Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Oregon Elk Hunter Shoots Wolf in Self-Defense

Yeah. I hunted second season elk east of there a few years back. No reason it wouldn't be full of wolves.

Total non-issue, unless you are one of the 489.

Back in around 1977/78 my hunting pard and I were out on a coyote calling hunt and were moving to where we wanted to set up. We were in a shallow valley and went I looked up the ridge right on the skyline was a big black dog running along the top of the ridge. I picked it up in my scope and it was not a coyote. My buddy has his binocs on it and said, "I think that's a wolf." "are they legal?" I asked. He didn't know and neither did I. By that time it was long gone out of range. We told the local warden about it and he said there were no wolves in Nevada.

Along about 1981 I drew a Kaibab deer tag and was sitting on a ridge above a water hole that showed lots of deer sign, tracks, droppings etc. As I watched the water hole and surrounding area I saw movement. A couple of large coyotes apparently a mating pair were at the hole to drink and then they played and cavorted around. I'd just about decided to try and shoot both, but something didn't seem right. The more I watched the more I thought something ain't right. I walked off that ridge and later talked to one of the wardens at the check out station. He told me it was probably one of the mating pairs of Mexican Red Wolves released in the area earlier in the year.
PJ

There are too many wolves in Oregon. They need thinned out. If every hunter that seen one shot it, the population would still grow. Wolf packs in every hunt unit in Eastern Oregon. And some of the western units. The deer, elk and all other game are suffering, and ODFW doesn't care. There's big money from the feds, for wolves! Like every other government program, money is what's keeping wolves off Oregons hunted game list!

Back in '92 I was working on a ranch about six miles east of Pryor, Montana. Late in the Fall I was out one morning checking a pasture to see if we'd missed any of the cows we had intended to drive down to the lowers pastures several days before. I was out in the pasture maybe 400 to 500 yards from the tree line on a 4-wheeler when I spotted a large canine trotting along that same tree line. I had a binocular with me and had maybe 15 seconds to look at it. I can't be 100% certain, but it was dark colored and too big to be a coyote by at least half again. I've seen coyotes in many different places and this thing was simply too big to be a coyote. I can't be certain, but I am somewhat sure I'd seen a wolf. That's the only one I have ever seen---if in fact that's what I saw.

Down here in North Texas, there are officially no wolves at all (last I heard) in the LBJ National Grasslands. A fellow I used to work with grew up in that area and spent lots of time out there. He claims he saw Red Wolf (had to have been late 60s or early 70s) and is pretty adamant that it was definitely not coyote.

Statistics, eh?

Level of significance only matters to the organism affected.

Demented? I would think what happened is that a young inexperienced hunter shot a dog that looks somewhat like a wolf. I say she acted in good faith when she shot. And she was 9 miles off the highway and the dog had no business out there. It had been hauled out there by someone that didn't want it and didn't want to kill it himself.

Whoever dumped a dog in the wilderness is mostly to blame. That dog would have likely starved to death spending the winter in the backcountry of Montana.

Visiting my folks in John Day over the years has me driving back and forth from the Boise airport quite often. During the winter trips I’ve seen wolves numerous times along the Brogan flats between Vale and Unity.

It was just a matter of time before they found their way into Grant, Malheur, Harney, and southern Baker County.

That is exactly what happened, but she posted it all over social media. She claimed self defense when it all blew up, but then back reeled that story.

I have no sympathy nor patience for those who dump dogs but I seriously doubt that fatty was 9 miles off the road. She may have been 9 miles off the highway but I seriously doubt she was in a wilderness area. It was somewhere up near Troy or Libby if I remember correctly, down a FS road.

Or a cross bred domestic wolf dog.

North of Kalispell. Some scumbag had dumped a dozen huskies in the woods off a forest road. They all were found and adopted to good homes, except the one in the picture.

I love it when a state sanctioned dumbass warden makes a definitive, “there are no wolves in this state”, statement. That way when you shoot one you don’t have to report it since there are no wolves in the area is the official position.

I learned long ago that the wildlife surveys and volunteer reporting programs are NOT designed to benefit wildlife or conservation but they are intended to further limit and harass hunters with a more focused approach to their harassment. I quit helping my enemies decades back when it became apparent that answering their surveys honestly or reporting how many fish I released and what types of fish I caught truthfully was information that was used to reduce my opportunity, limit my options and raise my costs. If they want truthful and accurate information about my life then they can buy it from me!

During covid I had just bought my fresh and saltwater license when the state decided that fishing outdoors from my own boat was too dangerous since covid was afoot…..I haven’t seen so little pressure during the height of the run in as long as I can remember. Fishing was great during covid, or so I hear. 😂

My Dads ranch was outside of Huntington Oregon. He was talking to a fish & game officer one day near the ranch. Told him he seen a wolf, no we dont have any wolves here yet, you seen a coyote. Bullchit dad said. Back n forth till dad said no fn problem next time I see him, I will kill him. No no you can’t do that. He finally came clean that it was a wolf and had came from Idaho and was collared. That wolf ended up in California and came up missing the last I looked more than a few years ago now

Only… Only happens every other week…

Wondering how many attacks and attempted attacks went unreported. If I killed an animal attempting to attack me I wouldn't report it.

FIXT

Boom. NPI

About 15 years ago I saw a well reported group of 3 big collard woolves a few times in the BLM/ranchlands about 15 miles west of Jal, NM while quail, deer or coyote hunting. Oilfield folks had been reporting them for some time.

They were very skittish and I never saw them closer than about 800 yards and were always moving,too much to get a ....uh good chance at. Animal cops denied ever having released them in SE NM.

After several years and when the few small bunches of deer and antelope in the area had disappeared so did the devil woolves.

I also had a patient who worked in the oil field and had a small ranch he raised cattle on who has seen a couple of them south of Monahans a few times.

Since there officially aren't any in this country could a guy axxidentally kill one if he thought it was a huge coyote?

A coyote hunter shot a wolf near Beaver, Utah back in 2015. He thought he shot a coyote until he got close enough to tell what it was and he self reported it. Last I heard was that he would not be prosecuted.

The she-wolf was collared in Wyoming and had travelled to Arizona before retuning to Utah and her meeting with the coyote shooter. I would imagine that travelling alone like that she had to have survived on easy to kill prey such as sheep and whatever road kill she could find.

I cant think of a single reason not to shoot a wolf