EAGLE -- At least two wolves killed a cow this week, but that alone isn't necessarily unusual say wildlife authorities. It is where the attack happened that is causing concern. Ranchers found the cow dead pretty close to Eagle, around five miles north of the city.
Idaho Wildlife Services says wolves most commonly kill livestock in summer months. The number of wolf killings slows in the fall, and now officials say killings have picked up in recent weeks around the state.
'Definitely not a coyote'
"We knew it was going to happen sooner or later," Ranch manager Jerry Thompson said.
Thompson has had livestock killed by wolves before but never on his land north of Eagle.
"Tuesday morning we went to feed the cows. About a mile up from the main road, we saw a congregation of cows around another cow and determined the cow was dead, from a distance," Thompson said.
Thompson got a closer look and found one of his pregnant cows had been killed.
"It was definitely not a coyote deal or a dead cow. The wolves had attacked it, got it down, cut its throat wide open. [The cow] bled out, died right there," Thompson said.
Location of wolves raises concern
Idaho Wildlife Services investigates possible cases of wolf attacks. An investigator tries to get out to calls within 24 hours of a reported killing.
"We went out and looked at it, and skinned the animal and determined that yes, in fact it was killed by at least two wolves," Idaho Wildlife Services Acting Director Todd Grimm said.
For investigators, where the attack happened is the main concern.
"Nothing good can happen where they're at. If they were up in the mountains around Idaho City, we'd be less concerned about it," Grimm said. "Anywhere you've got more human activity, you've got more livestock and more animals. If you get wolves in an area like that, you're almost bound to have problems."
Wolves remain elusive to investigators
Wildlife Services is searching for the wolves by air. So far, they've been unsuccessful. Grimm says it's easier to find the wolves when there's snow on the ground, but their coat blends in with the current landscape.
"If we can find them, in this particular case, we're going to kill them," Grimm said.
Thompson also wants the wolves caught before he loses any more animals and the profit they bring.
"We're out a thousand dollars for the cow, plus the cow was young. She could have had up to five, six more cows in her lifetime. We lost a lot of money right there Tuesday morning," Thompson said.
Keeping livestock and pets safe from wolves
Wildlife Services says they do not consider this a human safety risk as attacks on people are very rare. Grimm said in the past ten years, only two people have been killed by wolves in North America. In those cases, Grimm says the wolves were starving, which doesn't appear to be the case here.
Grimm advises if you have livestock in the area to keep a closer eye on them. Cattle and sheep are at the greatest risk; horses are usually able to defend themselves.
Also, many people run or hike in that area with dogs. Grimm advises if you take pets out there, don't let them run too far from you.
Renewed efforts to legalize Idaho wolf hunting
In Washington D.C., legislators are renewing their efforts to legalize gray wolf hunting to cut the growing population. Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg introduced two bills Wednesday to delist the gray wolf from the endangered species list.
The first bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Mike Simpson and Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho, would only apply to wolves in Montana and Idaho. The second is co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of lawmakers from 12 states and would lift protections on wolves nationwide.
Similar legislation introduced last Congress failed to advance. Separately, Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana prodded the Interior Department to reconsider its denial last year of a wolf hunt sought by the state.
