The Colorado Cattlemen’s Association has shared that the state’s producers are not ready for the scheduled release of fifteen more gray wolves in the state.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced the news earlier this month.
Word from the agency came after dozens of Colorado ag organizations submitted petitions for the planned release of such wolves to be delayed.
The CPW argues that a mitigation program has been established to help address livestock producers’ concerns. The agency’s Wolf Conservation Program Manager says that they have made a lot of changes to their approach.
Those changes are set to be presented at an upcoming commission meeting in the new year.
Ag broadcaster and Colorado local, Lorrie Boyer recently shared this thought:
“We have had nothing but problems with wolf introduction here in the state since voters voted it in on a ballot initiative, not this last time but the time before. There has been issues not only with depredation for those ranchers in the western part of the state, but also the Colorado Parks and Wildlife, which were the ones that were supposed to come up with the rules in collaboration with the Colorado Department of Agriculutre. There is also some issues going on within our own department on mitigating these wolves. And one other note, not only is it hard on the ranchers and the cattle and their fears of human life and other livestock, but on the wolves themselves. I mean this is a big acclimation for them. There’s a lot of stress in bringing wolves over, a lot of ecological stuff that goes along with them and we just seem to keep bowling forward on this.”
The fifteen wolves are set to be released sometime during the first three months of the new year and would mark the second release of that Colorado program.
The first took place over a year ago with ten gray wolves reintroduced in December of 2023.
