talked to a biologist today who said we need wolves

[elkontherun]

I met a biologist today who was working with weyco to allow access on there land for the early cow hunts for youth and disabled. I made a smart ass comment to him about not having to worry about the herds being to big because in ten years we won't have any elk because of the wolfs. Now he said "we need the wolfs to help balance out the system. We just have to work together and manage the packs" I asked him how the hell he plans on doing that and he said " we are learning from Idahos mistakes and it will really help with all the elk starving to death every winter and that they were here before and it isn't right to exterminate a entire species from a region." This guy is off he's rocker he's nuts. With people like him working for the wdfg we are all screwed. My parting comment to him was " its to bad my kids won't get to hunt elk like I have." All he said is "washington has a good wolf plan and it won't effect the numbers like I think". I don't think I made a friend with him today damn!

[GoldTip]

I don't think the wolves will be quite as detrimental to Washington as is completely thought.  Here is a picture of an elk my Dad killed last fall in an OTC unit in Montana that is known as one of the biggest predator pits in the state.  It has had a documented wolf pack since 1984, grizzlies, blackies and mtn lions since the dawn of time that never went away.  If Washington manages the wolves correctly (doubtful) it will not be a situation where the sky is falling.  Sorry it's a cell pic, but you get the drift, and I don't remember the last time my old man didn't kill an elk here.  I get what your saying, but the wolves do not have to be the end of the world.

[dirty24d]

We need non native wolf species in washington like we need gregoire in office..    thats my   
Translated: It probably wont kill us but the long term damage will be substancial, and we'll be worse off in the long run for sure.

[rtspring]

I am not willing to take the chance that they "might" be managed correctly. Should of got this BIO'S name and we all could of sent him our comments...

Washington State can't get much right as it is, and I bet ya they  F*** up the wolf programs too..

[BOWHUNTER45]

Nice bull for your Dad... to bad he broke that one eyeguard ....as far as the bio ..he needs to go back to school and study some more 

[twistiron]

This is my  , I think a properly managed wolf population could be good for washington hunting. You dont see wolf packs going into herds and killing the biggest trophy bulls, they will cull the weak sick ones from the herd, leaving it stronger future reprodution. i am sure none of us want to wast our hard erned bull tag on a sickly small one, i want a trophy. well unfortunatly that sickly boy is going to be around next year to knock a cow up and just like with humans weak parents make weak kids, and the cycle continues. Now for the wolves since we have a young population we need a strict management plane. hunters and farmers need to work with the state bio's to deterimine a healthy amount of breeding pairs and issue hunting a trapping permits not based on an alloted season but on amount of wolves taken. at this point i think our best course of action is to accept that we will have wolves and be progressive on assisting in implementing a management plan. lets face it, the last thing we need is a 10 year battle over a plan while the wolves are breeding like rabbits and decimating our game populations. i am getting off my soap box now, lets get some petitions going for a management plan, lets make proper management our goal, its seams to be the safest bet. no one is getting far with eradicating them.

[sebek556]

the wolves are here already, but with washingtons plan we will have more predators then pray with in 10 years, do some research before you soap box about we need wolves or they are not that bad, see for yourself how many elk and deer they kill a year then look at population of elk and deer we have in washington, let Idaho and Montana be a example they have too many wolves now, have had to shut down a few areas for elk already in Idaho and have had to start hunting them with a 1% success rate. at 1% you are not even making a scratch in the population of the wolves. and now are back in court with people trying to stop the hunting of them.hunting of other predators in washington have had the most successful ways to manage them taken away form the hunters, no baiting bears, no dogs with cougars guess what their populations are high now also. and now we want to throw another predator in which also will kill for fun(this has been documented from yellowstone, Idaho, and Montana if you don't believe me just youtube it. open your mind look at what i have asked then see if you can truthfully say we can all get what we want with wolves called for by this plan.
I truly believe that the Wolf plans and lawsuits are the animal lovers way of ending all hunting, if there is no population of game animals we cannot hunt them can we?

[Rhinoron247]

Sick of all the chatter BS.  Washington 100% does not need another breed of predators. Weather they were here before or not.   If in fact our state government had a positive track of management ever, I might have a touch of faith in their ability to manage this.

Idaho 2008, I watched pregnant cow elk give birth to calves on rocky ledges that goats only tread because it was the only place the wolves would not follow.  Then once the calves tried to stand they fell to their deaths.

If you think that wolves only kill the weak and sickly animals you are a bigger part of the problem than the cure.  I wish all the Jack wagons that continue to bitch but are to scared or lazy to deal the situation, be it by a bullet or a pen should have their man cards and hunting licenses revolked.  Just my opinion!   

 

[Alan K]

Need more elk thinned out? Increase the number of tags, increase season length, allow for multiple elk to be harvested where needed, etc. etc.

There are plenty of hunters around who don't fill their tags each year who would be more than willing to go kill an elk.  They just need to give them the time and place and they'll be taken care of.  No need for an unmanageable, uncontrollable predator when we can get the job done ourselves and feed thousands of Washington state residents!

[dscubame]

I appreciate your perspective Goldtip but I prefer no wolves in the state as I have not bought into a upside.

[Machias]

This is my  , I think a properly managed wolf population could be good for washington hunting. You dont see wolf packs going into herds and killing the biggest trophy bulls, they will cull the weak sick ones from the herd, leaving it stronger future reprodution. i am sure none of us want to wast our hard erned bull tag on a sickly small one, i want a trophy. well unfortunatly that sickly boy is going to be around next year to knock a cow up and just like with humans weak parents make weak kids, and the cycle continues. 

Amazing that this line of thought still persist.  This could NOT be further from the truth.  Turn off the Animal Plant channel and check out what wolves do in the real world.   

[Alan K]

This is my  , I think a properly managed wolf population could be good for washington hunting. You dont see wolf packs going into herds and killing the biggest trophy bulls, they will cull the weak sick ones from the herd, leaving it stronger future reprodution. i am sure none of us want to wast our hard erned bull tag on a sickly small one, i want a trophy. well unfortunatly that sickly boy is going to be around next year to knock a cow up and just like with humans weak parents make weak kids, and the cycle continues. 

Amazing that this line of thought still persist.  This could NOT be further from the truth.  Turn off the Animal Plant channel and check out what wolves do in the real world.   

 

That Lolo elk herd was just full of weak and sickly elk. . . 

[wsucowboy]

I doubt the department of fish and wildlife could manage a lemonade stand correctly let alone wolves in this state 

[Alan K]

And you honestly can't hope to manage them without an intense trapping season at the least.  They're damn near as elusive as cougars (when they want to be) and it's just not possible to keep their numbers down by boot hunters. 

There was a reason we resorted to poison to eradicate them back in the day - because we couldn't get it done without it.  The consequences of that are far more reaching than just wolves though, and it will never happen.

[sebek556]

I doubt the department of fish and wildlife could manage a lemonade stand correctly let alone wolves in this state