Wild Things

WILD THINGS: A film about the war on native carnivores

Many ranchers are rejecting the old practice of killing large carnivores to protect livestock. Instead, they are increasingly using new technology and old methods of animal husbandry to coexist with carnivores.

Native carnivores bring balance to the landscape and keep ecosystems healthy. But they can also be seen as a threat to livestock, and for decades government trappers have killed them in large numbers. The U.S.D.A.'s Wildlife Services program kills tens of thousands of native carnivores annually, often at the demand of the ranching industry. It is a battle against nature that is costly, brutal, and not very effective. Does the battle really need to be fought? Wild Things introduces audiences to progressive ranchers learning to coexist with these animals and features scientists, conservationists and even former Wildlife Services trappers, who believe it is time for a major change in the way we treat our magnificent native carnivores.

WILD THINGS: Cast

Photos by Lisa Whiteman
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Douglas Smith, PhD

Leader of Yellowstone National Park's Gray Wolf Restoration Project

Andrew Anderson

A Montana cattle rancher using non-lethal methods to control predation

Becky Weed

A Montana sheep rancher using non-lethal methods to control predation

Bill Jensen

A sheep rancher in California using non-lethal methods to control predation

Carter Niemeyer

A former Wildlife Services agent and trapper, now working with 40 ranches in Alberta on non-lethal predator control

Sherrine and Joe Engelhart

Alberta cattle ranchers participating in a large-scale project to control predators non-lethally