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Email: timberwolfinfonetwork@gmail.com

WA: Local wildlife officials reach out to authorities amid death threats

Bre Clark , KREM

FERRY COUNTY, Wash. – State wildlife officials said Tuesday they are getting death threats after announcing plans to kill an entire wolf pack in Ferry County.

Officials with the local office of the Department of Fish and Wildlife said the threats have come through social media and their Team Spokane email. While they did not disclose what the threats said, they said they are serious enough to involve the authorities.

Roger Dobson from the Protect The Wolves Sanctuary said there is a better way to get wildlife officials to change their minds about the Profanity wolf pack

“I don’t condone the death threats at all,” he said. “We’re advocating for them in a way that is never before been done by any wildlife advocated. They don’t have the tools available. They don’t have the treaty rights; they don’t have the religious rights.”

Washington policy states that four or more confirmed wolf attacks within a year or six or more within two consecutive years is grounds for lethal action.

Officials believe the Profanity pack was responsible for attacking more than a dozen cattle in six weeks.

Dobson said instead of killing an entire pack, the wolves should be placed on tribal lands.

“Our wolves are quite simple one part of the circle of life,” he said,” we’re offering them a Native American religious sanctuary where they can relocate those problem woes.”

Wildlife officials said the lethal policy took lengthy negotiation and is important in keeping trust between ranchers, conservationists, and other stakeholders.

Monday, the Washington Cattleman’s Association released a statement saying the lethal protocol is important and “helps maintain a higher social acceptance,” and that “removal of these problem wolves benefits the rest of Washington’s wolf population.”

Many in opposition of this decision have criticized ranchers for not following practices that deter wolves from cattle. Wildlife officials said they have made those efforts, but eventually they failed.

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