Boise Real Estate Report

Recently the most unsophisticated, down right evil, nasty scurvy of a wolf, allegedly, beat up a poor wolf advocate and got off with the jury being hung. The prosecutor, not wanting the wrath of all the rest of the central Idaho wolf haters, dropped the charges. It is unfortunate in that it will probably embolden Mr. Ron Gillette and others like him to continue to act in a manner equally as uncivilized as the 4 legged wolf himself. He has been this way and acted in such a manner since I worked for a company that competed with his 20 years ago. Selfish, mean, nasty, uneducated, dare I say stupid. No that is too much, unreasonable would be a better description. Did I mention selfish, uncaring and selfish, without the ability to see past the end of his nose. I am quite sure he will show up to try and beat the crap out of me for writing this. He sure as hell would not give me a ride to town if I had two flat tires in a driving snow storm and needed help, for he would now place me in the camp of enemy. He probably thinks that I am worse than the wolf itself.

I would like to put forth here my story of the wolf that thinks little red riding hood is coming to my cabin. 4 weeks ago on our way to goat pack to a lake high in the Frank Church wilderness area, we stopped at our cabin to get packs ready and decided to spend the night there as daylight was fading fast by the time we were geared up. Upon arising the next morning we found that the goats had drug the picnic tables they were tied to in a manner that it was obvious something had startled them. As we started to load goats, I noticed that the goat tied furthest out and to the back of the trailer had been injured on it's left rear leg. Its hamstring was missing a piece of skin 2x2 inches and the flap of skin between its hamstring and its knee had a big hole in it. We look all over that end of the trailer to figure out were the bolt was that had punctured his leg. upon finding no evidence that he had injured himself on the trailer, I put two and two together and realized we had had a visitor. Looking around we found numerous wolf tracks in the drive way. It is a pea gravel dirt driveway, perfect for leaving tracks. We had not heard a thing. My cabin is sandwiched between the highway 21 and the river, surrounded by millions of acres of national forest. The gentleman at the enforcement office for the federal government told me in essence what do you expect? I pointed out that I did not have a problem with them on the national forest but do have an issue with them in my driveway. I assumed it was a fluke as we had only ever seen wolf sign in the winter when the game is down. We returned 2 weeks later to find a giant pile of poop 6 feet from the front of the cabin, for a minute I thought a certain wolf hater had been there but realized later even he probably would not stoop that low. It was from the 4 legged kind. We went to bed early after working on cabin repairs all day. We had not been asleep for 15 minutes when the dogs went nuts, I yelled "Ron get away from them they are not wolves or wolf advocates just dogs" I looked out the window to realize it was the 4 legged kind, not 15 feet from my bedroom window about to take a chunk out of my favorite pointers hind end. In my whitey tighties I beat a path, intent on destruction, out the front door. Grabbed a shovel and a piece of iron pipe and charged in the direction that the wolf had been. I think the wolf thought I was part of the anti-wolf coalition and he moved off. I could see him lurking at the end of the driveway and did my best imitation of Roger Clemens trying to hit someone in the head(Maybe we should get him and Mr. Gilette together and they can trade notes) with the iron pipe. The small amount of adrenaline that I had helped me to over shoot my target by a good 40 yards. No more wolf that weekend. The next time we went I was prepared to strongly discourage the wolf from visiting us any longer. The gentleman that runs the dump has since informed me there is a pack with a den on the hill about a mile from the cabin so it may well be wolves. I took my shotgun and a few rounds of number 4 buck as well as some turkey loads. At this point you are probably thinking I sound a little like Mr. Gilette. I do not disagree with everything he thinks just most of it, and pretty much all of his tactics. Anyway as my 9 year old has started to say I am off task. I had a lengthy conversation with the federal enforcement official who will come to investigate if I indeed need to put the kibosh on said wolf or wolves and basically he would agree that I would be legal in shooting the wolf if it had drawn blood. Above and beyond that he would not commit to any thing as being legal, " each case is different". The rule states that if the wolf is harassing my stock or my dog then I have the right to shoot it. It seems the feds interpretation of the definition of harassing is that if there is any other option other than shooting wolf up to the point that it takes a bite, then that is what you should do and it would be illegal to shoot said perpetrator. It would seem to me that a wolf in my driveway 15 feet from both the dog and my house would fit into about anybodies definition of harassment, but apparently Mr Clinton is defining harassment for the US Fish and Wildlife service. It must depend on what the definition of harassment is. Long story short, the dogs barked, I got up, and peaked out the window, and saw movement in the distance. Bing, bang boom, to the door I flew, crocs so neatly laid out on, I grabbed my turkey special with the extra full choke and out the door I went, in my tightey whiteys. Running to were I had seen the movement. The wolf had slipped into the shadows. I waited trying to figure out which way it had gone for I wanted to scare they crap out of it. I had to much to do the next day to kill it and spend the whole next day dealing with the feds and the state. Presently it appeared, outlined by the street light in the church parking lot. I drew down and let er rip. The wolf decided that he or she had had enough, even at 80 yards there was apparently enough sting in those 6's to help the wolf readjust its personal space boundaries, for it has not been back. By the way the Mr. Neddo at the state thought that the wolf in that close a proximity, with dogs and house would qualify as harassment. On top of that the Us Fish and Wildlife would have to find a jury from Boise county willing to convict, if I did elect to shoot to kill rather than scare. And as Mr. Gilettes Case is dropped, it shows that getting a jury to convict for assault on a human in a wolf case is hard enough, try getting a conviction if all you did was shoot a wolf trying to eat your dog in your driveway would be nigh onto impossible.

That said, we are overrun with wolves at this point. We have not had a big game animal die of winter kill in a number of years, they are showing up in places and on private property were no one in there right mind ever expected them. The pro wolf component would do well to realize and accept that the time has come to manage and stop with the law suits. I fear that to much more and we may find a back lash that is strong emough to get some of the laws that are truely good and help animals that are truely in trouble find there way back from the brink of extinction.

Enough is enough, from both sides. The pro wolf groups are irresponsibly pushing for further protection when the wolf needs a new draw to live in because there is allready a pack in the draw he is in and the drainages on both sides. But Mr. Gilette's way of dealing with the "problem" is a lot of bluster and temper which will not solve anything. Again environmentalists, the pro wolf groups ought to be ashamed of themselves for using the law to push through further protection of the wolf when it does not need further protection, when there are alot of other animals in a lot more trouble who could use the time and expertise. If the endanger species act is changed and weakened because of an anti wolf back lash, tsk, tsk, tsk. I do not believe you can see any further down your nose than Ron Gillette can. I t would be a som' bitch for those poor salmon and steelhead struggling to get past those four lower snake damns. Two wrongs do not make a right last time I checked. Get with the program, the wolf is recovered and needs to be thinned more than it needs your help. The salmon need your help, the salmon need a strong endangered species act. Please do not give those people who are trying to weaken it any more ammunition.