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WDFW approves killing of Leadpoint pack wolves following depredation incidents

WDFW said it approved the killing of the two wolves from the northeast Washington wolf pack in response to a number of depredations of cattle in Stevens County.

Credit: AP

FILE - In this undated photo released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows a dispersing wolf from the Oregon Pack OR-54. The past two years have seen a big increase in wolf poaching cases in the Northwest. Four dead wolves were discovered in the northeastern corner of Washington state in February 2022. That followed the poisoning of eight wolves in eastern Oregon in 2021, along with the poaching of a total of eight wolves in Idaho last year. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via AP, File)

STEVENS COUNTY, Wash. — The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) said director Kelly Susewind has approved the killing of up to two adult wolves from the Leadpoint wolf pack.

According to a press release, WDFW said Susewind approved the killing of the two wolves from the northeast Washington wolf pack in response to a number of depredations of cattle in Stevens County.

WDFW said it has documented three confirmed and one probable wolf depredation events that led to two dead and two injured livestock since June 28. WDFW also said all of these events were attributed to the Leadpoint wolfpack.

WDFW said more than two proactive deterrence measures and responsive deterrence measures were implemented by the affected livestock producer before these events happened. WDFW said this included range riding, removing injured cattle from the range, carcass sanitation, thinning trees which provided cover for wolves and human presence.

WDFW's lethal removal operations will be in effect through Monday, August 19 before it enters into an evaluation period. WDFW also said operations may be extended if more wolf depredations are documented.