Last year, no fewer than 467 livestock farmers called in the help of the Wolf Fencing Team Belgium (WFTB) to make their fences resistant to wolves. That is five times more than the year before. Horse owners were especially concerned after the first attack on a pony in September last year.
“In the week of September 13, 136 applications were received in one week. That was more than in the whole of 2020, when we got 95”, says Diemer Vercayie of the Wolf Fencing Team. “The requests are parallel to wolf attacks. Livestock farmers directly involved take action after such an attack. And the neighbors see that, after which they also want to protect their meadows.”
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In the fall, a pack has many mouths to feed, as cubs switch to meat. Then wolves become opportunistic and choose the first bite.
It is no coincidence that applications peak in the autumn. “Currently, the wolves are feeding off their young and are keeping their territory very limited. As the cubs get older, they get less milk and switch to meat. Such a pack suddenly has many mouths to feed. Then wolves become opportunistic and choose the first bite they can find,” says Vercayie. “In August, the cubs are too young to hunt on their own and the adults of the pack bring the prey. In the autumn, the young animals often join the hunt.”
Living together is possible
“The high number of applications in September was related to the attack on a pony that month. TV and newspapers paid a lot of attention to this. This strong increase is very positive, because it means that more and more livestock farmers want to make the necessary adjustments to make their fencing wolf-resistant. This makes living together with wolves possible in our region.”
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We spent four days adjusting the fence at show jumper Jos Lansink. That was a tough job.
While in previous years it was mainly about sheep farmers, last autumn there were a particularly large number of applications from owners of horses or ponies (169), of several animal species (132) and of course also still from sheep farmers (87). Cattle farmers also made more applications (20). Owners of goats, alpacas, deer and donkeys also knocked on the door for help. 90% of the requests to the Wolf Fencing Team are made by private individuals, which means that the plots of hobby owners have a limited perimeter. “When you’re dealing with professional horse or cattle ranchers, the pastures that need to be secured are a lot bigger,” says Vercayie. “Last winter we visited horse keeper and show jumping rider Jos Lansink. We spent four days there with some volunteers to adjust the fence. That was a tough job.”
Waiting list
The influx of requests for help resulted in a waiting list, but improvement is on the way. After consultation with the Limburg mayors, the Ministers of Nature and Agriculture and the Province of Limburg, Minister of Environment Zuhal Demir decided to increase her financial support for the WFTB from 60,000 to 100,000 euros via the Agency for Nature and Forests. The province of Limburg is also stepping in and committing itself to supporting an extra full-time prevention advisor with the team for three years. “We should soon be able to double the number of advisory visits with this,” says Vercayie. “At the same time, we are committed to further disseminating practical knowledge, so that those who are handy can get started quickly.”
Also read:
More wild animals are killed in traffic: “If you have found a dead animal, keep your distance and do not touch the carcass” (+)
Wolves habitat is expanding: first wolf in more than 150 years in East Flanders
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