Do wolves pose a threat to humans?
Wolves naturally tend to be afraid of humans and will avoid human contact. In the past 60 years there have only been two wolf-caused fatalities in North America. On the rare chance that you encounter a wolf in the wild, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife states, “people should take the same steps as with cougars and bears to avoid problems – stand tall, act aggressively, raise your voice or shout, don’t run, and slowly back away while facing the animal.” Wolves habituated to people can pose a threat to human safety. To avoid habituation never feed or approach a wild wolf. Wolf-dog hybrids can be more dangerous to humans than wild wolves because they have lost their natural fear of humans from being bred from domestic dogs, yet still retain the predatory instinct from their wolf ancestry.
