Contrary to Popular Belief, Wolves Are Not Wild Doggos
Editor’s Note: We figured that since more states are reintroducing grey wolves, we thought that we should do our readers a solid and expand upon the wolf safety measures mentioned in How to Survive Wild Animal Attacks
When you think of wolf attacks on humans, you might imagine Liam Neeson preparing to throw down with a terrifying wolf, as he did in the 2011 thriller The Grey. If anyone could survive this, maybe it would be the man who has a “very particular set of skills.”
But most people wouldn’t have great odds of walking away from a fight with one of these strong, carnivorous mammals. It’s nothing against humans—wolves are capable of taking down most animals they encounter, no matter how big or small. So it’s a good thing that wolf attacks are rare.
Bark & Bite
Of all large carnivores, wolves are the least dangerous to humans. This is according to Western Wildlife Outreach, a group that aims to maintain healthy populations of gray wolves, black bears, and cougars in Washington State and the Northwest. According to its website, “Wolves that approach people, buildings, livestock or domestic dogs are either habituated to humans, unhealthy, wolf-dog hybrids or former captive animals.”
In North America, where we have about 60,000 wolves, there have been only two modern wolf-related fatalities. These deaths are thought to be caused by sick or habituated wolves. Kenton Joel Carnegie was killed in 2005 near Points North Landing, Saskatchewan. The wolves had become familiar with (and therefore less afraid of) humans. Candace Burner died after she was attacked while out jogging near Chignik Lake, Alaska, in 2010. She was petite (4’11”, according to a 2011 story in the Anchorage Daily News), wearing headphones, and jogging alone.
Wolves Go for the Weak
Wolves aim to get their prey to run so they can assess the animal to see if it’s healthy or an easy victim, according to Oliver Starr, a wildlife and wildland advocate and professional animal handler. “In the wild, wolves are looking for weak prey. They are not ambush predators like big cats. Wolves don’t make themselves a secret. They’ll wander amongst prey and check them out. They’re looking for those who are weak or sick, because they are the easy target. Wolves go for the sick, the weak, the old, the starving—whoever is vulnerable, they go after them,” said Starr, who survived a wolf attack from one of his wolves many years ago. But more on that later.
Lorna Smith, executive director of Western Wildlife Outreach, says that the message her organization tries to teach is that, of all the large carnivores people encounter in North America, there are few fatalities. “But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be respectful and aware of these dangerous animals,” she said, noting that situational awareness is key. “Be aware. Be respectful. Know that these animals are very capable of inflicting damage—they have big teeth and claws—but usually they don’t.”
Regardless of how rare wolf encounters with humans are, the animals are fast, strong, and calculating. And they have big, sharp teeth. So knowing what to do if faced with a wolf is a good idea.
Take Precautions
Do not approach wolves. Do not feed them or do anything that would habituate them to people. Definitely do not go near a wolf den or a wolf kill. And for the love of all that’s holy, do not ruffle their fur and ask, “Whooosa good boy?!!”
If you see a wolf, don’t run. That’ll make the wolf think you’re prey. Don’t make yourself look weak or vulnerable, which to a wolf could mean being small, running or falling down. “Make yourself look large and aggressive,” said Starr, who lives in South Lake Tahoe, California. “When we stand up, we’re large, like a grizzly bear. And it looks unfamiliar. If you’re wearing a jacket, raise it over your head so you look enormous as you growl, roar, scream, and yell. Whatever noise you can make.” If you do these things, Starr can’t imagine a wolf attacking you. The idea is to make the wolves think it would not be worth the effort or risk to their safety.
If you find yourself in a survival situation, however, Starr says to keep the wolf or wolves in front of you. “Wolves want to get you from the back, so I would want to stay facing the animals. I would try to get my back to something so nothing could get behind me,” recommended Starr, whose 7-year-old wolf, Aqutaq, sleeps with him at night.
“I’d back away until my back was to a fence. THis is so I’d only be dealing with 180 degrees of risk rather than 360 degrees of risk. I’d work myself to an exit where I could keep my eyes on them and stay facing them.”
A Close Call
Starr knows what he’s talking about when it comes to wolf attacks on humans. He nearly died when his wolf, Jake, attacked him in the 1980s, when Starr was living in Colorado. Jake was a wild-caught 1-year-old who had not been socialized. He was given to Starr by a private nonprofit that needed someone capable of taking care of him because he couldn’t be released back into the wild.
One day, during a photo shoot, Jessa—a wolf-dog who had been with Starr her entire life—was off-leash while Jake was leashed. Jessa had been running around and Starr, afraid Jessa would be hit by a car, tried to get ahold of her.
“When Jessa cruised by me, I pounced on her to get ahold of her, and I put myself in a vulnerable position,” Starr said. “I wasn’t paying attention to the fact that Jake didn’t like how I was getting ahold of Jessa. I grabbed her collar real quick, and she kind of squeaked in displeasure like, ‘Dad got me,’” Starr remembered.
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While Starr was holding Jake’s restraint and crouching down to leash Jessa, Jake bit Starr. The wolf pulverized Starr’s forearm, splintering the bones within, and dragged him around by the arm. “I reached my other hand in his mouth, so I had my fist in his mouth while my forearm was still in the back. Even then, he was able to break all the fingers and he fractured all the bones in my left hand,” Star said. “I had him in a headlock and he was twisting to get a better grip. I could feel my hand falling apart in his grip and sort of dissociated from my body.”
Fortunately for Starr, his assistant grabbed Jake by his testicles. “She grabbed and squeezed his balls really hard,” Starr recalled. “He let go of me and jumped up. If she had not been a ranch chick who knew what to do, I would have died. She grabbed the lead to jerk him back. I sprung to my feet as she grabbed the leash. He had enough slack to grab at my throat, and she pulled him back so when he jumped for my throat and face, instead, he got my bicep through my jacket. It was just a little nip and I had an 80-percent tear in my muscle.”
Years later, Starr, who continues to have wrist and hand pain at times, is certain that he was at fault. “It was 100 percent on me,” he said. “It was a captive wolf being mishandled by a handler. The animal responded appropriately to the stimulus I provided, which was bad behavior by the handler.”
What to Do When a Wolf Attacks
Although a wolf isn’t likely to attack a human, if a wolf attacks you, your chances of survival are not ideal, Starr says. Nevertheless, if you were being attacked by a wild wolf without help, Starr says to curl into a ball like a hedgehog, cover the back of your neck and head, and hope they stop. “At that point, you’re in bad shape. You’re in real trouble.”
Around Pet Dogs
Wolves are much more likely to attack a dog than a person. According to “Too Close for Comfort: The Problem of Habituated Wolves,” a resource created by the International Wolf Center, “Wolves are known to be aggressive toward domestic dogs. [They] usually try to kill them when given the opportunity.”
If your dog is with you and a wolf is nearby, bring the dog to heel at your side as fast as possible and leash it. “Standing between the dog and the wolf often ends the encounter,” Western Wildlife Outreach’s website suggests. “To avoid risk of injury to yourself, do not attempt to break up a physical fight between a wolf and a dog except by using bear spray or a powerful hose from a safe distance.”
Although it should probably go without saying, keep your pets leashed and with you while camping. And do not take your dog near anywhere wolves might den because that would put them at risk.
“Wolves don’t den except when they have pups,” Starr explained. “Wolves always sleep above ground otherwise. So, if wolves are denning, they are pinned to a location—their principle territory—and they will be much more defensive of that territory. So, if you have another canine in their territory, they view that as a direct threat to their family. Keep your dog on a leash and keep your dog close to you to prevent wolf attacks.”
