Utrecht province may kill problem wolf, court rules

The province of Utrecht has been granted permission by the court to shoot the wolf that has repeatedly approached people in the Utrechtse Heuvelrug area. The Fauna Protection Foundation and Animal Rights had asked the court to suspend the permit, but the judge saw no grounds to do so. This means the province may proceed with having the wolf killed.

On May 19, the wolf in question bit a female hiker twice on the leg at the Den Treek estate near Leusden. DNA analysis confirmed it was the wolf with the code name GW3237m, better known as Bram.

Earlier this month, the province issued a permit to shoot the animal, as experts deemed it a danger to people. The same wolf had already approached humans last year. At one point, the leader of the pack in the Utrechtse Heuvelrug even knocked over a young girl.

After the same wolf bit a female hiker in May, the province decided the animal must be culled. His mate gave birth to pups for the second year in a row this April.

According to De Faunabescherming and Animal Rights, the wolf is displaying defensive behavior, partly to protect his offspring. They believe the province should close off the area where the pack lives to visitors. This is what happened last year, when part of the Den Treek estate was closed for several weeks.

According to the court, the province has sufficiently demonstrated that the risk of serious injury to people is “so severe” that the wolf must be culled. Although the objection procedure is still ongoing, the province may use the permit before the objection is reviewed. Utrecht also intends to do so.

“I am fully aware that my decision is effectively a final one,” the judge said, seeing no grounds to suspend the permit. She rejected all arguments made by the animal welfare organizations.

Utrecht said that they had rather not have issued the permit. “We are the competent authority for protecting endangered species such as the wolf, and we strive to find a balanced way for humans and wolves to coexist.”

In early May, the province of Gelderland issued a permit to cull a wolf that had bitten a jogger in De Hoge Veluwe National Park. Faunabescherming and Animal Rights also went to court in that case, but the judge saw no reason to suspend the permit. Gelderland is therefore allowed to kill the wolf, although as far as is known, this has not yet happened.