When Do Wolves Become Dangerous To Humans?
January 28, 2008
Many of you have probably read several times or perhaps even heard me on my radio show talk about George Dovel and his ongoing efforts to reach people and educate them with facts about wildlife, etc. through his print publication, “The Outdoorsman”. (If you would like to subscribe to Mr. Dovel’s publication, you can write to this address: The Outdoorsman, P.O. Box 155, Horseshoe Bend, Idaho, 83629)
In the latest issue of the Outdoorsman, Dovel presents to his readers some background history on how our media, often times influenced by fish and game personnel and wildlife biologists, react to and present written information about human and wolf encounters. As part of Dovel’s presentation, he includes a great deal of information that he received from one of our very renowned wolf experts.
Dr. Valerius Geist, a Professor Emeritus of Environmental Science at the University of Calgary, has years of studies in wildlife, including wolves and personal encounters with them. He is recognized by many as one of the leading authorities on wolves and wolf habits.
If you will recall back in November, I reported that a coroner’s inquest had made a determination that Kenton Carnegie, a 22-year old college student had been attacked and killed by wolves in a remote area of Northern Saskatchewan, Canada. Dr. Geist and retired Alaska wolf expert Mark McNay, were asked to represent the family of Kenton Carnegie during the inquest.
Dr. Geist points out that there is an obvious reason why wolf attacks on humans go unreported or are declared to be inconclusive as to the cause of death. Those attacks that result in death occur almost entirely when a person is alone, no one to assist in fighting off the wolves and nobody to witness what happens.
Even in Carnegie’s situation, investigators readily agreed that there were wolf tracks all around what was left of the body. I even think I recall reading that witnesses who found Carnegie, reported seeing wolves or a wolf at or near the body. The disagreements come from whether or not Carnegie was dead before the wolves appeared on the scene.
This is the biggest reason why it goes on being reported that wolf kills on humans “never” happen in North America yet most people know this is simply not true.
Dr. Geist sent to George Dovel of the Outdoorsman, part of the 61-page recording of testimony at the inquest of Kenton Carnegie in hopes that people will read expert testimony and heed the information that comes from the best in the business rather than from the media which is nothing more than an echo chamber of environmentalists who would dare never to badmouth a wolf.
Below comes from The Outdoorsman article and is part of the information provided by Dr. Valerius Geist. It is the seven stages that lead to a wolf attack on people. There is more information that goes with these seven steps. I highly recommend contacting The Outdoorsman so you can get your copy sent to you.
These Are The Seven Stages Leading To An Attack On People By Wolves
1) Within the pack’s territory prey is becoming scarce not only due to increased predation on native prey animals, but also by the prey evacuating home ranges en mass, leading to a virtual absence of prey. Or wolves increasingly visit garbage dumps at night. We observed the former on Vancouver Island in summer and fall 1999.
Deer left the meadow systems occupied by wolves and entered boldly into suburbs and farms, causing – for the first time – much damage to gardens. At night they slept close to barns and houses, which they had not done in the previous four years.
The wintering grounds of trumpeter swans, Canada geese and flocks of several species of ducks were vacated. The virtual absence of wildlife in the landscape was striking.
2) Wolves in search of food began to approach human habitations – at night! Their presence was announced by frequent and loud barking of farm dogs. A pack of sheep-guarding dogs raced out each evening to confront the wolf pack, resulting in extended barking duels at night, and the wolves were heard howling even during the day.
3) The wolves appear in daylight and observe people doing their daily chores at some distance. Wolves excel at learning by close, steady observation [1]. They approach buildings during daylight.
4) Small bodied livestock and pets are attacked close to buildings even during the day. The wolves act distinctly bolder in the actions.
They preferentially pick on dogs and follow them right up to the verandas. People out with dogs find themselves defending their dogs against a wolf or several wolves. Such attacks are still hesitant and people save some dogs.
At this stage wolves do not focus on humans, but attack pets and some livestock with determination. However, they may threaten humans with teeth exposed and growling when the humans are defending dogs, or show up close to a female dog in heat, or close to a kill or carrion defended by wolves. The wolves are still establishing territory.
5) The wolves explore large livestock, leading to docked tails, slit ears and hocks. Livestock may bolt through fences running for the safety of barns. When the first seriously wounded cattle are found they tend to have severe injuries to the udders, groin and sexual organs and need to be put down. The actions of wolves become more brazen and cattle or horses may be killed close to houses and barns where the cattle or horses were trying to find refuge. Wolves may follow riders and surround them. They may mount verandas and look into windows.
6) Wolves turn their attention to people and approach them closely, initially merely examining them closely for several minutes on end. This is a switch from establishing territory to targeting people as prey. The wolves may make hesitant, almost playful attacks biting and tearing clothing, nipping at limbs and torso. They withdraw when confronted. They defend kills by moving toward people and growling and barking at them from 10 – 20 paces away.
7) Wolves attack people. These initial attacks are clumsy, as the wolves have not yet learned how to take down the new prey efficiently. Persons attacked can often escape because of the clumsiness of the attacks.
A mature courageous man may beat off or strangulate an attacking wolf. However, against a wolf pack there is no defense and even two able and armed men may be killed. Wolves as pack hunters are so capable a predator that they may take down black bears, even grizzly bears [2]. Wolves may defend kills.
The attack may not be motivated by predation, but be a matter of more detailed exploration unmotivated by hunger. This explains why wolves on occasion carry away living, resisting children, why they do not invariably feed on the humans they killed, but may abandon such just as they may kill foxes and just leave them, and why injuries to an attacked person may at times be surprisingly light, granted the strength of a wolf’s jaw and its potential shearing power [3].
[1] – It is important to recognize here that wolves learn in a manner different from dogs, and that they excel at learning by closely observing what is going on. They are insight learners, and they solve problems, such as unlatching gates, for instance, almost at once!
Some dogs may solve this, but over a very long time, and usually not at all. Captive wolves or coyotes not only learn to open their cage, but quickly open all the others as well! And they achieve this by sitting and just watching attentively – an activity wild wolves indulge in continually.
From an elevated position they rest or sit and watch, watch, watch. Many times wolves followed me and on some occasions sat beside my cabin at night, orientated towards the cabin, apparently watching what was going on.
Wolves have large heads relative to the body and at comparable skull sizes have about ten percent more brain mass than dogs. See Ray and Lorna Coppinger 2001 Dogs, pp. 42-47, 54-55.
[2] – Personal communication by Dr. Paul Paquet from research on coastal wolves in British Columbia. Wolf scat contained fur and claws of both black bears and grizzly bears.
[3] – I am grateful to Prof. Harry Frank drawing my attention to multiple motivations of wolves attacking people.
Tom Remington
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i under stand read this http://rawdawgb.blogspot.com/2008/01/ode-to-miss-anne.htmlode 2 miss anne
what I know about the wolf could be said in a short instant.
but I find it very hard to beleve that we are populated with so many people that know about as much as I do about the wolf.
they have this fantasy in there head
how could the wolf be that bad
but they dont have any personality the are just programed to servive and if you happen to become a part those thoughts it wont matter what your thoughts are you just might become the next pray.
What is not explicitly pointed out in this article but Dr. Geist touches on briefly is that the basic steps he lays out can be said of most predators. He talks of coyotes much the same way as wolves.
I have to believe that each large predator we know of employs the same basic tactics and to the depth of their utilization is probably determined by the size of their brain.
In the article where it talks of the wolf being on people’s decks (verandas), I recall several stories and photos showing mountain lions and bears on people’s decks looking in the windows, etc.
I guess now I’ll think a bit differently when I see or hear about such activities.
What is not explicitly pointed out in this article but Dr. Geist touches on briefly is that the basic steps he lays out can be said of most predators. He talks of coyotes much the same way as wolves.
That’s exactly what I was thinking while reading the steps, and cougars were the animal that came to mind.
This’ll sound idealist, but if we want wolves to stay away from people they need to learn to fear and respect people.
We’re told that wolves fear people, are too afraid to go near us. But what happens when we stop killing them on sight but instead leave them be?
That pressure is now off the animals, they’re not being hunted by humans [persecuted in enviro-speak], so they have no reason to run from us. Animals individually and collectively discover that, hey, humans aren’t attacking any more and get cosy with this idea, and start taking moves that initially was risky to survival, discover there’s no risk any more, and try something else that could be deemed riskier.
And. We let them. Like we do with cougars and now we’ve got them [cougars] in the backyard. With people complaining and interactions are mentioned as increasing [like we've heard, at least half if not more than half of all the cougar attacks are recent].
Wolves were not a threat when they were afraid of us, and maybe we could start teaching them that, you come too close, unpleasant things happen [wildlife biologists can decide what's unpleasant enough for a wolf to convince it to stay away], and maybe you’d be better off to keep your distance?
If they learned to think we weren’t threatening they can learn to keep their distance too.
[I live in Ontario—far away from cougars, and maybe wolves and bears, but still...]
This is a bit of very important information I think everyone should know in addition to this.
If you kill one that is looking to make your yard its new territory, the chances are the others in the pack that did not see him go down will be right back. A dead wolf is just another dead animal to them– HOWEVER if you wound one with, say, a .38 snubby cause that is what you had to shoot through the screen with at the end of the couch, the wounded one (that I am sure will eventually die) will be a warning to the rest of them that you will never see again, or at least I haven’t for a couple of years.
Shooting to kill did not work. They will be back very soon if you do. Wounding one gives them all an education in who is at the top of the food chain. I told this to everyone I know locally and it is holding very true. Keep it in mind if they decide to get up close and personal.
[...] We know that one of the first things that alters a wolf’s normal habits is hunger. One myth that should be dispelled is that wolves kill only the weak and old of the deer, elk and moose. The second myth is that wolves only kill when they are hungry. Studies have shown that wolves kill simply because they can and are not the killer often described that selectively chooses the weak or disabled of its prey. Yes, they can certainly pick out a limping elk but their kill is what they can take down at that moment the easiest. [...]
[...] We know that one of the first things that alters a wolf’s normal habits is hunger. One myth that should be dispelled is that wolves kill only the weak and old of the deer, elk and moose. The second myth is that wolves only kill when they are hungry. Studies have shown that wolves kill simply because they can and are not the killer often described that selectively chooses the weak or disabled of its prey. Yes, they can certainly pick out a limping elk but their kill is what they can take down at that moment the easiest. [...]
[...] even heard me on my radio show talk about George Dovel and his ongoing efforts to reach people ahttp://mainehuntingtoday.com/bbb/2008/01/28/when-do-wolves-become-dangerous-to-humans/Wolf advocates barrage gov’s office Casper Star-TribuneLANDER — Wyoming is receiving a great deal [...]
[...] interesting! Perhaps they should read Dr. Valerius Geist’s article, “When Do Wolves Become Dangerous to Humans?” This article clearly explains the stages of behavior a wolf goes through before learning to attack [...]
[...] Valerius Geist tells us when wolves become a danger to people and this story certainly fits his description to a “T”. It would appear from this [...]
Here’s an interesting, recently found fact; http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/06/science/06wolves.html
Black wolves (such as those frequently found in YNP) are descended from dogs brought from Asia by the first Americans. It would seem that, as in Arizona, the ESA has been protecting hybrids all along.
[...] This is what probably most people don’t understand about wolves. Their behavior is not always that predictable if you don’t understand it. If you read what some scientists are saying about wolf behavior, we find that once you are willing to recognize it, you see it is predictable. There is a series of steps a wolf will undertake long before they might attack a human being. Because we’re not willing to believe that to be true, most people never see it coming. Dr. Valerius Geist explains it thoroughly here. [...]
[...] through the Ages. Detselig, Calgary, Alberta, Canada) for the process in wolves. (Also see “When Wolves Become a Problem to Humans” by Dr. Geist) Please note, according to interviews with hikers and park staff, coyotes in [...]
[...] Calgary, has years of studies in wildlife, including wolves and personal encounters with them. In a republished article I did two years ago, Geist provided for us the seven stages of behavior by wolves leading to an [...]
[...] Calgary, has years of studies in wildlife, including wolves and personal encounters with them. In a republished article I did two years ago, Geist provided for us the seven stages of behavior by wolves leading to an [...]
[...] This observation is very important as it falls in line with the seven steps of when wolves become a danger to man as spelled out clearly by Dr. Valerius Geist. [...]
Quote: Frostfoxen “That pressure is now off the animals, they’re not being hunted by humans [persecuted in enviro-speak], so they have no reason to run from us. Animals individually and collectively discover that, hey, humans aren’t attacking any more and get cosy with this idea, and start taking moves that initially was risky to survival, discover there’s no risk any more, and try something else that could be deemed riskier.”
Good point. Could we see attacks by wolves and coywolves on lone pedestrians walking down deserted streets in metro areas at 2 A.M. in fifty years?
And now, we have another death cause by wolves in the very same manner, see:
Autopsy Pretty Much Rules Out Candice Berner’s Death Anything But Wolves
http://mainehuntingtoday.com/bbb/2010/03/12/autopsy-pretty-much-rules-out-candice-berners-death-anyt
[...] this: “When Do Wolves Become Dangerous to Humans?” by Dr. Valerius [...]
[...] this: “When Do Wolves Become Dangerous to Humans?” by Dr. Valerius [...]
[...] down Paul Paquet’s notions about what happened to Kenton Carnegie, he could learn about the seven steps wolves go through before attacking a human. Or, he would learn from other “knave” scientists who have [...]