– We should absolutely get a felling permit for wolves that cause so much damage, says Anders Brynildsen. He and five other farmers in Aremark in Østfold are worried about their sheep after the wolf attack on Sunday. On one of the neighboring farms in the area, 31 sheep were killed by wolves. Several of the farmers have calves in their herd. – If all our animals are not injured or killed, they will be terrified. We love our animals and want to take care of them as best we can, says Brynildsen. Now he wants to take matters into his own hands and shoot the wolf himself. – It is negative that we are not allowed to take out animals that have caused great damage. They will do this again, says Brynildsen. Former Aremark mayor Geir Aarbu also fears the consequences of not being able to kill the wolf themselves. – People soon don’t dare to bet on farming anymore. High threshold for killing the wolves themselves After the attack, an application was submitted to the Norwegian Environment Agency for permission to kill the wolf in the area. – They have been given a verbal refusal, says Ida Glemminge, regional expert responsible for large carnivores in the Norwegian Nature Conservancy. They believe the situation is stable. – It is well within the wolf zone, and an area where wolves can appear at any time, says Glemminge. That is one of the reasons why the farmers’ wish to kill the wolves themselves is difficult to obtain permission for. The farmers in Østfold fear more wolf attacks. Photo: Rahand Bazaz / news – There is a high threshold for obtaining a permit to kill in the wolf zone. It will take a lot for it to be approved, says Olav Thøger Haaverstad, senior adviser at the State Administrator in Oslo and Viken. He says that in the wolf zone it is desirable that other measures are introduced to protect the sheep. – It is, for example, putting up fences, as was done in Aremark, he says. The Storting has established a wolf zone where the aim is for the territories to produce a certain number of cubs. The wolf got past the fences The farmer who lost the sheep on Sunday had set up predator-proof fences to prevent the wolf from entering the grazing areas. Nevertheless, the wolf managed to get past the fences. A similar case has been experienced by Thea Ulsrødanders Brynildsen. She will take over the farm and has helped put up fences. – We had 20 heifers grazing, and found most of them somewhere else and deep in the forest. We had to slaughter several of them because they had become so frightened. There were wolf tracks at the site, says Ulsrødanders Brynildsen. According to Glemminge in the State’s Nature Inspectorate, similar attacks have not occurred in this area during the grazing season before. Haven’t tracked down the wolf The Norwegian Nature Conservancy hasn’t tracked down the wolf that attacked the 31 sheep in Aremark. 10 of the animals were ewes, while the rest were lambs. Ida Glemminge in the State Nature Inspectorate says there have been no similar attacks in the area this grazing season. Photo: Fredrik Buer / news – The extent of the damage indicates that this is one wolf, but we are in no position to say anything about which individual it is, says Glemminge. She says it can both be a stationary wolf, or a wolf on the move. They have no idea where the wolf is. Figures from Rovdata say there are between 89 and 92 wolves in Norway, with approximately 44 of them only staying in Norway and not in the border area. It is the first time in seven years that fewer than 100 wolves have been registered in Norway.
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Neighboring farmers fear for the animals – news Oslo og Viken – Local news, TV and radio
