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Post by Metella on Dec 27, 2005 14:56:31 GMT -5
Fearmongering media is at it again, no facts & if in fact this wolf killed a person - is that one in 2,000 years of co-existance? Not a bad stat; but reading the emotional wording of the article and lack of facts; leads me to doubt the fundamentals of the thing. Please have a heart and go to the site and vote against killing wolves who in the East are still on the endangered list!! Poll: Please vote (no of course) www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/0,13202,,00.html (at bottom of page) ! I tried to do a complete hyperlink; but only part of this address gets put in the link !! Please copy and paste this in your browers to get to the poll page - thank you. (Click here for the referenced story) www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/hunting/article/0,13199,1143151,00.html
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Post by NikkiGreen on Dec 27, 2005 18:58:55 GMT -5
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Post by Cassie on Dec 27, 2005 20:21:33 GMT -5
The article states that a young man died from being attacked by a wolf on Nov. 8th.
“Between 1990 and 2000, almost two-dozen instances of wolf aggression toward humans were officially recorded, including obvious attempts to kill and eat a person”
Hey, I am not to have them hunted to extinction,. They do scare me. A wolf was hit by a car and killed less then a mile from my home last year. Yes it was a wolf. No mistake about it!
They could even hunt them with tranquilizer guns…and relocate them? Put them in a Wildlife Reserve. But when the wolves start to grow in numbers like the deer population. What are we to do with then?
Most dogs in my area, if they seriously injury a person. The owner has to have the dog put to sleep.
Sorry, but I don't like the idea of any predator, human or animal, looking at any family member or friend of mine, like they were a Big Mac.
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Post by Observer2 on Dec 28, 2005 3:22:39 GMT -5
I understand your reactions, Cassie; but it's unlikely that the animals involved were full-blooded wolves. Wolves have very consistent, instinctive reactions to humans. In every case I know of where people were actually able to kill and examine the "wolf" that attacked a human, it has turned out to be either a feral dog or a wolf-dog hybrid. So unless the animals who did the killing in this case were tracked, killed or captured, and examined by experts, I don't consider this to be a documented case.
Unfortunately, wolf-dog hybrids do sometimes occur where dogs and wolves both exist in the same territory, and such hybrids *have* been documented to attack humans. However, feral dog packs are much more common, and will kill and eat a human as quickly as they will a deer.
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Post by Metella on Dec 28, 2005 8:40:17 GMT -5
Thanks Observer - you got there before I did. I understanding being afraid from what you said; however one "attack" I looked into further .... the person "attacked" was APPROACHING THE ANIMAL with raw meat in his hand. So - was it an "Attack" or a food grab? ? or was it a cornered reaction? There is so much left unsaid in the media, which we bemoan about Mr. D'Onofrio not getting a fair shake - these animals are truely fasinating and they are nearly extinct except in yellowstone. They have a great capacity to love their young and they are actually NOT aggressive animals - they only are internally aggressive during mating season and if you take out hunting for food - they are only aggressive to protect their territory; they are surprisingly peaceful and playful animals - very much like humans.
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Post by BegToDiffer on Dec 29, 2005 10:11:02 GMT -5
What else would you expect from Field & Stream? They will use any excuse on earth to justify more hunting. I don't think that 2 dozen attacks in a ten year period is hardly reason to press the panic button. In the magazine's own words "Anyone outdoors in wolf country should be aware" NO KIDDING! Its just like the campers who go up to Denali National Park and insist on setting up tents in the middle of bear country, even with warning signs everywhere, then are shocked when there is a bear attack. I've quit asking myself how dumb can people be? (Please, don't get me started on the deer issue.)
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Post by Cassie on Dec 29, 2005 18:08:07 GMT -5
There is so much left unsaid in the media, which we bemoan about Mr. D'Onofrio not getting a fair shake - When it comes to Mr. VDO, whether his press is good or bad. It’s does his career well. When both, the press and fans, don’t respond to what he is doing or saying.. Then he/his career might have something to worry about. As for the Wolves always getting bad press. I have read a few articles in defense of the wolves saying that the young man was trying to play with them. Somewhere along the line, people are not being educated that these animals are predators They might play nicely with their own family. But outsiders they seem to chew up. That concerns me. Do I think that a whole race of wild animals should be hunted down and wiped out because a person taunted a couple of them and the animals felted corner and retaliated and killed the person. No, I don’t. But I do think that they (the wolves) are no longer near extinction and someday the game commission will have to step in to help control the population. Condoms and birth control is not the answer. As for Field and Stream being one sided. That can be said for all of the articles you pick up on about this innocident. Either they are for or against the wolf. Like all situations, you have to read both sides and try to be objective in making a decision.. All I am saying is Wolves do scare me. They say there is a pack living in my area. And like the article said "Anyone outdoors in wolf country should be aware” Ok. Point taken. But I would much rather have the gun in the hand of a professional hunter, who knows what he is doing, then me. Cause I am not leaving the country for the city….where the predators carry guns. The wolf has no natural predators. As their population grows there food source dwindles And they are forced to look elsewhere. After talking to a friend who was hunting in Iowa. The Elk population is becoming scarce because of the wolf population. Wolves are no different then bears. They are a beautiful animals but they not cuddly.
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Post by trisha on Dec 29, 2005 21:00:06 GMT -5
Excellent point I, personally, am more afraid of other humans than I am of wolves, but, I don't live near them.
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Post by Techguy on Dec 30, 2005 2:45:50 GMT -5
I just added my "No" vote, which now stands at about 65% No, 35% Yes.
From personal experience, I also am more fearful of human predators with guns than I am of animals like wolves. Like all wildlife, wolves should be respected for their role in the ecosystem, especially in culling herds of deer, elk, etc. and keeping them healthy. Wolves are majestic, social creatures who care for their young better than some humans! Hunting them down is NOT the answer.
Now prairie dogs are another matter. Where I am, they are PROTECTED! It's illegal to kill them, even accidentally! This I don't understand. Prairie dogs are plague-carrying rodents and they reproduce like gangbusters. Why do they need protection? Leave it to the local bureaucrats who have their heads up their behinds to make ordinances like this one.
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Post by Metella on Dec 30, 2005 9:12:07 GMT -5
prairie dogs are protected?! well that's a head scratcher.
Yes to me also, I'd take my chances with a wolf any day over a young teen on crack with a knife or gun. Those preditors are Nutso and outright mean.
I appreciate your feelings, and really understand, I was tracked by about 3 coyotes down a mountain one night when my car battery died ..... pitch dark and the banchee wailing was really unsettling. A two hour walk holding a stought stick and making definitive noises until I reached a place to phone for "backup". I am not saying they are cuddly - just not quite what is perceived.
Please let me speak on the elk - deer population issue. I have heard many people say that the wolves are depreciating those population - mostly hunters (I used to hunt & would still if I was back in PA) however, in all studies I have seen (about 6 or 7) the wolves ONLY go for lame, old, young etc animals - ones that hunters WILL NOT TAKE. They are not competing for the same animals. In fact, in a documentary .... the investigator was excited when he thought he saw a pack going for a healthy female - they filmed the whole chase (the wolves did get her) and when they looked over the footage in slow-mo .... they found her hind foot was turned wrong! Of course, if they are starving - they will try for any ungulant they can get .... but that low number could not come close to affecting hunting. One thing that was speculated was that as the wolves to keep the herd moving more, they may push them into higher ground - areas that hunters don't like to go to; so there may be fewer in the cushy hunting spots.
If it comes down to a person vs wolf - sure thing - shoot the wolf. But as a general outlook, I hope people will look to the crops ruined in PA, the cars crashed and lived killed by deer running rampant. Balance is a good thing and wolf population of 600 -700 across the whole US is not a balance; it is a number on the brink of extiniction after a bad summer or winter.
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Post by Cassie on Dec 31, 2005 9:46:29 GMT -5
You’re the 2nd woman hunter that I have ever met. I am pleased to meet your acquaintance. They are few and far and in between. You should be proud. I think it is awesome One thing that was speculated was that as the wolves to keep the herd moving more, they may push them into higher ground - areas that hunters don't like to go to; so there may be fewer in the cushy hunting spots. Your point is taken, I know when I was talking with the Iowa Hunter, I heard him saying that. Whether he knew it or not. That he was in competition with the wolves for hunting. But he did feel that wolves were not out to hunt humans. Unless of course the wolves were hungry and they knew the person was injured, or harassing them.. Sorry to say, I still feel someday that the game commission will have to step in. Not necessarily today. But I see it in their future. For every litter, there are 4 to 6 pups. So their race will eventually grow. You may want to call the hunters greedy down here. But they will want to get rid of their competition. I see their point and I do see yours. The real problem here is the over development of new homes and businesses that is destroying their hunting grounds. In one of the articles I read about the young man, that was killed. The wolves where coming down and getting into the garbage. (the same problem is happening with bears ) If we continue to inhabit their natural territory, problems like this will continue. In our area there is a big push for open space preservation. More of this needs to be considered before we build any place we please. I also feel. There are areas of the city that look like Germany after WWII, that land could be rebuilt. But that is another tangent. I know when I saw the dead wolf on the bridge last winter. I said to myself…ok. If they start to show up dead on the road like the deer. Then we have a serious problem. I haven’t seen another. Although there are some days when I go to take my 80 lb. dog for a walk and she refuses to go. She smells the air and marches right back inside the house. There is something out there in the woods. Whether it is a wolf or a coyote, but she knows she won’t be able to hold her ground. That scares me. Cause she has no problem tracking deer or foxes in the woods. But I realize in the area that I live, I have to live in harmony with them, but they still scare me, knowing that they are out there…..and yeah….I think I will take the wolves over the crack kid any day. And I just cast my vote over at Field and Stream and I said No for hunting the wolves for today. OK, it’s New Years Eve. Have a good one But remember Buzz Driving and Drunk Driving are the same thing
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Post by Metella on Jan 1, 2006 16:39:19 GMT -5
My prize hunting "trophy" was a giant saber toothed rabbit that was eating my mother's greenbeans. It was hilarious - I was using my grandpa's 243 and it was OLD, even had tape keeping the scope on .... it was not sited in and was shooting generally low and left - so I aimed high and right and got the menace to society! I still have his tail.
Anyway - to some that will seem an awful thing to do - but shooting the rabid groundhog that was in the yard is all I needed to experience to feel I wanted to have some kind of firearm in my home at all times. the closest help would have been 45 min away & the outside dogs, horses etc were all in danger of their lives. Got that one with one shot too.
I don't hunt now & actually never had the heart to take down the deer that got into my sites, but I am for hunting - just for doing it in a reasoned, useful, SAFE, longtermed focused way.
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Post by BegToDiffer on Jan 6, 2006 11:51:42 GMT -5
DRUNK DRIVERS CAUSE FAR MORE ACCIDENTS AND KILL MORE PEOPLE THAN DEER EVER WILL. WHERE IS THE OUTRAGE OVER THESE DRIVERS? Here is how they "count" the deer population in my part of Ohio. They go up in a plane at night, use infra- red light and count a herd in park #1. The next night they do the same in park #2, which connects with the first park. And third night its the same thing. We have a park system that runs around the county like a necklace. Doesn't anyone think that maybe the deer travel between the parks and they might be counting the same deer over and over? The answer is no. The folks that "manage" wildlife here have no clue. To solve the so-called problem of deer overpopluation here, they allow some "hired gun" to sit in a tree and blow the deer away as they come to eat the dinner (bait) set out for them. The deer get the death penalty, while the last drunk driver here got 6 years in jail for killing two people.
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jaquetta
Silver Shield Investigator
Posts: 171
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Post by jaquetta on Jan 9, 2006 15:56:58 GMT -5
Actually there is a huge outrage over drunk driving - that's why we have such strict DUI laws. I remember the days when the worst that would happen was that they'd make you call someone to come get you, or tell someone else to drive the car.
Deer kill people? Is that why they're allowed to be hunted? I never knew that.
I'm of two minds about the wolf/mountain lion situation. We've got mountain lions in our area but part of the problem is that their territory has been encroached by huge tracts of housing going up. Huge, huge houses that must use tons of natural resources to heat and to cool. This seems ridiculously wasteful to me.
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Post by Metella on Jan 10, 2006 12:38:13 GMT -5
Let us all not forget that wonderful concept of zero population growth .....
the huge houses (my last boss build one .... 3 stories 5 bed 5 bath for a family of ..... THREE) pathetic. Can you say "overcompensation" ? sheesh. It is one thing to have largish rooms, but another to be so obscene about space hogging. It is all for show & I guess they don't care if the next 2 or 3 generations die/murder/mad max each other over scarce resources. Sigh.
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