Idaho Senator: Ease Restrictions on Wolf Retaliation

Sen. Jeff Siddoway has had enough of wolves. On Thursday, the Senate Agriculture Committee voted to print a bill from the Terreton Republican that would expand ranchers’ ability to hunt wolves that kill their livestock. Siddoway cited his own experiences with battling wolves. In recent years, the eastern Idaho sheep rancher estimated he had experienced losses of between $30,000 and $50,000 because of wolves, even with a restitution program in place. “This bill is a direct result of those losses,” he said. The legislation would allow ranchers to use a variety of currently prohibited tactics to take out problem wolves within 36 hours of the discovery of a wolf kill. It would allow aerial hunts, along with the use of artificial light and live bait...more