Hound-bear 'training' chase also harasses wolves

I recently took note of the beginning of bear hunting 'training' for off-leash hound dogs released by their owners to charge after bears right through known wolf denning and gathering spots.

The result last years - - dozens of hounds killed by the stronger, bigger and more territorial wolves. And the WI DNR pays owners $2,500 for each dog literally thrown to the wolves in an only-in-Wisconsin public reimbursement program.

Glad to post this item by Rachel Tilseth and the Wolves of Douglas County Wisconsin blog, too:

Hunters using dogs in pursuit of bear in the norths woods of Wisconsin run their hounds right through wolf rendezvous sites (where wolf pups are kept).  Wolf pups are only about three months old when hunters begin running their dogs on bear. They run hounds through known wolf caution areas; even though WDNR sends out alerts to avoid those areas. In 1985 Wisconsin started a wolf depredation program.  Wolf depredation program pays $2,500.00 per hunting dog. In 2016 thirty-seven bear hunting dogs were killed in the pursuit of bear. Several bear hunters received multiple wolf depredation program payments, and even ones with criminal charges; such as poaching a black bear. 

That’s not even the worst of it. 

In 2015 Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association (WBA) worked at loosening regulations for bear hunters using dogs in pursuit of bear. It’s a mystery as to just how many dogs in pursuit of bear are running through the woods during training & hunting. Why is this a mystery? Because a change in regulations took place that removed the Class B bear training & hunting license. Because of that change it’s impossible to know just how many dogs in pursuit of bear are running through the woods. It’s all carefully-crafted propaganda to make the wolf look bad.