Theodore Roosevelt and General Custer did it. Now, over 100 years later, a handful of Wisconsin hunters can also claim they’ve successfully hunted wolves with dogs.
The controversial hunt — that’s still being challenged in the state’s court system — began on December 2. Prior to that date, the wolf season was open, but not with the use of hounds. The hunt ended on December 23 when Zone 3’s (northwest Wisconsin) quota of 71 wolves, of the state’s 251 total, was met. Wisconsin has an over winter population estimate of 809 to 834 wolves and is the only state to allow the use of dogs when wolf hunting.
The Controversy
But some interest groups, anti-hunters, and even some active hunters, compare it to dog fighting. This is an uninformed opinion. Unlike in the recent Wisconsin hunt, breeds like the wolfhounds used in Roosevelt’s day often killed the wolves themselves.
But two of the hunters in the photo above, Jay and Jake, had a successful and safe hunt with their hounds this winter. These hunters used the same trailing hounds they hunt bears with. “Our biggest concern over having a bad encounter with a wolf isn’t during the December hunting season, it’s during the bear season, especially if we get near a rendezvous site,” said Jay. Rendezvous sites are locations where wolf pups are left for long periods of time while the adults are hunting. These sites are used from mid June until early fall until the pups are strong enough to keep up with the pack.
“We’re not going to release our dogs on tracks of multiple wolves, we look for one animal. Single wolves aren’t as bold as packs of wolves will be. When we released our dogs, which are basically athletes doing what they’ve been bred to do, we expected them to bay up the wolf just like they do with the bear that doesn’t tree,” Jay continued. Baying up is a term used by hunters when an animal holds its ground as the dogs’ circle it.
“We used Walker hounds. These aren’t fighting dogs, they’re family raised pets. The smaller dogs in the 40-50 pound range were the ones that caught and bayed up the wolves,” added Jake. No more than 6 dogs can be used at one time when chasing a bear or a wolf, although these hunters used only 2 or 3.
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Published: January 29, 2014
Story by: Dave Zeug
On: outdoorlife.com
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