Germany: Hobby hunters use sheep as wolf bait
At least three sheep were killed in two nights in April on a pasture near Baruth, presumably by wolves. The sheep were kept by two hobby hunters who had placed them there since the beginning of 2018.
Witness statements and photographic evidence suggest that the animals were deliberately kept poorly secured in order to provoke wolf attacks.
Due to the deliberate killing of the sheep through failure to take appropriate protective measures, the animal rights organisation PETA has filed a criminal complaint with the Potsdam public prosecutor's office against the hobby hunters.
PETA files criminal complaint
«For quite some time, wolves had been observed in the area,» says Dr. Christian Arleth, legal counsel at PETA. «Even after the first attack, the sheep were so poorly secured behind a gap-ridden fence and so inadequately cared for that we must speak of deliberate intent. The hobby hunters want to create the conditions to legally kill wolves under the Brandenburg Wolf Regulation. The authorities must prevent this.»
The pasture was enclosed only by a 90-centimetre-high, non-continuous fence with four wire strands connected to an old, weather-exposed car battery with a voltage of twelve volts. In at least one place, the lowest wire strand had visibly been dug under. Wolves could also have simply stepped through the fence wires. As a witness reported to PETA, the water for the sheep in a plastic trough was partially frozen for several weeks at a stretch from January to March, meaning the animals had no regular access to it.
«Highly equipped hunter troop training ground»
In the immediate vicinity of the pasture is a forestry estate belonging to one of the hobby hunters. Fixed and mobile hunting blinds as well as a hunting training ground are also located there. Passers-by describe it as a “heavily armed hunters' training facility.” The forestry estate owner faced court proceedings four years ago — at that time, too, the suspicion was that he was operating facilities to trap wolves using sheep as live bait. One of the two hobby hunters runs the Facebook page «Wolf – nein Danke» (“Wolf – No Thanks”), on which wolf-critical content is shared daily with nearly 14’000 subscribers.
Authorities remain silent
PETA had already informed the responsible veterinary and hunting authorities, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the animal welfare division of the Ministry of Justice of their suspicion of deliberate wolf baiting back in March, and had demanded protective measures for the sheep. In the event of a wolf attack, the animal rights organization threatened to file criminal charges against the hobby hunters. The Ministry of Justice responded that it could identify no violations; the Ministry of Agriculture has remained silent to this day.
Since February, Brandenburg has had the first regulation of its kind in Germany “on the approval of exceptions to the protective provisions for the wolf” in force. In addition to options for deterring wolves, it also sets out the conditions under which the killing of wolves is permitted.
The Brandenburg State Hunting Association, of which one of the sheep farmers is a member, has already called for the implementation of the wolf regulation. More on crime and recreational hunting and on the animal welfare issue.
