. The House has done the right thing with this vote and I hope the Senate follows suit. 

Nationwide wolves have reached and exceeded recovery goals and management needs to be turned over to the States. If you’re reading this and live in a battleground wolf state be sure to contact your Senator/s and tell them to pass this bill pronto! 

Proper, scientifically proven wolf management is vital for the conservation of ungulate populations and the future of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. Stand up, speak out and do your part to ensure wolf management is handed over the People, where it belongs!