The demand for armed herdsmen sounds like a quick solution to the wolf conflict. But it poses more problems than opportunities.

September 25, 2025, 9:34 a.m., IG Wild editorial team at Wild

The use of firearms in the steep, confusing terrain of the Alps is risky.

Herders are primarily livestock keepers, not trained gamekeepers or police officers. A weapon increases the risk of misfires, accidents, and misunderstandings – for humans, dogs, and wildlife alike.

Experience from France shows that defensive culling barely reduces the number of wolf attacks. Wolves are adaptable, and individual culling won’t solve the underlying problem. Only a well-combined herd protection program consisting of herding, dogs, fences, and adapted grazing management remains truly effective.

Allowing herders to use weapons themselves undermines the wolf’s protected status. The wolf is a protected species under international law. A de facto “right to shoot” weakens this protection and could destroy trust in government regulation.

Armed herders send a dangerous signal: Instead of resolving conflicts through prevention, planning, and coordination, they rely on confrontation. This promotes polarization and can further exacerbate the social conflict surrounding wolves.

The call for weapons is an expression of frustration, but not a sustainable approach. Livestock protection, prevention, professional gamekeepers, and fair compensation are more sensible in the long run, safer—and also compatible with species conservation .

It must be considered that the wolf is now widespread in parts of the cantons of Valais and Graubünden, as well as in the western Vaud Jura. In this situation, wolf populations regulate themselves through their territoriality: where one pack exists, no new one will settle. According to scientific research, a flattening of population growth can be expected there even without regulation.

The Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) plans to present a report by 2025 to clarify the legal and practical conditions under which armed herders would be possible. The report will focus on issues of training, liability, monitoring, and animal welfare .

Added value:

• Wolf incompetence rages in Graubünden
• Val Fex: When the herd protection concept is more porous than the fence
• Shooting instead of protection – Switzerland on the way to silent wolf extermination
• Communication failure at the Graubünden Hunting and Fishing Office
• Illegal wolf hunting in Switzerland
• Wolf cubs in Switzerland under fire
• Switzerland sells massacre of wolves as success
• Sloppiness in Katrin Schneeberger’s office
• Grazing by livestock changes the soil, plants and insect populations
• The insane hunt for wolves in Switzerland
• The truth about sheep mortality in Switzerland: causes and statistics
• Wolf shootings in Switzerland: Concern about party politician Albert Rösti
• Let’s stop the SVP’s destructive rage
• Participation campaign: A call for change in Switzerland
• 200 environmental organizations from 6 continents call on the Swiss government: Stop the wolf shooting
• Federal Council is strongly criticized by wolf experts
• The consequences of controversial wolf management in Switzerland
• Wolf: Federal Councillor Rösti (SVP) circumvents law and order
• I don’t remember that Burebüebli
• Are the FOEN and the hunting administrations still working seriously?
• Federal Councillor Albert Rösti tramples on the will of the people
• The consequences of controversial wolf management in Switzerland
• Too many sheep harm biodiversity
• Agricultural use destroys alpine meadows
• Cracks despite herd protection, how is that possible?
• The rotten apple in the St. Gallen hunting administration
• Pro Natura calls for comprehensive strategy for sheep summering
• According to Agridea study, herd protection with dogs works well
• Thanks to herd protection, wolves kill fewer livestock in Switzerland
• Farmers see fields as a landfill
• Wildlife biomass
• From sheep farmers and diffuse authorities
• The double standards of wolf opponents

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By Marisa Ornat

Published: Sep. 23, 2025 at 11:58 AM PDT

MADISON, Wis. (Northern News Now) – Wisconsin DNR officials held a meeting Tuesday, discussing how you can help limit CWD in the state.

CWD, or chronic wasting disease, is a fatal disease that attacks a deer’s nervous system.

The Wisconsin DNR started monitoring the state’s white-tailed deer population in 1999.

DNR leaders say they’re focusing on the priority sampling areas this year, which are highlighted in orange:

They say testing for CWD is the best way to prevent the spread.

“We are a state that does a lot of testing, and we want to have that resource available to our hunters and also be able to have that information to give us good data on what’s occurring in our state,” said Erin Larson, WI DNR Herd Health Specialist.

Hunters who are interested in testing their deer can use a self-service kiosk or head to a DNR sample site.

The nearest location can be found using the DNR’s CWD Sample and Disposal Locations map.

Wisconsin’s archery and crossbow deer hunting season is currently ongoing.

The firearm hunt begins on Nov. 22.

by: Dustin Massengill

Posted: Sep 23, 2025 / 04:50 PM EDT

Updated: Sep 23, 2025 / 10:40 PM EDT

• Rescuers save trapped baby raccoon in Georgetown park.
• A raccoon was likely trapped by a fishing lure at the park.
• The baby raccoon was successfully released back into its natural environment.

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GEORGETOWN, Ky. (FOX 56) — Animal rescuers saved a trapped baby raccoon on Friday at a park in Georgetown.

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Scott County Animal Care & Control said the baby likely attempted to catch a fishing lure, mistaking it for a fish at Yuko-En on the Elkhorn.

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The raccoon reportedly became trapped in the plants and was unable to free itself from the vegetation or the lure.

An officer was able to safely contain the juvenile, allowing for the removal of the hooks from its finger.

Trump tells UN in speech that it is ‘not even coming close to living up’ to its potential

“Following a successful surgery, the raccoon was released back into its environment, where it can live a healthy and thriving life,” Scott County Animal Care & Control said.

Wildlife agencies emphasize responsible fishing to prevent loss of marine life

• By Jeremiah Estrada
• Sep 19, 2025 Updated Sep 22, 2025
•  https://www.kitv.com/news/young-hawaiian-monk-seal-killed-by-jug-fishing-gear-on-east-oahu/article_6967a3cd-3e31-468b-9af5-29f24de347f2.html

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EAST OAHU, Hawaii (Island News) — A young Hawaiian monk seal was killed by fishing gear in early September on an island on East Oahu after a jug fishing expedition.

The two-year-old Hawaiian monk seal named Moana (RS34) was found dead earlier this month on Manana Island after “jug rig” gear got caught on her. A tangled mass of fishing line latched onto Moana’s mouth which was connected to a plastic jug used in paddle-out or drone-out fishing.

Following the unfortunate incident, the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resource (DLNR) emphasized the threats to Hawaiian monk seals and other sea life that come from these fishing methods. In the event that a line breaks when jug fishing, an excessive amount of gear can be dragged out into the waters by a sea animal, heightening the risk of entanglement.

“Jug fishing is an extremely unsustainable and undiscerning fishing method,” said John Silberstein, Oahu Branch Chief of the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement. “This incident is a reminder that the choices we make on the water affect more than just fish.”

Moana was born in 2023 as the fourth pup to her mother RF34. Malama Honua Elementary School students in Waimanalo gave her the name Moana meaning “ocean.” She was often spotted around where she was born on Oahu’s offshore islets.

“Moana’s death underscores the importance of responsible fishing practices,” said Luna Kekoa, who manages DLNR’s Division of Aquatic Resources Protected Species Program. “Abandoned fishing gear poses a significant threat to endangered wildlife, which is why promoting pono fishing is a priority for DAR.”

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and DLNR provided these proactive steps for the fishing community to take to help prevent future losses:

• Avoid paddle-out jug fishing and similar high-risk methods – These methods can pose a higher risk of entanglement and injury to non-target species. Use of aerial drones for the purpose of fishing (other than reconnaissance) is banned statewide. Penalties include escalating fines.
• Report lost or taken gear immediately – Accidents can happen but if a seal takes hooked bait or runs off with fishing gear, reporting it to NOAA and DLNR gives response teams critical information to look out for the animal and intervene if needed.
• Fish pono – Proper gear use and safe disposal help sustain both fishing resources and Hawaii’s marine wildlife.
• If you do paddle lines out, it is recommended that you
  • Use only barbless circle hooks.
  • Make a plan to paddle out and recover lost or snagged gear at the end of every trip. Never free a snagged line by cutting the main line from shore.
  • Avoid fishing in areas where lines may pose a hazard to surfers, swimmers, boaters or other ocean users.

Reports of hooked or entangled monk seals, or lost fishing gear can be made by calling the NOAA Marine Wildlife Hotline at 888-256-9840.