Minnesota Wolves
There are now an astonishing 3,500 wolves in Minnesota. That is more than 10 times the population in 1974, when wolves became a federally protected animal that may not be hunted or trapped.
Several attempts have been made by the USFWS to delist Minnesota wolves, but Federal judges have enjoined delisting in response to lawsuits filed by the Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS) [here].
It is widely recognized that Minnesota has too many wolves and they are not in danger of going extinct. According to the Minn DNR [here]:
“Everybody’s recognized that wolves have recovered in MN,” explains Dan Stark, Minnesota’s DNR Wolf Expert.
Everybody, that is, but HSUS:
Minnesota DNR wolf experts say conflicts like these could be better managed if wolves were taken off the Federal Endangered Species List and managed by the State.
The DNR successfully implemented its own plan for state wolf management during a span of 18 months beginning in 2007. However, several lawsuits from animal protection groups put the wolf back on the list in 2008. …
However, animal protection groups say Minnesota’s plan is misguided.
According to Howard Goldman, Director of the Minnesota Humane Society “The answer is pretty straightforward: the wolves have not recovered.”
How many wolves in Minnesota?
The DNR calculates Minnesota has up to 3,500 wolves, including more than 100 wolf packs. Populations in Michigan and Wisconsin’s are not as strong with only about 600 hundred wolves each.
Curiously, Minnesota moose and deer populations have crashed. The Minn DNR blames everything but wolves. It’s a moose mystery [here]. But don’t worry, they’ll bounce back [here].
The Humane Society? I bet you thought they were all about humane treatment of pets. Not hardly. In Minnesota wolves eat pets like candy [here]:
For a growing number of people living close to wilderness areas, dangerous wolf encounters and pets being lost to wolves, are an increasing cause of concern.
These reports, plus a recent situation in which a woman in Alaska was killed by a wolf pack, are contributing to mounting fear.
“Can you let your little kids play in your yard? I certainly wouldn’t,” said Gary Mitchell of Ely.
Many Ely residents are on full alert, keeping a close eye on their children as they play outside; others are thinking twice before letting pets run free.
Ely authorities confirm more than five dogs have been killed and eaten by wolves in the last three months.
But is it the wolves fault that they eat pets and stalk children? Of course not. It’s the pet owners’ fault and the parents’ fault, according to the wolf “experts”:
One of those beloved pets belonged to Cheryl Anderson.
“It appears a second after she walked into the woods, most likely by the time I got back to the house, she was being ripped apart,” she said.
Anderson’s Saint Bernard, Missy, ran off as the pair was walking near Highway 169.
Missy’s story is one of many but some wolf experts say often the pet owners are to blame. …
“They don’t see them as we see them see as a family pet. They see them as another wolf–like animal that might want to steal their food. So they want to eliminate their competition,” said Jess Edberg of the International Wolf Center in Ely [here].
It’s the pet owners’ fault if their dog gets eaten by one of Minnesota’s 3,500 wolves. Blame the victims! And guess who is on the Board of Directors of the International Wolf Center? Why it’s our old pal L. David Mech, senior research scientist for the U.S. Department of the Interior’s U.S. Geological Survey and the founder of the International Wolf Center [here].
In case you’re interested, the multi-million dollar International Wolf Center is supported by, among others:
Alliant Energy Foundation
Ameriprise Financial
Andrews Family Foundation
Animal Charities of America
Bank of America
The James Ford Bell Foundation
The Benevolink Foundation
CNA Foundation
Community Solutions Fund
Corning Incorporated Foundation
Entegris through the Minnesota Foundation
Faegre & Benson
GE Foundation
General Mills Foundation
Gerson Bakar Foundation
Hawksglen Foundation c/o Mellon Financial
IBM International Foundation
The Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland
Kimberly-Clark Foundation, Inc.
Microsoft Matching Gifts Program
Midland National Life Insurance Company
Dorothy D. and Joseph A. Moller Foundation
New York Times Company Foundation
Nuveen Investments
Oce North America, Inc.
Casey T. O’Neil Foundation
Pfizer Foundation Matching Gifts Program
Philip Morris Companies, Inc.
The Prudential Foundation
St. Paul Foundation
Harold W. Sweatt Foundation
Terra Et Educare Foundation
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation
United Way - Orange County
Verizon Foundation
Washington Mutual Matching Gift Program
So Bank of America, Microsoft, Prudential, the New York Times, Washington Mutual, Verizon, and United Way can’t get enough of those wolves. Save the wolves, eat the pets, threaten the children. Thank you, giant corporations.
By the way, Washington Mutual went belly up in 2008. Technically the proper phrase is “seized by the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) and placed into receivership in the largest bank failure in American financial history” [here].
Wolves will be wolves!
By the way, the US Senators from Minnesota are Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, noted extreme liberal clowns.
Wolves in Minnesota. Stranger than fiction!
