About 20 children from Resen Friskole and Naturbørnehave in Struer had their field trip cut short last Wednesday when what appears to have been a wolf got a little too close for the comfort of the teachers leading the group.
The wolf was between 30 and 50 metres from the group, and the adults thought it was odd that the wolf just sat and observed them.
“It did not seem terribly frightened, so they stopped the trip,” Henrik Borg from Resen Friskole and Naturbørnehave told Århus Stiftstidende.
First in the area
Three fathers of children at the school searched the area with dogs later that evening, but could not find the wolf.
The institution wrote to parents following the encounter, saying that they do not fear for the safety of the children while at the school, as the play area is fenced in. They also said that they will continue taking the children on field trips.
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The wolf was again spotted on a local field two days after the incident with the kindergarten. This is the first wolf that has been spotted in Struer Municipality. Residents in Holstebro, Lemvig and Herning have spotted a wolf close to their homes and several sheep have been killed in the area.
Will the wolf survive?
Struer mayor Niels Viggo Lynghøj told TV2 that he would be opening discussions about the animal’s appearance in the area, but he advised caution.
“We have to discuss whether it is a large problem and what to do about it,” he said. “It is clear that it creates insecurity.”
Lynghøj said he was concerned there were as of yet no pictures of the wolf.
“It may well be a wolf, but one should be careful not to cry wolf too often.”
The wolf debate in Denmark has raged hot and heavy since a man from Ulfborg was arrested for shooting a wolf on the property of parliamentary candidate Steffen Troldtoft. Troldtoft has withdrawn from politics and other political leaders have heatedly been discussing the future of wolves in Denmark.
