In Beilen, sheep have been attacked several times this month while standing behind a wolf-resistant fence that was in good condition. The province is trying to prevent new incidents with additional measures.
The attacks were probably made by a wolf. Only when the results of the DNA analysis are known can the perpetrator be identified with 100 percent certainty. It concerns at least three attacks in which more than fifteen sheep were killed.
The sheep were behind a mobile grid that meets the standards of the province of Drenthe. This means, among other things, that there are fences with at least five electric wires. The highest wire hangs at a minimum height of 120 centimeters and the lowest wire may not be higher than 20 centimeters from the ground.
It is still unclear how the grid was circumvented by the perpetrator of the attacks. BIJ12, the organization that handles wolf cases for the province, has not yet confirmed the attacks on the sheep.
The province has decided to take extra measures at this location to protect sheep against new attacks. Drenthe says that the grids are secured with an extra wire, flashing lights and flutter ribbons on electric wire. Several cameras have also been installed.
It is more common for attacks to occur within wolf-resistant grids. BIJ12 often discovers defects in the fence afterwards, such as damage or loss of power. That is not the case here.
According to figures from BIJ12 in Drenthe, the fact that a wolf in Drenthe strikes several times in a short period within a grid that meets the standard has previously happened in Wapse (January 2024) and Vledder (April 2024).
The grids in Beilen are part of a trial by the province with mobile wolf-resistant grids. It was recently decided to extend this trial for a year, so that more information can be obtained about the operation of the fences in all weather conditions.