WALDEN, Colo. — Every state with wolves has rules about when the apex predators can be killed. Now, ranchers and some leading state lawmakers want Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) to update its rules.
While CPW reintroduced gray wolves to the state in December 2023, Colorado has had wolves in the North Park area for more than two years. Those wolves wandered down from Wyoming.
Since December 2021, Don Gittleson says those wolves have killed or injured seven of his animals.
"I didn't think it would last this long. I was wrong about that," Gittleson said.
Most recently, a wolf attacked a calf in December.
"The first two weeks I wasn't sure she was going to make it. It doesn't look great, but it looks a heck of a lot better than it used to," he said.
WHEN CAN YOU KILL WOLVES?
Gray wolves are a federally endangered species. The only time a human can kill a wolf is to save a human life; however, in December the federal government gave Colorado additional management authority. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a rule, called a 10(j), that deemed Colorado's wolves an experimental population.
With the 10(j), Colorado Parks and Wildlife could make additional rules about when wolves can be killed. For example, Colorado decided if a rancher catches a wolf in the act of attacking livestock, the rancher can kill the wolf.
Colorado's wolf management plan also says another reason a wolf can be killed is for chronic depredation.
CHRONIC DEPREDATION
Depredation is when a wolf kills or injures an animal that isn't its natural prey. If a wolf kills a dog, for example, that is depredation.
Most states with wolves define chronic depredation. That list includes Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Colorado Parks and Wildlife chose not to define chronic depredation.
"There is not a specific definition of a 'chronically depredating' pack or wolf," the state's wolf management plan reads.
"Allowing discretion for the agency to determine chronic depredation would be more effective to deal with outlying or extreme cases of depredation," Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson Travis Duncan said.
Duncan said CPW also had concerns that picking a number of attacks could be too restrictive, or too loose.
"I think it's very difficult to come up with an objective scientific definition of chronic depredation," University of Montana Professor Mark Hebblewhite told 9NEWS.
Hebblewhite has studied wolves for more than 30 years. His state does not define chronic depredation.
"There's been times in Montana when having one wolf kill one livestock in a pack elicited a response, and that pack was removed. Then it was happy valley for a couple years after, and nobody had to worry about anything," he said.
Removing a wolf pack for one attack cannot happen in states that define chronic depredation. Hebblewhite believes flexibility leads to better wolf management.
"Livestock deaths by wolves is very rare. It's a rare occurrence. And when it does, you should be able to deal with it in whatever practical way you need to," he said.
The issue of chronic depredation in Colorado has already come up twice.
OREGON WOLVES
CPW officials promised they would not take wolves with a history of chronic depredation.
The wolves CPW reintroduced came from Oregon, and CPW took two wolves from Oregon's Five Points Pack.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) confirmed the Five Points Pack has killed three cows since December 2022.
Oregon defines chronic depredation as "At least two confirmed livestock depredations within a consecutive 9-month period." The pack met this definition, and in August, Oregon authorized the removal of wolves from the pack. The USDA Wildlife Service then killed four wolves from the pack.
ODFW has not attributed any depredations to the Five Points Pack since July, and CPW says the pack met the criteria for accepting wolves from the pack.
"The change in pack behavior and the lack of current depredations met CPW criteria for accepting the animals," CPW spokesperson Travis Duncan told 9NEWS.
Because CPW did not define chronic depredation, it's not clear to some lawmakers and ranchers what that criteria is.
NORTH PARK WOLVES
Currently, CPW has GPS-enabled collars on two wolves in the North Park area.
The North Park Stockgrowers Association said wolves were confirmed to kill or injure 20 animals in about two years.
After Gittleson's calf was bitten, and with the 10(j) rule in effect, he asked the state to kill the two wolves.
"You've got an animal with a behavior that you're not going to correct, and it's going to continue to happen over and over again. The only way you're going to stop it is to remove that animal," he said.
CPW Director Jeff Davis rejected Gittleson's request.
"If damage to livestock caused by wolves continues, we will reassess the situation and our determination," he wrote.
CPW said the majority of the depredations happened when there was a pack around North Park with eight wolves. CPW believes six of those wolves are dead, and with two wolves, CPW said the depredations have slowed down.
"It's looking a whole lot like we might have the 10(j) rule, but you're never going to be able to use it," Gittleson said.
If 20 depredations in little more than two years doesn't constitute chronic depredation, Gittleson wants to know what would. He wants the state to have a clear definition because he worries the decision not to remove the North Park wolves was not based on best practices, but politics.
"I think as long as we have the current governor there, that he's going to do whatever he can, so wolves are not killed, period, no matter what," he said.
CONCERNS AT THE STATE HOUSE
Democratic Senator Dylan Roberts chairs the Agriculture and Natural Resources committee. He represents parts of the Western Slope including Jackson County, where Gittleson lives, and Grand County, where CPW first introduced wolves.
Roberts and Speaker of the House Julie McCluskie recently wrote Davis for clarity.
"Right now it's all very vague and confusing as to what CPW's standard is," Roberts told 9NEWS.
To clear up the confusion, he wants CPW to define chronic depredation.
"I would call two years recent and 20 kills or injuries chronic, but if that's not what CPW's understanding is they need to tell us why," he said.
A spokesperson for Governor Polis said CPW officials told him they "Have prioritized defining chronic depredation and evaluating methodologies used in other states."
CPW's director would not do an interview with 9NEWS for this story, but a spokesperson said CPW does not plan to craft a definition at this time.
"CPW may choose to define chronic depredation differently in the future, but as mentioned above, wolves are still establishing in Colorado and the agency feels it is still too early to apply fixed numeric thresholds," CPW spokesperson Travis Duncan told 9NEWS.
"This is something we will take into our own hands if we need to," Roberts said.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Animals and Wildlife