Incident with wolves has McGinnis Meadows couple on edge

Jan Bourdeau can point out each of her 15 cows and bulls by name. Some are named after old television shows – “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “The Beverly Hillbillies,” “Little House on the Prairie” – while others have Gaelic names that stem from the breed’s Irish heritage. The furry black Dexters are about half the size of common breeds and are also friendlier than other cattle, Bourdeau says. Bourdeau and her husband, Jean, live on 70 acres at McGinnis Meadows, about 45 minutes south of Libby. With the snow relatively low this year, they had let their Dexters roam the pasture, although now the animals are kept in the coral close to the house. Since wolves killed Dolly – their milk cow named after the country music star – last week, the couple freezes in panic every time their dog yips outside. “We sit on pins and needles now,” Jan Bourdeau said. They attribute Dolly’s death to the Fish Trap Pack, the same group of wolves that killed two cattle on a ranch 10 miles from them in the fall of 2008. Bourdeau begins to cry when she describes running out to her cattle unarmed to discover Dolly alive but with most of her hindquarters missing...read more