Reply #6: I think that your real concern is for domestic livestock, [View All]

Since Montana has the second largest elk herd in the US, one that outnumbers the actual humans that live in that state. I don't think that predation by wolves is making a huge impact.

But Montana ranchers and farmers, yeah, they hate wolves with a passion. But something they need to consider, the wolf was there first, not them, and frankly rather than conquering nature, man needs to learn how to live with it.

And the funny thing is, folks up in Montana get monetary compensation, our tax money, for the livestock that wolves kill. Even funnier, the livestock killed by wolves isn't that much in the greater scope of things, about thirty head of cattle a year, about fifty sheep a year.

But the reality is that ranchers and farmers simply hate wolves, damn near hunted them out of existence, and can't stand the fact that this noble species is actually trying to make a comeback in the states. Well, you know what, ranchers and farmers in Montana and elsewhere can simply go shove it. We need wolves in this country. The wolf once ranged throughout most of the US, and since its disappearance, deer have become a huge problem, causing wrecks, spreading disease, etc. We need the wolves to keep them in check.

Frankly, given the hyperventilating hysteria that has been put out there by farmers and ranchers in Montana, they are the last source I would consult concerning what to do about wolves. Oh, and before you get all on your high horse about being a farmer having to live with nature, etc., you aren't the only one, not in Montana, not in the United States. There are millions of us around the country and we don't go out and kill that which we either find inconvenient or outright hate, we learn to live with it and adapt. Perhaps you should do the same.