Ron Douglas wants the wolf that attacked his dog in Hitacu last week to be killed.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檇 like to see the culprit shot and the other wolves to see it, to make an example,B次元官网网址� Douglas told the Westerly B次元官网网址 on May 7. B次元官网网址淲e have small kids here and whoB次元官网网址檚 to say [if] they are next? They are smaller than Zeus.B次元官网网址�
He said his adult children Amy and Devon woke up around 6 a.m. on May 1 to the sounds of what they initially thought was two dogs fighting but, when they went outside, they discovered the family dog Zeus, who Douglas described as a mastiff-shepherd cross, B次元官网网址渉ad been dragged out of his hiding spot under his house.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淒evon came out of his tent to find Zeus fighting the wolf and [Zeus] had [the wolf] pinned by the throat,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲hen the wolf saw him, they both looked up and the wolf ran off.B次元官网网址�
He said Zeus suffered B次元官网网址渕any cuts and gashesB次元官网网址� in the encounter and was rushed to an emergency vet in Nanaimo to receive stitches. He said Zeus is recovering well and suggested the dogB次元官网网址檚 spiked collar may have saved its life.
B次元官网网址淭he wolf tried to go for his neck,B次元官网网址� he said.
Douglas said he has lived in Hitacu for about six years and believes wolves are becoming more habituated in the Ucluelet First Nation community.
B次元官网网址淭he wolves are here very often as dogs are barking nightly,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭here are more and more sightingsB次元官网网址ery bold to attack a full-sized dog.B次元官网网址�
Sgt. Stuart Bates of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service told the Westerly B次元官网网址 that the COS does not plan to kill the wolf and suggested the May 1 attack should serve as a reminder to all West Coast residents that they share a landscape with predators.
B次元官网网址淲olves will not tolerate dogs in their territory,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚n particular here, wolves have simply learned to see dogs as competition and they also see them as a food source.B次元官网网址�
Two habituated wolves were killed on the West Coast in 2017. One by the COS in Ucluelet and the other by Pacific Rim National Park Reserve personnel near Florencia Bay. The latter incident involved a wolf that had attacked a leashed dog next to its owner.
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Bates said last weekB次元官网网址檚 attack does not necessarily reflect concerning wolf activity because Zeus had been alone outside. He said the COS does not plan to kill the wolf, unless further reports of escalating behaviour come in.
B次元官网网址淚f thereB次元官网网址檚 a person standing there and the wolfB次元官网网址檚 totally ignoring people, thatB次元官网网址檚 a different ballgameB次元官网网址t this point, itB次元官网网址檚 not what we call human-habituated,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淲e want to make sure weB次元官网网址檝e taken all the necessary steps to prevent this conflict from reoccurring, because if whatever got the wolf in trouble in the first place isnB次元官网网址檛 corrected, another one will simply take its place. If everyone in Ucluelet and Tofino had their dogs running around willy-nilly and I shot a wolf every time one killed a dog, IB次元官网网址檇 run out of bullets before I ran out of wolvesB次元官网网址tB次元官网网址檚 like garbage for bears, as long as the attractants are there, in this case itB次元官网网址檚 dogs, the wolves will just keep doing it.B次元官网网址�
He encourages residents to report any wolf encounters to the COS at 1-877-952-7277 and added that descriptions or photos of the wolf can help determine next steps.
B次元官网网址淲olves are usually pretty distinctive and, if we have to, we will remove a wolf that starts to show aggressive or predatory behaviour against people,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淏ut, weB次元官网网址檇 need enough reports to determine that weB次元官网网址檙e getting the right wolf.B次元官网网址�
In the wake of the May 1 attack, circulated tips on how to avoid conflicts with wildlife through its social media channels.
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andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
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