Predator ‘Looks Like A Wolf,’ Biologist Says Animal Spotted Stalking Deer Sunday In Pend Oreille County

A predator that experts say is either a wolf or a wolf-hybrid is roaming a rural section of Pend Oreille County, just north of Spokane.

Game experts expressed interest in the sighting Tuesday, but said the animal doesn’t pose any immediate danger to people in the area.

The animal was spotted and photographed Sunday a few miles north of the community of Camden, where the carcass of a confirmed wolf was recovered last year.

The animal spotted Sunday was stalking a wounded year-old whitetail deer that appeared to have been shot in the left front leg.

Several photographs were taken with a 300mm lens by a Spokesman-Review reporter.

“Yeah, it definitely looks like a wolf, and it’s definitely not a coyote,” said Jerry Hickman of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, after viewing photos of the animal.

The wildlife biologist said the animal could be a wolf-dog hybrid that was raised domestically and escaped captivity.

“These animals are not wolves and they’re not dogs,” Hickman said. “But it also could be a wolf. We know there are wolves in Pend Oreille County.”

There have been no recent sightings of wolf-hybrids in the part of Pend Oreille County where the animal was spotted Sunday.

“Most of our wolf sightings in Pend Oreille County occur between November and March because the deer move down onto winter range,” Hickman said.

Mary Sagal, who has done extensive studies on wolves and is a former research assistant to a wolf biologist, said she’s convinced the animal isn’t a coyote.

“Based on the photos, I think it’s either a wolf or a wolf-dog hybrid,” said Sagal, who lives near Spokane and writes a monthly dog column for The Spokesman-Review. “If it’s a hybrid, I think it’s a hybrid that is a larger percentage wolf than dog.”

Hickman said the only way wildlife biologists can positively identify wolves is through DNA tests on fur or blood samples.

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