The flock is no longer the same

Walter Annen's sheep spent the summer on an alp in Engelberg. Shortly before returning home, a wolf attacked them. The aftermath is still noticeable, both for the sheep and the farmer.
 

Walter Annen approaches the barn door calmly and slowly. Even before he opens it, he starts talking to the sheep inside. He greets them and makes his presence known, and he only enters after knocking. The twenty sheep look at him. The curious ones come closer, wanting to know what he has brought them, while the others stay in the background and observe the situation.

Their scepticism is justified. Because they recently had an encounter with a wolf. ‘The flock hasn't been the same since,’ says the farmer, who lives with his family on a farm just outside Walchwil. For the time being, he hasn’t let the animals out to pasture, even though there’s plenty of grass to eat. The sheep are traumatised and frightened. ‘It's hard to watch. When the animals are not well, I suffer too.’ He is overcome with emotion as he recounts the incident.

Walter Annen's sheep spent the summer on the Furggi Alp in Engelberg. A few days before the descent from the Alps, a wolf appeared. ‘On Friday evening, the farmer on the alp (Älpler) called us to say that a wolf had been spotted in the pasture. We had to collect the animals as quickly as possible.’

Dead and missing sheep
He and his wife set off for Engelberg On Saturday. As they rounded up the herd, which also included animals belonging to other farmers, it became clear that the wolf had already been active. It had killed three sheep. There was no trace of three others. ‘It's possible that they fell somewhere while fleeing,’ said the farmer. They haven’t been found to this day.

Three days after the attack, back home, one of his sheep suffered a miscarriage. Walter Annen had the animal examined to rule out a bacterial infection as the cause. ‘According to the vet and the laboratory confirmation, acute stress was the cause.’

The incident weighs heavily on his mind. During a visit to the farm, he says: ‘The thought of a wolf attack on my own pasture is a horror scenario that is constantly on my mind.’ This has been the case for three or four years. ‘Ever since the wolf became much more present in our areas.’ When he comes to the pasture in the morning and everything is fine, it is a great relief and he can breathe a sigh of relief. ‘This stress really takes its toll on you.’

Sheep farmer Walter Annen with his sheep in the barn in Walchwil                             Photo: Matthias Jurt
 

Now it has happened, not at home, but on the alp. And the canton of Obwalden also has a responsibility. If it can be proven that animals have been killed by wolves and that herd protection measures have been observed, the farmers will receive financial compensation. What this means in the case of the missing animals and the miscarriage is currently being investigated.

Is the wolf more important than sheep?
For Walter Annen, one thing is clear: ‘Money is only one side of the coin; the animals are much more important.’ Herd protection does not mean that the animals are protected. It’s much more a form of financial security, says the 55-year-old. ‘Even the 1.10-metre-high protective fences we use here cannot stop the wolf from jumping over them.’

He finds it incomprehensible that, on the one hand, there are so many animal welfare regulations that he as a farmer has to comply with – ‘I understand that and think most of the requirements are important’ – but on the other hand, it’s accepted that the animals suffer in such an incident.

‘The wolf doesn't always kill immediately; and the seriously injured animals are often still alive hours later.’ The protection of the wolf is being prioritised over that of grazing animals. The wolf already has its place in Switzerland, but the population has become too large. ‘I can well understand why farmers and alpine farmers are wondering whether they want to continue like this.’

He has been running the small farm for 25 years, which is home to sheep, breeding cattle and a few dairy cows. ‘Nothing has ever happened in all these years that has shaken me as much as the wolf attack.’

Note:
Opinions differ, even within the canton
Upon request, the Obwalden Office for Forest and Landscape (AWL: Amt für Wald und Landschaft) confirmed that at least three sheep were killed on the Furggi Alp on the night of 13th September. Three more sheep are still missing. The Office writes that the kill pattern clearly points to the wolf as the culprit. This was determined by the gamekeeper on site on the morning of 14th September. The results of the DNA analysis are still pending.

A total of 28 sheep have been killed by wolves in the canton of Obwalden during the current alpine season, with six more missing. This is significantly more than in previous years, with only 2020 seeing a similar number at 26.

The fact that opinions on the subject of wolves differ is clearly illustrated by the example of the canton of Obwalden: even the authorities are divided. The AWL is responsible for the management of large predators. But herd protection falls within the remit of the Office for Agriculture and the Environment (ALU: Amt für Landwirtschaft und Umwelt).

When asked, the ALU is clear in its response: ‘Losses of livestock caused by wolves on this scale are unacceptable. Regulatory measures are essential for large predators that cause damage.’

The AWL, on the other hand, writes that the approach to wolves does not need to be fundamentally rethought. The legal framework – population control, herd protection and the culling of animals that cause damage – is in place and must be consistently implemented. ‘The wolf is here and will remain here. Therefore, the presence of wolves must be expected throughout the canton of Obwalden at all times in the future.’ The AWL is optimistic: ‘The aim is to keep the wolves shy. They should feed on wild animals. This will enable wolves and humans to coexist in the cultural landscape of Obwalden in the long term.’

The ALU takes a different view. Reasonable herd protection measures are largely being implemented. However, their effectiveness is limited. ‘Satisfactory coexistence between wolves, livestock and society in general in our small canton is unlikely to ever become a reality.’