Trapper kills wolf-dog that terrorized B.C. island community
Globe and Mail, May 27, 2011 [here]
Vancouver - The Canadian Press — A wolf-dog that devoured cats, dogs, chickens, sheep, deer, a swan and snatched a gosling from a backyard pond while striking fear into the residents of this bucolic island off the coast of West Vancouver has finally been killed.
It took the handiwork of trapper Allan Starkey to bring a collective sigh of relief to the community that had been under threat by the predator since it was spotted in the bush last December.
Earlier this week, Starkey, 72, lured the animal with deer and sheep meat and scents for wolves and coyotes.
“I waited for her and that was it, game over,” said Mr. Starkey, who shot the animal in the head. … [more]
USDA setting traps after wolves kill horse in Darby
by Irina Cates (KPAX News) May 28, 2011 [here]
DARBY- A Darby rancher is mourning the loss of his horse Jack, after wolves chased him down and killed him.
“It’s hard to believe that two days ago I was giving Jack treats and now he looks like that. Because somebody thought we had to have wolves around here,” says Paul Shirley who owns the Two Feathers Ranch.
Shirley tears up when he talks about his horse Jack. He says he’s heart broken over losing his pet.
“They ran Jack right through the fence and killed him over on the other side,” Shirley said. “The day he was killed was his 13th birthday.” … [more]
Wolves Kill Horse South of Darby
by Bob Sherman, Explore the Bitterroot, May 28, 2011 [here]
Wolves from the Trapper Peak Pack killed a horse on the Two Feathers Ranch south of Darby, Montana sometime between Thursday night and Friday morning. This is the third incident involving wolves in the Bitterroot Valley in the past week. Earlier in the week, wolves killed a calf on the CB Ranch and a lone wolf attacked a family dog west of Hamilton. The wolf that attacked the dog was shot and killed by the dog’s owner. …
The loss of Jack was totally unnecessary. Wolves in this area are over-populated yet Montana has had it’s hands tied due to greedy attorneys and wolf advocacy groups that have a huge financial interest in keeping this issue from becoming resolved. …
So, the story of Jack, the buckskin horse, friend and beloved family member of Paul Shirley and family is that he lost his life because it was more important for wolf activist attorneys and organizations to raid our already bankrupt Federal Government then it was to honor the agreements they made prior to the 1995 reintroduction. … [more]
Judge awards $1.9 million to family of boy killed by bear
By Aaron Falk, Salt Lake Tribune, May 03 2011 [here]
A federal judge on Tuesday awarded $1.95 million to the family of a young boy killed in a 2007 bear attack.
Samuel Ives, 11, was camping in American Fork Canyon with his mother, step-father and brother when he was ripped from his family’s tent and killed by a black bear on the night of June 17, 2007.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball said the U.S. Forest Service was required to warn the family that a dangerous animal was on the loose in canyon after reports that a bear had opened coolers and slashed through a tent in the area earlier that day.
Ives’ family “proved by a preponderance of evidence” that the Forest Service owed them a duty “to warn them about the earlier incident, whether the warning was oral, by posting signs on the gate of Timpooneke Road 56, and/or by roping off the specific campsite,” Kimball wrote.
The boy’s grandmother, Sharon Ives, said Tuesday that her family was “thrilled” with the ruling and happy to put the lawsuit behind them.
“It’s hard enough to lose somebody in a violent manner,” she said, “but to have to keep going through it and reliving it — it’s a nightmare.”
Sharon Ives said Sam’s parents filed the lawsuit “to prevent this from happening to anybody else.”
“Sam was always concerned about everybody else and we thought he would want this,” she said. “Money doesn’t bring him back. We think about him every day.” … [more]