Wisconsin Wolf Hunt Blocked After Dane County Judge's Ruling

MADISON, WI — A Dane County judge has issued an injunction to require the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to set the November wolf hunt quota to zero until rules are established for the hunt.

The state agency violated the Wisconsin Constitution by not writing concrete, formal rules and not following its own policies over the wolf hunt, Circuit Court Judge Jacob Frost ruled Friday.

The judge ordered the agency to set the wolf hunt quota to zero and to issue zero licenses to participating hunters until the DNR board starts formal rulemaking, Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy said in a joint statement.

The injunction was granted after Animal Wellness Action, the Center for a Humane Economy, Project Coyote, Friends of Wisconsin Wolf and Wildlife, and Wisconsin resident Pat Clark filed a lawsuit against the wildlife agency, wildlife advocacy groups said.

“The court brought sanity and balance to the wolf debate in Wisconsin by requiring [Department of Natural Resources] to follow the constitution and stop taking unlawful actions related to wolf management, including its reckless approach to the planned November wolf hunt,” Animal Wellness Action Wisconsin director Paul Collins said.

Hunter Nation President and CEO Luke Hilgemann said the state agency should appeal the case to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. "We are reviewing our options for how to best continue the fight while Wisconsin's hunters wait for the [wildlife agency] to do the right thing," he added.

The wolf hunt kill quota was lowered from 300 to 130 in early October after six Ojibwe Tribes sued members of the DNR board and the agency's head in late September.

The hunt was set to start Nov. 6.

See Also:

• Wisconsin's 2021 Wolf Hunt Quota Lowered
• Animal Protection, Wildlife Groups File Lawsuit Over Wolf Hunt