C.Stoppelman
UKC Forum Member
Registered: Sep 2009
Location: MN
Posts: 95 |
story
here's the story of what happened that horiable night
On Saturday September 18th 2010 I went to a U.K.C licened event in Fosston,MN with my hound U.K.C CH NITECH'PR' ZIMMERMAN'S PEP-E.Where I drew out with
one of my close hunting friends Kila Butler who was hunting NITECH GRCH CLASSON TALL TREE BARNEY.Our guide was Brandon Oien an 18 year old member of the
culb. The night was going great between the first two drops we only used twenty minutes and had scored on two coons.Then on the third drop we cut loose and didn't hear
the hounds for ten minuties then they opened up to the side of us and Brandon goes "that's not good...that's a big bog swamp" but we could still hear the hounds
somewhat so we stood there and listened to the hounds and could tell they were getting deep and Brandon goes "wow they must be way over behind the pig barns" and
about that time a fight broke out and we weren't sure if they caught a coon on the ground or were fighting or what and after about a mintute or so my hound shut up and
Barney wasn't sounding like himself, it sounded like he was working his way back toward us but stopping and barking in places along the way. At this point I looked at Kila
and Brandon and said "you guys I have this feeling something isn't right here" and then we couldn't hear Barney so I started the 8 minute rules on them and we all said if
the 8 gets them we are calling time and driving like crazy to get over there cause walking through the swamp was not a option.The 8 expired and as we were walking back
toward the truck we could hear brush breaking down toward the swamp so we started calling for them, while still walking toward the truck. As we approached the truck we
heard growling at the truck and I shined my light and saw Barney standing with his feet on the tailgate looking every direction growling so Kila goes "Barney load" which he
did and went to the back of the box and started growling. So at this point we thought o.k. where's Pep-E and what the heck happened so I pulled out the tracking system
so he was a long ways off so we drove as fast as we could to where we thought he was. I pulled out the tracking system to track him.
Then Kila got Barney out of the dog box and saw that he had bite marks on his hind legs and one under his chest and I told Kila and Brandon "you guys he's not moving
and sounds like he's down in that swamp" so we drove down a field road behind some pig barns and got a good reading and that we weren't very far in the swamp, but we
were all so scared to wanta go in the swamp but Kila says "Chris we have to Pep-E could be in there hurt WE HAVE TO" so we put our fear away and went in the swamp
to start tracking and according to my tracker it had me walking in circles and I couldn't figure out what was going on. We could hear brush breaking so we all thought he
was scared and running in circles and didn't want to come to us. Finally I said here Kila you take this stupid Tracker cause I can't get a reading and she turned it way down
and said "he has to be right there" and I took two steps and Brandon says"oh my gosh there he is I can see the green blinking light of his tracking collar' shut off your light
and you can see him" so I did and couldn't see the light so I asked "where" and he goes "right there...right infront of you" so I shut off my light again and Brandon goes "oh
no...he's on the ground". So I flipped on my light again and Brandon goes he's just to your right" and I turned and my light beam was right on him and he was laying there
dead and I couldn't stand the site and turned around and thank goodness there was a tree behind me to brace me and hold me up.Then Kila walked over and put her arm
around me and says "give me your light I'll go pull his collars" so I did and as she was we could still hear some brush braking behind us and I said " NO...I HAVE TO SEE
HIM". So I walked up and viewed him for a minute while Kila get the collars off and then she says "LET'S GET OUT OF HERE NOW!!!!!!" So we fast trotted out of the
swamp and got in the truck and she told Brandon" TURN THIS THING AROUND AND FLOOR IT", as we were scared for our lifes.So we headed back to the club house and
I told everyone what had happened and we called the state patrol as they have a line to contact the game warden on duty and that night there wasn't one on duty. So we
called and left messages about what had happened and the following morning the officer came out to see the body and do an investigation. Because the DNR has to do an
investigation so we couldn't move the body that night. After doing an investigation in which we found two sets of tracks around the hound and in circles around it was
determined it was in fact a wolf attack. I was then told by the game warden that the state does NOT compensate for pets, only livestock and that a dog is not considered
livestock, but that he would notify the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Assocation and see what they had to say on the matter. Because there had been a few other people in the
state that had dogs killed and got some compensation. That following Monday I got a call back from the DNR officer and he told me he got a hold of the Fish and Wildlife
Assocation and they said "sorry but we don't compensate for pets, only livestock and because it was a dog and not livestock, and the first report that we don't feel the need
to send out fedral trappers to trap them". Because the wolfs are federally protected by the MN DNR and couldn't do anything about it. As much as they wanted to because
they know how much of a problem wolves are becomming and something needs to be done to control them as there are more and more reports of wolf problems every year.
Ranging from livestock being injured or killed, pets even on chains in back yards, to even kids being watched and stalked after they get off the bus from school.This article
is meant to raise awareness that wolves are becoming a problem and need to have more control over them, but by being federally protected states can't. So until the wolves
are removed from the federal list they are going to be protected and given right to keep killing and putting fear into people.So please help get the wolves off the endanged
speices list so they can be controlled by the state which they know are a problem rather then people in washington D.C. who don't have to deal with them everyday.
Chris Stoppelman
In memory is CH NITECH'PR' ZIMMERMAN'S PEP-E....gone but not forgotten
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IN MEMORY OF CH NITECH 'PR' ZIMMERMAN'S PEP-E
GRNITECH'PR'STYLE'S WILD SMOKE
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09-23-2010 10:26 PM
