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Hi John,
Washington state has escalated its war on wolves.
Not content to unleash agency staff to track and kill wolves — including juveniles — at the behest of industry, it now wants to take away critical protections wolves still need to survive.
We took legal action to help keep wolves in the state safe, and we won't let up. Please help with a gift to the Saving Life on Earth Fund today.
Since 2012 the state has killed 42 wolves on behalf of the livestock industry.
Last year it accidentally killed a wolf pup instead of an adult — and the pup wasn't even from the targeted pack.
This trigger-happy approach has left a trail of destruction.
Even the governor wants the Washington Fish and Wildlife Department to change the way it manages wolves — but the agency refuses.
So we filed a legal petition to force it to implement rules requiring nonlethal tactics be used to address livestock-wolf conflicts before killing wolves.
But it doesn't end there. The agency is now trying to downgrade the wolves' status from endangered to merely sensitive.
We know what will happen. More wolves will be killed, both legally and illegally.
The department will issue more kill permits to livestock owners and greatly reduce the jail time and fines for wolf poachers, which adds an incentive to kill even more wolves.
Washington's wolves are still trying to find their footing, but they continue to suffer from persecution. The last thing they need is less protection.
What we see there is what we frequently see elsewhere: officials dismissing or ignoring science, usually at the behest of industry.
The law is clear, and it sides with protecting wildlife and their habitat.
We're doing all we can to give wolves and other wildlife the path to thrive in the wild — and you can help.
Please make a gift today to the Saving Life on Earth Fund.
For the wild,
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