Wolf lottery results are available

View · by **smurfman** on Thu Sep 27, 2012 7:13 pm

And no, I did not get one this year.

View · by **Hammered Squirrel** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 7:27 am

Sorry to hear that.

On a positive note I got drawn and that means so did StottingMuley.

View · by **Shipyard** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 7:44 am

i got the shaft too... :cry:

View · by **grousemaster** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 7:48 am

Would you guys hunt them from stand with rifles? Just curious.

View · by **sgruenhagen44** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 7:55 am

How would you hunt those things. Didn't they change the law so you can't hunt with dogs? Do you call them in like yotes?

View · by **grousemaster** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 7:59 am

sgruenhagen44 wrote:How would you hunt those things. Didn't they change the law so you can't hunt with dogs? Do you call them in like yotes?

That's what I'm sayin', I tromp through the woods 20+ days a year and have seen exactly one wolf in MN while deer or grouse hunting. Seems like an impossible task, unless you're going to setup bait/traps ,etc....in which case I bet more bird dogs are harvested than wolves

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a wolf pelt in my basement, but damn those things are smart.

View · by **sgruenhagen44** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 8:22 am

Well think of it this way... Minnesota is infested with coyotes, and on the rare occasion you see them they're usually on the run 400 yards out unless I'm still hunting but even then you don't seem them very often.

View · by **Hammered Squirrel** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:27 am

I'm a southern Minnesota guy, but I have some land up north that I see wolves on all the time. I have been stalked by one while late season bow hunting once.

Edit: by me having land, I mean I have access to land that's owned by friends.

View · by **grousemaster** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:35 am

No comments from guys that applied regarding how they would hunt them....

View · by **smurfman** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:38 am

I applied for the second season with a firearm. I did this as I I would have a much longer hunting season as well as the wolves being further into their prime as far as coats. Agreed, one will seldom see a wolf while roaming around, no different than bears, as people are pretty noisy in the woods, all things considered. Couple that with the huge area a single wolf pack utilizes, roughly 25 square miles at the minimum, making it unlikely a wolf will even be within miles of a person whenever they go into the woods. That makes seeing one long odds at any time let alone the short period of time encompassed by hunting season.

In regards to the hunting tactics used, I would have used a multiple of them. Glassing and stalking is a possibility as wolves are like any other canine and like to sun themselves when it is chilly. In the area I planned on hunting, it is not unusual to find wolves at the field edges when the sun is out. It may be pretty hard to stalk them in such situations but as there are often regular sites for this, it is possible to stake out an area and ambush them. Shots would probably be on the long side so one needs to be a fairly accomplished shot and use a gun with good long range capability.

Another tactic would be to find a fresh kill and then slowly stalk the area looking for them. When a wolf is stuffed they tend to be pretty heavy sleepers and it is not uncommon to end up in their midst. I've done it twice though neither time in MN. I think this often happens with hunting dogs and is one reason the dogs often escape with rather minor injuries.

I would have gone with calling as the method most likely to be successful. In the past I have called in wolves 8 different times, 6 times when calling for bobcats using a dying rabbit call and twice while bear hunting using a fawn distress call. All these times the wolf was well within shooting distance, usually of a shotgun. Twice the wolves were much closer than even I cared for.

As effective as this may seem, I would have used a different type of call than prey. Wolves are very territorial and will very frequently accept challenges from strangers. I have called wolves in by howling many times and sometimes they have come into the yard during daylight when doing so. This is what I feel would have been my most successful technique and one I have been working on for a long time (just didn't think I would ever get a chance to use it in MN).

I maybe should have gone with a trapping tag, it is likely fewer applied and one would have the whole time to use in taking a wolf. It really isn't much different than coyote trapping with many of the basics being the same. A bit of fine tuning is all that seems to be necessary. At least that is what I've been taught by a retired Dept of Ag trapper who spent many years trapping problem wolves.

Based on his experiences with wolves, plus those of others in the same position as well as mine and others with coyotes, it is an ignorant comment betting about more dogs being caught and killed than wolves. There is a considerable number of coyote traps out there with a very small actual number of dogs being caught in them. Even fewer dogs are killed. A wolf set up would be no different. In fact, if the legends are true, there should be no dogs running around wolf country as the wolves would have eliminated them posthaste. So, the catching of dogs in wolf sets should be a non-factor.

I would worry much more about a bucket set for bobcats, fisher, marten, et al which utilize a Conibear type trap than a wolf set which is using either a leg hold or a snare. I have used snares very, very little but what I've been told by those who use them frequently, unless the snare is using a lock to keep the loop closed, the odds of a dog strangling itself is fairly low. A dog is usually familiar with a collar and leash so it will typically stop struggling if caught in a snare. If the snare does not have a lock on it, the loop will loosen and the dog will breath fine. Wild animals tend to struggle against it and then they may strangle and die. And leg holds generally do not catch a dog in a vital area.

View · by **Shipyard** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:13 pm

i put in for it on the off chance that i'd see one while deer hunting. not so worried about not getting it as i'm ntop motivated to go balls out for wolf....

i got my lottery this year, so in addition to "if it's brown, it's down..." i could have also headed out with the axiom: "if it's grey - unload all day"

i like to keep my choices simplistic in a day...

View · by **grousemaster** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:18 pm

Shipyard wrote:i put in for it on the off chance that i'd see one while deer hunting. not so worried about not getting it as i'm ntop motivated to go balls out for wolf....

i got my lottery this year, so in addition to "if it's brown, it's down..." i could have also headed out with the axiom: "if it's grey - unload all day"

i like to keep my choices simplistic in a day...

haha, nice. I didn't realize the wolf season would overlap with deer season.

View · by **Heffay** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:19 pm

Shipyard wrote:i like to keep my choices simplistic in a day...

Nothing will ruin a good day fishing or hunting like having to think. ;-)

View · by **grousemaster** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:26 pm

Thanks for the details Smurfman, that's exactly what I was hoping for as I have NO CLUE how to hunt wolves.

In fact, if the legends are true, there should be no dogs running around wolf country as the wolves would have eliminated them posthaste. So, the catching of dogs in wolf sets should be a non-factor.

I do take issue with this part though (although I won't go as far as calling your comments ignorant). Wolves live in the north woods. Ruffed grouse are the most hunted bird in Minnesota. Grouse habitat is Wolf habitat by definition, so thousands of dogs are in wolf country every year. They just are. Bucket sets are indeed the most dangerous for hunting dogs, I know a guy that lost a nice little setter to a bucket set last year. Beeper was going off like the dog was on point, she wasn't on point.

View · by **sgruenhagen44** on Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:39 pm

Don't get me wrong, I have no problem hunting. But I do think trapping is a little cruel. I used to trap squirrels in a humane trap and that even made me feel bad. I would rather be shot, then be held in a trap for a while and then have someone come up and shoot me. For this post, I better equip my flame suit.