Valberg, mid-October 2019. A story will shake the station then the top of the State and it begins with cat food.
Danièle Portalier has heard the rumor: a wolf cub is wandering the streets of Valberg. But she didn't see him. Every day, she distributes kibble for ownerless cats in a small cabin set up near her home. And then she realizes that the little wolf feeds on her as soon as she leaves. “The distribution is done at 6 p.m. At 6:02 p.m., the wolf was there.”
Saving “an injured animal”
With her friend, Claudine Coudière, then other residents of their residential neighborhood, these animal defenders then find themselves at the forefront of an incredible story, recounted in the book The Wolf of Valbergpublished yesterday.
They realize that the cub, too young to hunt, is hungry and sick.
So they decide to “save” him. “It was unconscious, we took sides straight away, they retrace. There is an injured animal, we treated it as we would do for a badger. So”. All this while making as little noise as possible. Difficult. “We are in a village… I heard thoughts: did you feed the wolf today? Where are you hiding it?”.
Danièle and Claudine do not say that they have “fed” the wolf, but they have it “fixed”.
They do not change anything in the kibble ritual, which brings the animal in.
HQ at Danièle’s, Claudine as “sentinel”
And a whole organization is put in place to observe and document his behavior. He has a very specific route: he comes to eat the croquettes and takes refuge in the valley opposite Danièle and Claudine's neighborhood.
Danièle's terrace becomes “the HQ”.
Claudine is lent an apartment at the top of a residence. She has the role of “sentinel”: “I observe and I warn” when the wolf comes out of his valley.
Ladies know it: they need help. They do not turn to the authorities. They do not understand why the State grants authorization to kill this protected animal when it attacks herds. “The wolf is always controversial, remembers Danièle. We didn't want them to decide to shoot him because he was too weak.”
A collective put on the spot
They warn an amateur naturalist (who wishes to remain anonymous). He claims to have contacted different authorities, to no avail.
In fact, the capture of a wolf for treatment is an exception in France. And none had been released until now. So the naturalist turns to community activists.
They all have the same deep conviction: “If it hadn’t been for this movement, this wolf would have died”.
UPA06, a collective that finds shelter for injured animals, puts two volunteers on the job. Suzanne and her companion make frequent trips between Nice and Valberg. They exchange their information with mobilized local residents.
Here too, they are convinced that we must act quickly. “When we went up, it was starting to be a problem. He was wandering around the village, the residents were giving him food, we know it’s a problem.”
Chickens, cages and rifle
They obtain a signed document from a care center which agrees to treat the cub. For several days, they try to capture him with chicken and a crate. But the animal does not fall into the trap. Through their network, they then obtain a hypodermic gun to put him to sleep. They watch for the animal at night. When they finally see him pass, they report him to the shooter… who has dozed off. Their chance has passed.
All this is outlawed: capturing a wolf, a protected wild species, amounts to poaching. Suzanne knows this very well. “It's not legal at all. she admits. We were completely crazy. But the wolf would have been killed. And we're used to borderline things. Justice is not done for animals…” It happens that associations and law enforcement work together, as when a mass grave is discovered in a private home. But not this time.
Voltages and large capture device
The tension at the station is at its height. Rumors and social networks are stirring, the press has told the story. The prefecture issued the order to capture the animal. Everyone looks at each other like china dogs.
Danièle and Claudine are convinced that they have been followed and tricked. The two UPA06 activists recount clashes with the police: their information against the guarantee that the cub will be treated and that they participate in the capture. On the decisive evening, they were turned away.
November 2. The exceptional device alone proves the intelligence of the animal and the difficulty of catching it. Among the twenty people, the animal rescue group of the Sdis firefighters and their veterinarian, Véronique Vienet, were mobilized; a blood dog handler (who also senses the stress of prey) and the French Biodiversity Office (the environmental police).
The disappearance
In charge, the local boss of the OFB, Louis Bernard. He remembers an operation well done” : “We did a good job.” “After several nights in the cold and snow, we end up hitting him with a hypodermic arrow. He leaves and falls asleep further away, we find him thanks to the dog driver”.
This is not a first for Louis Bernard, who remembers having captured a wolf in the valley of Mollières, in 2007. An old female attacked by her pack, which died in captivity.
The departmental director of the OFB dismisses the activists' accusations. “The first cause of death among wolves is killing each other. There were associations trying to capture them with cages. They want to do well, but they are actually committing violations. We could have fined them , we acted as if we hadn’t seen anything. Our goal was to move forward.”
The cub is in bad condition. He was first taken to the veterinary clinic at the Cagnes-sur-Mer racecourse, before being taken to an authorized care center to be cured and trained to hunt. This is where he disappears from the radar, to the great dismay of all the protagonists. Louis Bernard assures that he knew nothing.
The wolf was finally released in Drôme, in the greatest secrecy, by ministerial decision. A first in France.
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