On Wolves

Wolves are one of my favorite animals, along with horses, dolphins, sea otters, and pandas. I'm a big fan of cute, cuddly mammals in general. I think people misunderstand wolves and are afraid of them unnecessarily.

When I was in college, I used to get into arguments with my boyfriend-at-the-time's roommate. We argued about a lot of different things, actually. He was a rancher from Twin Bridges, and had quite stereotypical views on ranching and very conservative views on relationships. He definitely did not like wolves because he blamed them for killing livestock. (Sidenote: that guy and I actually got along better after I stopped dating the boyfriend)

I think a lot of people, especially in the mountain states, assume that wolves will kill livestock indescriminately as a fact. No one ever tried to back this "fact" up with proof. Why would they? "Everyone" knows that's what wolves do. Idiots.

Defenders of Wildlife compiled some interesting data on livestock losses and wolves. Their source is the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which I would hypothesize is a good source for this kind of data. Also, Defenders of Wildlife will compensate ranchers for verified livestock losses to wolves.

As a keystone species, wolves are very important to maintaining healthy ecosystems. When reintroduced to Yellowstone, many hunters felt that wolves would devestate the food chain. In reality, the reintroduced wolves have helped to rebalance it.

One of my favorite childhood stories is White Fang, by Jack London.

The Sweet Ones Always Die

Little Taipei. I saved her from an animal shelter a week after some sick bastard murdered Lai-Foo (Lucky Comes, in Chinese), my white wolf mix.
Turns out another sick bastard ran over her sometime this weekend. Dad wouldn't tell me exactly when. I know Dad blames himself because he let her loose to get some exercise, and she insisted on chasing some cars. Dad called her to come back, and she didn't listen. Dad later heard her barking, but didn't go to check on her. When she wasn't home the next morning, he went looking for her and found her.
I don't know why anyone would want to hurt an animal. Even the arrogant dogs and cats in Butte I slow down for, and make sure I don't hit.
Yet another reason I'm so insanely frustrated with the sheep-farming bastards in Utah.
Taipei was probably the smartest little dog I've had the pleasure to know. She was too smart, in fact, because sometimes she wouldn't perform commands when you asked her to. But she knew how to sit, to lie down, roll over, shake hands. Taipei would come (most of the time) to you when you called for her. She was a little ball of energy that loved to run. If I was home more often and ran a little better, she would have been the perfect running companion. She was always happy to see me, and always afraid of strangers. Taipei loved attention, and she loved to play. She had a sweet personality; I've never known her to dare bite a person, even in play.
Dad wants to get me another dog when my parents find another house and settle in, but I honestly don't know when I'll be settled enough to get a dog. I don't even know what kind of dog I'd like. Jack Russells are fairly smart, and make good running companions. And even something like an Australian Cattle Dog would be nice. Mutts are fine, too.