My name is Dr. John Hughes. I’m a physician with clinics in Aspen and Basalt.
My ancestors, on my mother’s side, are from the Wolf Clan of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee. I do not claim to make any formal statements from the tribe, but from my observations, CPW’S handling of Colorado’s wolf reintroduction has been a dishonor to the wolf — an animal considered as a sacred totem to my tribal ancestors and to me currently.
On that note, I do not blame the cattle or sheep ranchers for being upset at CPW or the state of Colorado and feel it is poor management and dishonorable to the Creator and the sanctity of all life (including domestic livestock) to release wolves near active ranching operations on private lands. Given that 10 of the 25 wolves have died or been killed, I’d even call the wolf reintroduction a failure at this stage.
A possible solution to the disastrous wolf reintroduction in Colorado would be to create a designated State Wildlife Corridor, free from domestic livestock where wolves can hunt and consume their native prey including elk, deer, small game, and even bison. I have polled over 500 Colorado residents, and 68% of those surveyed agree that a State Wildlife Corridor would be viable option to protect wolves and livestock from further depredation incidents. See the polling results on the front page of sacredwolffoundation.org
Original Article: https://www.aspentimes.com/news/hughes-cpws-handling-has-been-a-dishonor-to-the-wolf/