LOVELAND, Colo. — The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission approved a regulation Thursday allowing livestock producers to receive reimbursement for treating their animals — under the direction of a veterinarian — that have been attacked by gray wolves.
The motion passed Thursday morning with none of the commissioners opposing it.
“This should not be viewed as a pro-livestock producer rule. It should be viewed as a rule that benefits wolves and producers," said Commissioner Dallas May during the meeting. "It’s good for everybody.”
This issue came to the forefront during the May 2025 meeting, when commissioners talked through two separate wolf depredation claims, including one for Jackson County rancher Don Gittleston. He had filed a wolf depredation claim in 2024 amounting to $2,542.41.
Travis Black, CPW's northwest regional manager, as well as other members of CPW worked with Gittleson on the claim. Both parties agreed on the majority of that claim, with the exception of a $435 portion. That represented Gittleson's labor costs and incorporated care prescribed by a veterinarian to ensure the attacked heifer did not die of her injuries, he explained, adding that he calculated his labor costs at $15 an hour. The heifer survived and had a calf in 2025, he told the commission.
“My time on this animal is a loss that I incur," he explained to the commission in May. "This was not an animal that I needed to treat once or twice and then we were done with. This took a little over three months to get her back to where she would be sound and we weren’t going to have a problem with her. My time that I put on this, and the amount that I charged you for this, was quite a bit below if I had had the vet come out and take care of this situation for me.”
That total cost would have been more than $3,000 to cover the cost of bringing the injured livestock to a veterinarian, Gittleson explained. It was far less burdensome and wasteful for him to care for the animal under his vet's direction, he said, and he should not be punished with the denial of his claim.
- Read our in-depth story on what happened in the May meeting in our story here.
This prompted a lengthy discussion between commissioners about the challenges surrounding access to veterinary care in rural Colorado, animal wellness, and how — or if — the commission could act outside of its regulations, which would not have covered the $435. The regulation currently reads: "Only expenses from licensed veterinarians are eligible for reimbursement."
Ultimately, this decision was tabled at that May meeting so the commissioners could, in a more in-depth capacity, identify what documentation would be required and what kind of labor for vet services could be approved. Gittleson's claim would be brought back to the commissioners after this was solidified. He told the commissioners that he was "good with waiting until you get this resolved. That’s what needs to happen. I do not need payment this minute. This needs to get resolved.”
More than three months later, a rule-making notice landed on the agenda for the CPW's Commission August gathering in Pueblo. It read: "Open for review of regulations pertaining to allowing producers acting under the direction of a licensed veterinarian to receive reimbursement for labor expenses for the treatment of livestock and livestock guard and herding animals injured by gray wolves."
The issue submittal form points out this is beneficial for both parties.
"Importantly, this amendment will benefit both producers, by allowing them to receive reimbursement, and the Division by incentivizing producers to choose the most cost-effective means to care for wounded animals," the document reads.
The notice was briefly discussed and a final review of the proposed changes was set for October.
- Read the full Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan
On Thursday, the commission took it up once more, and discussed the challenges surrounding vet care for large animals, especially in rural areas of the state.
Gittleson, who was listening to the meeting as well, brought up one minor point he did not agree with, which involved requiring a written protocol from the vet for a livestock producer to follow. He said in 30 years, he had never had a prescription written out — it was almost always over the phone.
Hilary Hernandez, regulations manager for CPW, explained that CPW had heard similar sentiments when passing the regulation around the agriculture community, and in an updated version, CPW had removed the written requirement.
After a brief discussion, the new regulation was approved.
As of Thursday morning, CPW has confirmed that gray wolves depredated on 18 animals so far in 2025. The attacks happened in Jackson County, Pitkin Court, Eagle County, Routt County, Gunnison County, Grand County and Rio Blanco County.
Denver7 has been following Colorado's wolf reintroduction program since the very beginning, and you can explore all of that reporting in the timeline below. The timeline starts with our most recent story.
Denver7 in-depth wolf coverage
The below list outlines an overview of the known wolf population in Colorado:
- Six wolves surviving from the original 10 that were released in December 2023 (one died of a likely mountain lion attack, a second died from injuries sustained prior to his capture as part of the Copper Creek Pack relocation effort, a third wolf became sickly and died, and a fourth died in Wyoming)
- Three of the five wolf pups born in the spring of 2024 (one male was killed by CPW after multiple depredations in Pitkin County and a second male was killed for the same reasons in September)
- 10 wolves surviving from the 15 that were released in January 2025 (one was shot and killed by Wildlife Services in Wyoming, a second died of unknown causes in Wyoming, a third died in Rocky Mountain National Park, a fourth died in northwest Colorado and the fifth died in northwest Colorado after it was likely hit by a car)
- Unknown number of pups born in four packs in 2025
- Two wolves that moved south from Wyoming several years ago
- One uncollared wolf that was last known to be in northwest Moffat County in mid-February. It is not clear if it is alive or still in the state.
- Possible, but unconfirmed, wolf in the Browns Park area as of February. It is not clear if it is alive or still in the state.
