The sheep flock of the Balloërveld no longer has to fear being attacked by the wolf. Thanks to new steel mesh, the sheep can now spend the night safely in the sheepfold again.
Sheep shepherd Julie Teunen quietly walks around the sheepfold. She looks with satisfaction at the meter-long framework that is firmly attached to the walls. She now knows for sure: no wolf will come through here anymore.
The sheep can safely spend the night in this place and Teunen no longer has to worry about wolf attacks. “I now have the courage to sleep soundly again,” she says.
The mesh is also easy and quick to remove, for example in the event of fire. The animals also get enough fresh air.
With the roof over their heads, the animals are also less affected by wind, cold and rain. That has been different recently. Sheep were left outside at night because the cage was not closed properly.
The foundation that manages the sheepfold was therefore not confident that the wall of the cage was high enough to keep wolves out.
In the meadows, the animals were fenced by movable wolf-resistant grids. “That is safer than without fences,” Teunen knows, “but it gives no guarantee.”
This method of animal protection against wolf attacks is also a lot of work. Consider mowing around the grids, setting them up and taking them down and replacing batteries for the power clocks.
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