Gelderland gives green light to shoot, kill wolf after attack on jogger

Gelderland has granted a permit to shoot and kill the wolf that allegedly attacked a jogger in the Hoge Veluwe National Park on April 13. “The intervention is necessary to eliminate further risks to public safety,” the province told Omroep Gelderland.

The jogger was bitten twice in the leg on April 13 while running through the national park. According to the province, a DNA test showed that the woman was bitten by a wolf and that this wolf had been involved in previous incidents. Expert advice and witness statements also contributed to the decision to kill the wolf, the province said.

“The animal’s behavior was so purposeful and aggressive that it must be considered serious and deviant,” the province of Gelderland said. According to the province, other measures, such as closing the park, a pain stimulus, or scaring the animal away, were considered and deemed insufficient or unfeasible.

It is still possible to object to the permit to shoot the wolf, but given the “urgency” of the situation, the province has shortened the objection period to two days.

Faunabescharming is again taking the matter to court, asking the judge for more time to study the permit issued by the province. “A two-day objection period almost does not exist at all,” Niko Koffeman, chairman of the animal rights organization, told the broadcaster. He doubts the “urgency” the province is relying on. “If it is a dangerous wolf, it is weird that the park has been open for the past three weeks. Then visitors should have been warned.”

Gelderland has been trying to take harsher action against wolves for some time, but is prevented by the protected status of the predator. An earlier attempt to shoot paintballs at the wolf failed in court.