La Pine neighborhood has an ‘interesting’ guest drop by – a wolf on the run. A security camera captured it
(Update: Adding video)
La PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Paul Lamb was outside his La Pine home, raking up pine needles, when he spotted something "weird" and interesting: a wolf, running down their street.
"The wolf came from the south, going north" along Center Drive on Tuesday afternoon, Lamb tells KTVZ News.
"Then it saw me and kind of went across, going into the neighbor's yards into the trees, kind of like trying to avoid us."
It's not something Paul or Margaret Lamb have seen in their 20 years of living there.
"It was interesting," he said Wednesday. "It didn't seem threatening at all. It actually tried to get away."
"I thought, 'Well, that was weird.'"
His wife suggested that maybe it was caught on their home's security camera - and it was.
Was it really a wolf, not a dog or hybrid? We turned to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to see.
An ODFW wildlife biologist in Bend said "he believes it’s a wolf, based on what we know about this pack’s movements and the physical characteristics of certain wolves in the pack (e.g. color)," agency spokeswoman Michelle Dennehy told KTVZ News on Wednesday.
"This is in the known area of the Upper Deschutes Pack and good habitat for wolves (national forest nearby, deer and elk in the area)," Dennehy added.
She noted that "the wolf was seen in daylight but also appears skittish in the video (e.g. wary of people not habituated) and is moving through the area, not sticking around. We have no reports of livestock damage or public safety issues from this pack, though we’ve had other sightings in this general area."
Dennehy also shared "some good tips for people in areas with wolves, similar to advice we give for bears, cougars and coyotes https://dfw.state.or.us/Wolves/docs/oregon_wolf_country_flyer.pdf."
The ODFW official also had some advice.
"Residents in the area should not leave pet food outside and keep pets indoors at night – standard advice that reduces the risk of problems with all wildlife, including coyotes and cougars. If the wolf threatens pets or livestock or displays other concerning behavior, call US Fish and Wildlife Service and/or the ODFW Bend office."
The surprise visit occurred in an area of the state where wolves are federally listed as endangered.
Paul Lamb said others in the neighborhood also saw it, including a woman who lives across the street and stopped her car to ask if he'd seen it.
"The people who live right south of us rent a house from us," he said. "They saw it - they actually got in a car and followed it up the street."
