Egtved residents pack meeting over wolf attacks after pony deaths

A standing-room-only crowd filled a public meeting in Egtved on Monday evening to address growing concerns over a local wolf, following recent fatal attacks on two ponies in the Vejle Ådal area.

The event, originally organised by local Venstre party members, drew a broad mix of attendees, including politicians, interest groups, and members of parliament, but it was the worried residents who dominated the room.

Peter Ankersborg, a local resident, said the presence of the wolf has left him uneasy. “We live near a forest. We have horses that come in at night. We’re not at ease, and we look over our shoulders every time we walk in the woods. And it’s not because we’re looking for deer—it’s because we’re afraid of wolves,” he said.

Birgit Skov, who owns land in Vejle Ådal with livestock, echoed the concern. “Fencing isn’t a solution. We have seven hectares down there. We can’t just fence it all in. If we fence something in, we fence something else out, and wildlife needs to move freely,” she said.

Local politicians, including Vejle’s Venstre mayor Jens Ejner Christensen and Social Democrat councillor Søren Peschardt, were also in attendance.

Efforts to address the issue in late April, when residents contacted the Nature Agency and the Agency for Green Conversion and Water Environment, stalled due to ongoing government negotiations at the time.

Claus Lind Christensen, chair of the Danish Hunters’ Association, called for immediate action. In a Facebook post after the meeting, he urged the new government to implement three measures: allowing wolf regulation within enclosures without permits, granting the right to defend livestock and hunting dogs, and introducing proper wildlife management.

Social Democrat MP Birgitte Vind, the party’s nature spokesperson, acknowledged the problem. “Right now, the wolf is far too close to homes and people, and it doesn’t seem particularly shy. We need a more natural population and regulation so that wolves are naturally kept away from humans—and we’re not there yet,” she said.

Vind, who plans to contact newly appointed Nature and Animal Welfare Minister Christian Raabjerg Madsen, a party colleague, added: “I will reach out to the minister very soon. We need to review the rules as quickly as possible.”

While the meeting was framed as a listening session, politicians provided some answers. Maibritt Jeppesen, a local resident, found them useful. “There were answers about what will happen. And for the issues people raised, I think solutions will come,” she said after the meeting.