Livestock Loss and Wolf Conflict
For direct livestock losses in California, producers must promptly report suspected wolf attacks to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Law Enforcement Dispatch: (916) 358-1312.
Once a loss determination has been made, confirmed or probable wolf-caused livestock losses are eligible for financial reimbursement. Applications are available here: https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Gray-Wolf/Grants
If you have questions about potential conflict or wolf-livestock depredation, you are encouraged to contact:
Nate Libal, Northern Region – California Department of Fish and Wildlife: (530) 260-3118 (Del Norte, Humboldt, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Shasta, Siskiyou, and Tehama Counties)
Libby Ehlers, PhD, North Central Region – California Department of Fish and Wildlife: (916) 336-2107 (Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lake, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sutter, and Yuba Counties)
Christopher DeTar, Central Region – California Department of Fish and Wildlife: (559) 580-3207 (Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Tuolumne Counties)
Bill Watkins, USDA-Wildlife Services (Nonlethal Specialist): (530) 616-5593
Wolf Deterrent Tools and Techniques
Various resources exist to address vulnerabilities of livestock to predators. These include practices such as stockmanship and maintenance of herd health as well as tools or practices that can be used temporarily to deter wolves.
Tools
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has compiled a list of tools and resources available in California:https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=227732&inline
The CDFW map linked below provides the last known location of satellite collared wolves within California to help livestock producers mitigate wolf-livestock conflict. Highlighted hexagons on the map represent the most recent locations from the collars themselves. Satellite collars do not provide real-time location information, and not all wolves or wolf packs have satellite collars. https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Gray-Wolf/Location-Map
People and Carnivores of Bozeman Montana have been assisting with predator deterrence in Montana for over 30 years. From wolves to grizzlies, they have assembled a tool kit of resources for agricultural producers sharing the land with predators. https://peopleandcarnivores.org/prevention-tools
Stockmanship
Stockmanship is connected to deterrence of predators by allowing producers to understand and identify vulnerabilities specific to their stock. Coupled with understanding wolf hunting behaviors, ranchers can implement stock handling techniques that can greatly reduce the vulnerability of their herds. Below are links to organizations providing support to ranchers related to stockmanship for reduction of predator conflict.
Many of the modern stockmanship techniques being implemented by others are from the late Bud Williams. Learn more about Bud here: https://stockmanship.com
Working Circle is an organization that provides expert clinics and on-ranch assessments by ranchers who have worked successfully in wolf territory. They provide these services free of charge to ranchers. https://www.workingcircle.org/
Mark L. Coats is a rancher who’s worked on Game Refuges, BLM, USFS permits and Ranches for over fifty years. He started his program of Rancher Predator awareness when the famous Wolf OR7 crossed his ranch and entered California in 2011. His concern was that he already had too many losses to predators, so the original effort was to deter wolves. What he found was in the process of deterring wolves, he also made significant headway in deterring mountain lions, black bears and coyotes along with wolves. He has produced several publications and offers free information on his website. https://rancherpredatorawareness.com/
Teacher Tools
“Think Like a Wolf” Academy
Conservation Nation produced “Think Like a Wolf“, a set of lesson plan materials focused on some of Yellowstone’s wolves narrated by Taylor Rabe and Alma “Rosie” Sanchez and additional commentary provided by none other than Rick McIntyre. These materials are FREE for educators to download for use in their classrooms.
Lesson plan, supplemental materials, games, and quizzes can be obtained from Conservation Nation’s website:https://conservationnation.org/our-work/education/conservation-nation-academy/lessons/think-like-a-wolf/
California Wolf Foundation Activity Sheets
Download our FREE coloring pages and activity sheets for a fun print-at-home activity.
California Wolf Foundation 