Shepherds want to hunt ‘rogue wolf ’ in Germany

SHEPHERDS and environmentalists have clashed over claims a “rogue wolf ” is marauding through southern Germany

The animal is believed to have gone on a killing spree, after several sheep and a goat were found dead on Saturday in the Odenwald forest.

Locals had thought wolves were extinct in the forest, which extends over parts of Hesse, Baden-württemberg and Bavaria. Many farmers fear financial losses, said Bernd Keller, chairman of the forest’s shepherds association, who called for the wild animal to be hunted.

But the Hessian State Office for Nature Conservation, Environment and Geology, along with other environmental groups, has called for calm, and said demands for a hunt are “unjustified and inappropriate”.

As an endangered species, wolves are protected animals. As a result, killing them is strictly prohibited.