Colorado Ranchers Clash with State Wildlife Agency Over Wolf Attacks
As wolf depredations on livestock continue, tensions rise between Colorado Parks and Wildlife and ranchers, who threaten to limit state access to their lands.
- Recent wolf attacks on livestock in Colorado have escalated tensions between ranchers and Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), with ranchers threatening to restrict state access to their lands.
- CPW insists it is not to blame for the wolf depredations, attributing its actions to legal mandates and urging cooperation, despite rancher frustrations over non-lethal deterrent inefficacy.
- The introduction of wolves from packs known for livestock attacks has raised concerns, with two recent kills in Grand and Jackson Counties reigniting debates over CPW's responsibility and the effectiveness of its wildlife management strategies.
- Ranchers demand a clear definition of chronic depredation to potentially use lethal methods against wolves, a request CPW has delayed, further straining relations.
- The situation could jeopardize CPW's conservation efforts reliant on private landowner cooperation, as ranchers consider locking gates to CPW and the public in response to the agency's handling of wolf reintroduction and communication failures.
Denver Gazette 
The Denver Post 