At least 180 wolves and 20 packs currently live in Switzerland, and the wolf population continues to grow. Given the challenges facing alpine farming, the Federal Council wants to further facilitate the killing of wolves. The government announced this on Wednesday. It has sent a corresponding partial revision of the Hunting Regulation for consultation.
Among other things, the shooting of harmful single wolves must be made easier, the Federal Council announced on Wednesday. The shooting threshold is lowered from ten to eight animals killed in areas where wolves are on the move and have done damage before.
In the future, this includes not only killed but also seriously injured cattle and horses, as well as llamas and alpacas. This should apply to both lone wolves and pack wolves.
Shoot immediately if people are in danger
In the future, wolves should also be able to be shot if they endanger people “significantly”. This rule should apply to lone wolves and pack wolves and should be possible without the approval of the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN).
It should now also be possible to regulate packs in which no offspring are born. With the permission of the federal government, young animals from the previous year may also be shot. Conditions for this are major damage or a significant threat to humans and a regionally safe wolf population.
The wolf remains protected and may not be hunted, shooting is still only allowed under the stated conditions. Compared to the revision of the hunting law, which was rejected by the people, additional conditions for the wolf regulation remain. In September 2020, Swiss voters rejected the hunting law revision proposal prepared by the Federal Council and Parliament.
The changes are expected to come into effect in the summer of 2023. The consultation lasts until February 23, 2023. (sie/sda)