Roadkill
When I introduce myself to a new person, many of them ask me if I’m related to Adrian Wydeven, “the Wolf Guy.” I proudly say that yes, he and I are distant cousins.
Like me, Adrian grew up in Kimberly. After getting his degree in Biology and Wildlife Management, he worked for over 30 years at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. As the current chair of the Timber Wolf Alliance Council, he is recognized as the foremost expert on wolves and has established a recovery and conservation program to protect them.
Adrian is frequently interviewed by the media whenever a story about wolves makes the news. I’m sure someone will be asking him about his thoughts on the proposed changes to Wyoming’s animal cruelty law.
Last month, draft legislation headed to a legislative committee to discuss the legality of intentionally running over wolves with a vehicle.
Wyoming is home to hundreds of wolves, most of which live in or near Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks. A big part of the state’s $4.8 billion-a-year tourism industry, the parks provide legal protection to wolves. Outside the parks, however, wolves are viewed as predators that threaten the livestock industry. Accordingly, killing wolves in most of Wyoming is legal year-round without a license.
In February, Cody Roberts used his snowmobile to run down a wolf until it was disabled. He then taped the wolf’s mouth shut and paraded the animal around at a local bar, taking photos to commemorate the event. Roberts, from a longtime ranching family, eventually killed the wolf.
The incident made national headlines as photos and videos of the event were posted online and quickly went viral. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department investigated and fined Roberts $250 for possessing a live wild animal, which was the only law he violated.
Wyoming’s current animal cruelty law does not apply to predators such as wolves or coyotes. The new proposal would require a person who hits a wolf that survives to immediately use “all reasonable efforts” to kill it. If the driver fails to kill the animal right away they could be charged with felony animal cruelty. The proposal does not specify how the wolf is to be killed, however.
In 2022, Judge Jeffrey White from the U.S. District Court in northern California struck down a Trump-era decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services to remove gray wolves from the list of endangered and threatened wildlife. He ruled that while the wolf populations in the Great Lakes and Northern Rocky Mountains have improved, thanks to efforts from Adrian and his colleagues, the animals are stilled threatened outside those areas.
In Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, though, wolves are not afforded these protections. Wyoming’s policies for killing wolves are the least restrictive of any state where they live, which is not surprising due to the danger they pose to sheep, cattle and game animals. Wolves may be killed without limit in 85% of the state outside the Yellowstone region.
Despite the incident involving Roberts, officials have been reluctant to change the Cowboy State’s lax law when it comes to protecting wolves. James Magagna, executive vice president of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and a lifelong sheep rancher, described Roberts’ actions as “the inappropriate treatment of a live animal.” But, he continued, the isolated incident is “not about predator control. This is not about how we manage wolves in Wyoming.”
When in comes to big, bad wolves in Wyoming, there is definitely lots of huffing and puffing.
Reg P. Wydeven
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