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Direction Lozère, where the State has just authorized the slaughter of a wolf, a protected species. The measure was pronounced in favor of the protection of herds. According to the prefecture, nearly 180 farm animals have been killed this year.
Every morning, it’s the same anguish for Mickaël Tichit, sheep farmer. He walks around his herd, and observes the damage. Since the beginning of 2022, 25 of his 350 sheep have been killed in wolf attacks, and as many injured. The breeder spends long hours caring for the survivors. Reintroduced in France around thirty years ago, the wolf has been present in Lozère since 2014. A protected area, it cannot be killed without authorization.
Faced with attacks, which most often take place at night, the shepherds organize themselves to keep him away. Jean-Paul Hébrard, shepherd in the mountain pastures of Aubaret (Lozère) has built a makeshift cabin. He has already lost 23 ewes in the year. “Frankly, I don’t know what to do anymore. We did everything to protect ourselves until we did that, sleeping there”, he confides. Faced with repeated attacks, the prefect of Lozère authorized for the first time the slaughter of a wolf. Insufficient, however, to calm the anger of the breeders. During a demonstration on Friday, September 30, some called for its eradication.