Video for the wolf huggers

[asl20bball]

Nothing hard to watch about it.  I found it fascinating.  That is how nature works.  As hunters we should understand this and not use it as an argument against wolves.  Remember it often takes more than 10 minutes to die from a poor shot or a good shot where things just went wrong.

Interesting take and I do agree with you for the most part. however, ironically I don't find it hard to watch a wolf kill a cow yet it is hard for me to watch when it is a calf for some reason.

[JLS]

wow..that's a tough one to watch.
the wolves seek the weak out which many times means the young which puts the long term health and sustainability of the animals (elk, moose, deer, etc) in question.  a perfect illustration that "pro-wolf" = anti animal and wild life conservationist.

If wolves ate themselves out of house and home, and populations would not be sustainable, then how were there any elk, bison, and deer left after many years of wolves?

[dreamunelk]

Nothing hard to watch about it.  I found it fascinating.  That is how nature works.  As hunters we should understand this and not use it as an argument against wolves.  Remember it often takes more than 10 minutes to die from a poor shot or a good shot where things just went wrong.

Interesting take and I do agree with you for the most part. however, ironically I don't find it hard to watch a wolf kill a cow yet it is hard for me to watch when it is a calf for some reason.

True, I have to admit being a little on the soft side for the youngsters.  I think that is just the inner parent in all of use.  Something that makes us humans a little different.  No other critter than us do I know about that regular cares about another, even a different species, young.  Even the most blood thirsty hunter will often try to save a baby robin.

[bearpaw]

wow..that's a tough one to watch.
the wolves seek the weak out which many times means the young which puts the long term health and sustainability of the animals (elk, moose, deer, etc) in question.  a perfect illustration that "pro-wolf" = anti animal and wild life conservationist.

If wolves ate themselves out of house and home, and populations would not be sustainable, then how were there any elk, bison, and deer left after many years of wolves?

There weren't many animals in the mountains, read about Lewis & Clark crossing the Rockies.

[KFhunter]

The wolf huggers not only wouldn't have a problem with this, they'd love it. One more animal hunters don't get to take. Wolf lovers aren't wolf lovers at all. They're hunter haters. That's their goal, that's their badge, that's what they are.

I know a wolf hugger, she got all the stickers and adopt a wolf stuffed toys. 
She has grand kids and every year for Christmas she adopts a wolf in the kids' name.


There just isn't much more of a wolf hugger than this granny.


 

She's also pro hunting, shot deer herself and coyotes and cougars but not anymore.  She invited me to shoot a bear off her property.

but you'd better not be talking about shooting no wolf or she'll wig out. 



weird huh

[Buckblaster]

Lewis and Clark about starved to death in the Rockies.  Most of the big game was on the plains being chased by indians, grizzlies and wolves.

[JLS]

wow..that's a tough one to watch.
the wolves seek the weak out which many times means the young which puts the long term health and sustainability of the animals (elk, moose, deer, etc) in question.  a perfect illustration that "pro-wolf" = anti animal and wild life conservationist.

If wolves ate themselves out of house and home, and populations would not be sustainable, then how were there any elk, bison, and deer left after many years of wolves?

There weren't many animals in the mountains, read about Lewis & Clark crossing the Rockies.

I've read it.

[BOWHUNTER45]

All this does is peeees me off ....The law of man is predator against predator ....If I see anything like this it will not be good for the wolf .....SORRY BUT THAT IS THE WAY IT IS !

[James]

Nothing hard to watch about it.  I found it fascinating.  That is how nature works.  As hunters we should understand this and not use it as an argument against wolves.  Remember it often takes more than 10 minutes to die from a poor shot or a good shot where things just went wrong.

Same here, it’s no different than any other predator/prey situation that plays out millions of times a day. The old, weak, sick, dyeing, and young getting eaten; high school biology and the food chain at its best.    I am far from a wolf hugger, but it seems really weird to get upset that predators kill animals and eat them.

I grew up watching the nature channel, so this just seems par for the course.

[huntrights]

Something that many people just don’t seem to understand:  Wildlife management is managing people, wildlife, and habitat.  Habitat has a carrying capacity for the various types of wildlife including the game animals we hunt.  We are allowed to hunt game animals that fall into the category of “surplus” of game for a particular habitat; that’s why the number of permits available change all the time.  It depends on the carrying capacity of the habitat and how much surplus game there is projected to be in that habitat each year.

Now, bring in the wolves.  Wolves are large apex predators that know nothing about carrying capacity of a habitat or what the ideal game population is for that habitat; they will kill their prey whenever and wherever they decide to do so.  Licenses, permits, or bag limits do not control the choices wolves make; they just kill and eat as long as the prey is there.  What will happen to the number of surplus game animals in a particular habitat each year if wolves are allowed to expand their numbers without control?  What will happen to hunting opportunities; the ability to harvest wild game to bring to the dinner table?  What happens when the preferred prey (i.e. elk, deer, moose) of wolves runs low; what prey will the wolves pursue?

[Tradbowhunter]

This is nature. This is how pack predators hunt. You think this is sick? This is the REAL world. I'm not anti or pro wolf, but posting a video like this targeting people who like wolves is acting out of complete and blatant ignorance for the real, natural world. Stay in your gated two story home subdivision if you don't like it, but just because you don't have to participate in the survival of the fittest the way the rest of the real world does gives you no grounds for condemning a predator for being a predator. THAT is sick. It's never fun to watch something young die, but such is the way of things. Ever eaten veal? Not much difference according to your statement, perhaps there should be a season opened up where they sell human tags.... 

[huntrights]

Take a look a look the human population in the United States in relatively recent history:

The United States population in 1789 was close to 4 million (not including the Native American population).  Let’s consider Native American population the baseline since no one knows what the population may have been before Columbus.

Washington State has a population of about 7 million people.

The United States now has a population over 315 million people.

When the buffalo roamed free with the elk, deer, moose, antelope, and indigenous people of the continent, the wolves were here as well.  The United States has an area of nearly 4 million square miles; that’s a lot of space to roam.  Hundreds, thousands, or millions of years ago, a natural balance between predator and prey had the space and time to occur through long term natural cycles.  Those conditions and those days do not exist anymore.  We now have over 315 million people in the United States along with huge cities, small towns, highways, cattle ranches, sheep ranches, farms, etc.  Yes, it is very natural for wolves to kill a moose calf; it is also very natural for them to kill other animals they might consider edible (i.e. cattle, sheep, dogs, etc.).  Since the human population is what it is along with the associated infrastructure, we must manage our wildlife, including wolves, through sound and unbiased science.  Wildlife management must take into account the conditions we all live in today.  Humans are part of the ecosystem; we are not spectators observing predator-prey interactions through a looking glass.

[Tradbowhunter]

 

I agree with you, and I'm all for the idea of good wildlife management. Sadly, what I see and hear is far from that. Most people that say things like "wolf hugger" seem to display the intelligence of a rock, and I would be curious to hear what their idea of management actually is, but "death to ____" is not a term that is used in proper management. There is also a huge difference between wolves taking prey in nature and a dog or cattle from your backyard or property. There are two completely separate arguments here that should never be mixed. Protect your home and your property, but do not mistake that as having the right to condemn an animal for being a predator just because it makes some of you squeamish. We have become desensitised as a society and no longer have a good idea of what "Real" is when applied to the world around us. The natural world is harsh. Using videos like this to stir up emotion and invoke feelings of malice towards an animal for simply doing what a predator does is hanusly asinine. Of course, this is just my opinion, I could be wrong 

Cheers

[huntrights]

Videos such as the one at the beginning of this thread expose what actually takes places in wild.  This is example of what wolves do.  Much of the issue in the wolf debate is the ignorance of the general population.  Anti-hunting and animal-rights organizations along with a supportive media have turned wolves into icons with names, families, and wagging tails just like our pet dogs at home.  Wolves are not like our pet dogs at home.  Wolves are large apex predators that will have a definite impact on the ungulate wildlife populations we have in our country.  Over 100 years of successful wildlife management is the reason we have some of the most envied ungulate wildlife populations in the world.  If wolves are not responsibly controlled from the start, they will affect those ungulate populations and they will have negative interactions with domestic animals and humans.  There are already many examples of this fact in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Alaska, and Canada.

Wildlife management directed by emotional public outbursts, propaganda, or the ballot box will undermine any valid scientific foundation that should be applied to the process.  People need to be educated with facts to help support wildlife management through the application of sound and unbiased science.  There will always be “wolf-lovers” and “wolf-haters” that will express their views, but we are very fortunate to live in a country with a Bill of Rights (i.e. the 1st Amendment in this case) in which they can do that.  However, we should all try to bring the extremes back to the facts; although, that can be difficult when your cattle, sheep, or dogs are killed, maimed, or otherwise negatively affected by wolves and you feel powerless to take protective action because of the wolves' protected status.  On the other side, it is very difficult to get through to people that want the wolf protected regardless of the damage they do, or negative impact they may have on other wildlife populations (i.e. ungulates); these people tend to live in areas completely removed from the impact of wolves (i.e. urban areas). 

These are the issues that are the subject of many current legislative battles. 

[Tradbowhunter]

Well spoken, my friend. The hardest thing to accept is that most likely it's the extremist's that will in the end win the ballot, whichever side that may be. I personally can't stand either side whether it be anti-predator or animal rights activists. Both act as zealots with no real actual factual information to back up their extremely ignorant opinion. I feel for ranchers and farmers that are being told they can't take action against an animal that is taking their livestock, that must be frustrating. Unfortunately for the apparently small percentage of responsible folk left in the world, if the majority of the general public were able to take matters into our own hands, there probably wouldn't be much left to hunt. Management as well as conservation is key.