Cody Roberts poses with wolf he injured with his snowmobile. Photo courtesy of the Cowboy State Daily.
In a press release issued today, Wildlife for All joined a coalition of other wildlife, hunting, animal welfare, scientific, and governance reform organizations in calling for Wyoming and other states to overhaul their wildlife management policies in the wake of an incident of a wolf having been captured and tortured in Wyoming.
The case has gained national attention. As reported by KHOL 89.1 radio on March 29, 2024 a Wyoming man injured a gray wolf with his snowmobile, taped the wolf’s mouth shut, brought the animal to a home and then a local bar where the wolf was eventually killed after several hours of being paraded around the bar. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department states that the only crime the man violated is possession of a living, warm blooded wild animal, which is a violation of Wyoming law that carries a maximum $250 fine. He was fined $250, and, to our knowledge, the state wildlife management agency has not indicated that any further investigation is being conducted.
The incident reveals fundamental problems with the way Wyoming and many other states manage wildlife. The lack of protection for wolves and other carnivores encourages this type of cruel behavior. We are calling on Wyoming and other states to make fundamental changes to wildlife policy to prevent such incidents from happening again.