MAY 2013 newsletter

conservation 路 education 路 preservation

COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER MAY-JUNE 2013

relax, I got ya covered...

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Keyni

Wiley

Are you my Daddy?

Bring it on.

I have needle sharp teeth

Keyni & Robin

Keyni and fat lil Nena

Growing like a weed Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

School group and Keyni

our beautiful

Tala

Vicki and Keyni with sweet kisses

vip

Treats?

Thank you Falcon middle school for your community service project.

You were an awesome group.

Cash and Catherine

Much needed Spring snow

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Probably our last chance We are losing our wolves and we will lose this battle where wolves can run free if we don’t all work together. Our new Secretary of Interior is our only and best hope. We had started a petition a couple months ago to re-list the wolves and have sent and will continue to send her hundreds of names from all states asking her to save America’s wolves. Here is your chance to be a voice. Write her and let her know why you feel that we should protect America’s heritage. Below is what CWWC sent to Ms. Jewell along with her address. Please earn the right to say you care and love wolves by taking 10 minutes out of your life to put on paper your reasons why YOU want to have the wolves in our nation protected. It is OK to have your children to write as well.

We have also sent you a downloadable pdf file of the petition so you can sign (and get your friends to sign) and send yourself to Ms. Jewell... Thank you for being a voice!

Ms. Jewell, Congratulations on your recent appointment. I am encouraged that you believe wildlife (including predators) is an integral part of our eco-system and many people believe you can be the voice of reason that is needed for the preservation of wildlife which impacts the environment we all live in.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to read this letter. My name is Darlene Kobobel and in 1993 I founded the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center (CWWC). CWWC is an AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums) Certified facility that houses wolves, coyote and fox in a sanctuary setting. Our mission is to give a permanent home to these animals and provide education through public tours at our facility as well as conducting educational programs for schools, state parks, youth groups, veterinary and biology students or other groups interested in learning about these incredible animals, their roles in balancing the eco-system and why conservation is important.

The government will be making a public statement about how the US has a population of 5,000 wolves and that a Bill will be introduced to take wolves off the endangered species list because they are flourishing. Ms. Jewell, based on scientific facts this is not true and we believe the anti-wolf organizations lobbying efforts cover up the truth.

I would like to bring to your attention some alarming information regarding the current wolf situation in this country. Here are only a few pertinent facts about wolves and you will see their current situation is devastating if you do the math.

• 1 2 known Yellowstone National Park wolves were killed in the 2012/2013 hunting season in addition to four more wolves that frequented the park.

• Hunters outside of Yellowstone National Park killed seven radio collared wolves from October – December 2012, including the park’s best known and most watchable wolf, 832F, also known as Lamar ’06. 70% of the packs in Yellowstone National Park experienced loss of a pack member in the 2012/2013 hunts.

• The Yellowstone National Park wolf population has decreased by 20% since the Endangered Species protections were removed in 2011. 12% of that loss occurred in last season’s 2012/2013 hunt alone.

• In the last year, the Wyoming wolf population has dropped so drastically that they are only 19 animals away from the federally mandated minimum of 150.

• In 2012, wolves in Wyoming were removed from the Endangered Species Act, and classified as predators that can be shot, poisoned, or trapped throughout 85% of the state without a permit.

• Wolves are responsible for a fraction of livestock losses.

According to USDA, 3,992,900 cattle were lost last year. Predators as a whole represented only 219,000 of these losses. Of those, wolves were responsible for 8,100. While this number represents only 0.002% of the total losses, wolves were responsible for about 3% of the predator losses in the states which wolves are found. Domestic dogs, vultures, coyotes, and other native predators are responsible for more livestock deaths than wolves. Respiratory problems are the number one killer of livestock, claiming more than one million in 2010.

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

• W olves are not having large impacts on game populations as many claim. In fact, in Montana, the elk herds have increased by 60% since the wolf reintroduction. The population has increased from 90,000 to over 150,000 in the last twenty years. The hunting districts in western Montana, which also have the most wolves, are mostly at or above state objectives for elk. The moose populations and pronghorn populations also have increased. One reason is because wolves provide habitat for beavers, which in turn create viable moose habitat. Wolves also are effective at controlling coyote populations, which prey heavily on pronghorn.

HogsAnnualtoEvent Howls

I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you in person and would be accompanied by Jay Mallone, a biologist in Montana. We would like to discuss not only the present research facts but also provide ideas and viable solutions that would be beneficial to all concerned.

The future of wolves and wildlife as a whole is hanging in the balance and something must be done before it is too late. I have dedicated my life to being a voice for wolves and it is a constant uphill struggle to dispel the untruths told by the anti-wolf faction and to protect these noble yet misunderstood animals. If something is not done to stop or reverse the current direction of wolves, we will loose an important part of America’s heritage. Please allow us the opportunity to meet with you to discuss the future of wildlife. Thank you once again for your time and consideration.

Sincerely, Darlene M. Kobobel Founder/President Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center

Send your letters and petitions to: Secretary Sally Jewel Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, NW · Suite 7314 Washington DC 20240 Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

USFWS Poised To Drive Final Nail In Wolves’ Coffin… from Howling For Justice The USFWS is moving ahead with its wolf persecution plan. The agency has drafted a plan that endorses the delisting of wolves across the lower 48, basically saying they could care less wolves are being tortured, slaughtered and treated like vermin. It implies they don’t care about the science. It implies they don’t care wolves in North America have lost almost half their genetic diversity since the late 1800’s. It implies they aren’t concerned wolves are being isolated from one another due to increased hunting pressure, resulting in further loss of genetic connectivity.

It implies they don’t care Yellowstone wolves now live on a virtual island, facing death if they set foot outside the park, as the iconic alpha female of the Lamar Canyon pack, 832f, sadly learned.

President Obama and his now retired side kick, Salazar are tone-deaf concerning wolves. They pulled the plug on wolf recovery in 2009 by removing Endangered Species protections for the imperiled animals, first in the Northern Rockies and now the Great Lakes. While the Democratic party once again looks the other way, wolf enemies are pushing hard for across the board delisting. This is ugly politics, nothing more. Ranchers, hunters and the politicians who serve them, are chomping at the bit to drive a final stake into the heart of wolves. Once a success story, in just four short years the Obama administration has turned wolf recovery into a nightmare. Not only are wolves being slaughtered in the Northern Rockies but wolves in the Great Lakes are getting the same treatment. For the first time Minnesota and Wisconsin held wolf hunts in 2012, mere months after wolves lost their ESA protections. Wisconsin trophy hunters, want to use dogs to track and trail wolves to their deaths. Michigan, the only state in the Great Lakes that didn’t hold a wolf hunt last year, recently classified wolves as game animals, opening the door to wolf hunts. Michigan residents went to work and collected over 250,00 signatures to allow a 2014 ballot initiative that would give Michigan voters a voice on whether or not they want a wolf hunt but that tremendous grass-roots effort is being thwarted.

read a few of the sick anti-wolf sites, it will turn your stomach. There’s a certain wolf hating page where members admit they get off on torturing wolves.

“Senate Bill 288, approved recently in that chamber and now headed to House, would allow the Natural Resources Commission to designate an animal — such as the wolf — as a game species and authorize a hunt regardless of what voters might decide in 2014”…….joosting@mlive.com

“The members of this Facebook page come right out and publicly admit (brag is more like it) to ‘getting wood’ when seeing wolves trapped, tortured and killed, whether in images or in real life. They feel ‘orgasmic’ hunting, trapping, killing, butchering, and even eating their victims.

It doesn’t take a great leap of imagination to know what else they are doing when torturing wolves to death”…..Examiner.com

This is not success, this smells of dirty pool, backroom deals and backdoor politics.

I remember the Spring of 2009 very clearly. A new President after eight years of George Bush, what a relief.

Finally we’d have someone in the White House who cared about wildlife. But the Obama administration did the unthinkable and appointed a rancher to oversee the nations treasured wild places and just like that wolves were stripped of their endangered species protections. When the news broke of the wolf delisting, I was stunned. Wolves had been facing the wrath of Wildlife Services for almost a decade. Entire packs in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming were routinely gunned down for miniscule livestock depredations. We had no way of knowing it would get much, much worse for wolves in the next four years.

Before we knew it Montana and Idaho were planning wolf hunts to commence in the fall. In mere months wolves went from endangered to hunted.

The killing has only escalated way beyond anything we could have imagined. Not only are wolves facing hunts that grow more gruesome every year but the USFWS wants to finish wolves off by effectively removing their protections across the lower 48. The refrain that wolf recovery is a “success story” is absolute BS. A SUCCESS STORY? Idaho is holding year round wolf hunts, trapping and snaring wolves by the hundreds. Montana initiated wolf trapping for the first time and eliminated quotas. It’s a success story if you think success is defined by Wyoming’s “predator zone”, which encompasses over 80 % of the state, where wolves can be shot on sight. Some success story. Scum trophy hunters were luring Yellowstone wolves out of the park with puppy distress calls.

That’s a success story? Just head over to Facebook and

What’s happening to wolves mimics the extermination of the 1900’s.

Not only were wolves trapped, shot, arrowed and poisoned with strychnine but they were also set on fire, had they lower jaws removed, then let loose to suffer and die. The atrocities being perpetrated against wolves in 2013 are every bit as evil and sick. And who put the rubber stamp on this slaughter? Who weakened the ESA? The Democratic controlled Senate, who stuffed a wolf delisting rider into a must pass budget bill and stripped wolves in the Northern Rockies of their protections, WITHOUT JUDICIAL REVIEW! There was no science involved in that. It was a ploy to get Jon Tester re-elected, by playing to the wolf hating crowd in Montana and every single Democrat Senator voted for it except three and Obama signed the bill into law. How shameful is that? What’s even more pitiful is how clueless the MSM is. Jon Stewart was praising Jon Tester for speaking out about another rider, recently slipped into an appropriations bill, that would give biotech companies like Monsanto immunity from the courts. Maybe Jon Stewart missed the memo that it was Jon Tester who inserted the wolf delisting rider into the 2011 budget bill, to help get himself re-elected. Wake up Jon S!!

Now is the time to stand up and say no to wolf persecution. Sally Jewell is the boss at Interior now and it’s our job to convince her to turn away from this “plan”. Wolves inhabit less than 5% of their former habitat. If the USFWS has their way hostile state governments will draft “wolf management” plans effectively keeping wolves from dispersing outside the “kill zones” of the wolf states, stopping wolf recovery in its tracks.

Please contact the Interior Secretary and let her know Americans love wolves and want them protected. We can’t continue to allow a handful of wolf hating zealots to drive policy.

Please speak out for wolves, we are their voice!

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell · 202-208-3100 Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, N.W. · Washington DC 20240 feedback@ios.doi.gov

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Banning Coyote Killing Contests Project Coyote

Few people realize that there are hundreds of brutal coyote killing contests held in the United States offering prizes from belt buckles to assault rifles for killing the most coyotes, as well as awards for killing the biggest and smallest “dog.”

A top honor often goes to killing a pregnant female. Project Coyote is taking on these contests with a no-nonsense approach.

We testified in force at February’s California Fish & Wildlife Commission meeting. We were there again on April 17th with children who asked for a permanent statewide ban on predator killing contests.

Banning barbaric killing contests in California and beyond is a part of our vision to change the way coyotes - and all predators are viewed and “managed”.

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER FUNDRAISER FOR FIRE PREVENTION

MAY 27TH · MEMORIAL DAY · 10AM TO 5PM Benefit concert featuring the Adam Ezra Group, the Confluence as well as an acoustic stage • Silent Auction • Birds of Prey Presentation • Door Prizes • Artist Booths • Beer Garden • Wolfpack Howls

Hi Darlene!

I have attached pictures of Keyni from when my husband and I took him for a walk yesterday.

Andy also took video footage with his phone and made a YouTube video. You can access at: http://youtu.be/wZiVzHPAd-Q I count this as one of my favorite life experiences and feel so blessed to be able to volunteer at your facility! Thank you for all you do for the wolves and other wildlife!

Have a great day!

Beth

www.wolfeducation.org · 719.687.9742 Purchase tickets at wolfstock.bpt.me or call 1.800.838.3006 $30 adults · $15.00 kids 12 and younger · Parking at Divide Post Office

A letter to Kekoa...

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

Standard Tours

One-hour educational tour of the sanctuary.

10 am, noon and 2 pm Tuesday-Sunday $10 per adult · $7 per child

Feeding Tours

Enjoy this one-hour educational tour while your guide feeds the wolves! Learn about hunting, howling and hierarchy and communicate with the pack in a group howl! $20 per adult · $10 per child Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday

Photo Tours

Interact with 2 of our wolves for up to 15 minutes while a CWWC photographer captures your interaction! $100 for up to 4 people · $50 per additional person MUST BE 18 OR OLDER

Youth FOX Photos

Your child will have their picture taken with our red fox! $100 for up to 4 children (must be 8 or older)

VIP Tours Interact with 4 of our wolves for up to 30 minutes! $150 for up to 2 people · $50 per additional person ADD ON a Photo Tour for an additional $75

FULL MOON TOURS Wear warm clothes and good boots.

Bring a camera and flashlight.

Cocoa and coffee will be provided. $25 per adult · $15 per child 8-12 No kids under 8

SATURDAY · JUNE 22/23* call for check-in time

Meet and greet one of our wolves before the tour.

Tour starts immediately after and lasts approx 1 hour

*Tour on June 23 as well if June 22 fills up

FUTURE FULL MOON TOUR DATES: July 20 - check in 7:30 pm, start 8 pm July 21 if July 20 fills up August 24 - check in 7:30 pm, start 8 pm

MUST BE 18 OR OLDER

Walk on the Wild Side

What could be better than a guided nature walk in the beautiful Rocky Mountains with a wolf? $75 per person Reserve for Thursday & Sunday

RESERVATIONS REQUIRED FOR ALL TOURS AND SPECIAL EVENTS 719-687-9742

All CWWC tours have limited space and we have a no-cancellation policy Reschedules are allowed May-October only

RESERVATIONS REQUIRED FOR ALL TOURS AND SPECIAL EVENTS 719-687-9742

CWD Carlos EDD (ret.) has been entered in the AHA Hero Dog Awards - Military Dog Category again this year.

It is so important for Carlos to not only be in the contest but also for him to win the Military Dog Category.

all 10 dogs back to the US and found them great homes.

With the draw down of troops in Afghanistan right now, that means the need for CWDs like Carlos will also be decreasing.

Unfortunately, some of the Contract Companies do not want to pay for transporting their retiring dogs back to the US. It is very expensive and greed takes the place of doing what is right for the dogs that have worked tirelessly protecting our troops. The Contractor that owned Carlos didn’t want to pay that money either and just a few months ago we found out from management that when he was retired, they farmed him out to a “local Afghan national” where he was subjected to abuse and neglect. The Contractor reclaimed him when they found out, but they still wouldn’t pay to bring him back to the US. It was only because an officer in the US Air Force found him and escorted him back to the US that I have him and that he is alive and doing well.

carlos

Carlos’ entry has already raised awareness of CWDs and his winning would raise an even greater awareness that would put the spotlight on Contractors to bring the dogs back to the US where they could be adopted into loving forever homes or at least encourage them to contact MWDA to help with transport and finding them homes.

Carlos’ Charity Partner (MWDA) would receive a $1500 donation if Carlos wins the Military Dog Category as well.

Voting runs through July 30th. You are allowed to vote once daily with a valid email address. Here is the link to Carlos’ nomination page that will become the voting page on May 7th. http://www.herodogawards.org/ contestants/?nominee=17792578 If you would, PLEASE share Carlos’ nomination with your friends, family, co-workers, businesses and organizations as well as on your social media networks as well. If you are on Facebook, drop by Carlos’ fan page and give it a like. YES...he has an actual FAN PAGE this year. https://www.facebook.com/CWDCarlosHeroDog

Around 8-10 months ago, another Contract company was going to just release 10 retired CWDs in the Afghan desert rather than pay to bring them home. Luckily, Mili- Ruby Ridpath tary Working Dog Adoptions (MWDA) and US War Dog MWDA Director of Educational Outreach Association heard about it, raised the funds, transported www.MilitaryWorkingDogAdoptions.com

GOT

MEAT?

We are in need of meat (and monetary donations!)

We can take your freezer burned or old meat. We can’t take meat that is spoiled, seasoned, or spiced or fish with bones. 719-687-9742

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

looking for a forever home A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself

Emerson

LUCKY

RED BARON

I am a happy, playful cat. I have been looking for my new forever home since December of 2012. My only drawback is that I am a black cat, and people just don’t seem to like us as much as those colorful kitties. I will do well in a home with other cats, as long as they are female. I am very playful, and love to climb up high. I hope my new forever home has lots of toys for me and maybe even a cat tower for me to climb up. Are you that special person to give a great cat like me a chance?

Lucky got his name at the vet’s office (because he is lucky to be alive). He is the victim of a shooting incident. We rescued Lucky and provided the surgery needed to repair his shoulder/leg. Lucky is a young adult male Pit Bull Terrier. He is up to date on shots and is neutered. Given his ordeal, Lucky needs a special home and deserves the kind of love that will remind him that there are really good people in the world. He is great with other dogs and tiny puppies and people.

We rescued the Red Baron to save him from euthanasia. This adult Chow mix male has the most gorgeous coloration we have seen in a very long time. His rich, flaming coat of fur makes it hard to take your eyes off him. We are still assessing the Red Baron, as he is a new arrival at our shelter. He is as active as a puppy.

Call TCRAS, the no-kill shelter in Divide, CO at 719-686-7707 for more information or checkout our website to see all the available animals! www.tcrascolorado.com

SLV Animal Welfare Society 719-587-woof (9663) · www.slvaws.org PRIVATE SHELTER - MONETARY DONATIONS NEEDED BADLY

Vieques Humane Society - Vieques, Puerto Rico, a small island located off the mainland’s east coast, for many years offered no veterinary or animal rescue services. During the early 1980’s, a handful of concerned immigrants from the states and a few local residents took a serious interest in improving the welfare of the animals. They began by feeding the island’s multitudinous strays and soliciting the help of veterinarians from Puerto Rico to sterilize them. By 1987, the Vieques Humane Society and Animal Rescue, Inc. was officially established as a non-profit organization. Today they still offer the only veterinary services on the island and have developed strong community based programs.

See available dogs at www.viequeshumanesociety.org · CWWC will help you cover adoption fees - 719.687.9742

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org

The World of Wolves iPad app featuring The Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center is NOW AVAILABLE on iTunes.

Also on iTunes, download the free CWWC app for your iPhone or iPad

FREE fact-filled app about wolves

working together to make a difference “We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” ~ Immanual Kant

Natural Resources Defense Council www.nrdc.org

www.aza.org www.projectcoyote.org

“An animal’s eyes have the power to speak a great language.” www.bornfreeusa.org

~ Martin Buber

Mexican Grey Wolves www.mexicanwolves.org

www.defendersofwildlife.org

For current wolf articles and to be a voice through knowledge

Wild Earth Guardians

www.wildearthguardians.org

To get Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center on your phone!

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Newsletter Designed By Melissa Macis Freelance Graphic Designer smallspaceorganizer@gmail.com Information presented on this newsletter is considered public information (unless otherwise noted) and may be distributed or copied. Use of appropriate byline/photo/ image credit is requested. Some of the documents in this newsletter may contain live feed references (or pointers) to information created and maintained by other organizations. Please note that CWWC does not control and cannot guarantee the relevance, timeliness, or accuracy of these outside materials.

Colorado Wolf And Wildlife Center | PO Box 713 | Divide, CO 80814 | 719.687.9742 | www. wolfeducation.org