WYCAP Latest News
WYCAP is here to help domestic pets, wildlife and livestock.
Cyanide on the Landscape: the M-44 is Back
It’s not smart to leave cyanide lying about on public land. Cyanide is a potent toxin that, in small amounts (i.e., <1 g), causes lightheadedness, giddiness and rapid breathing, progressing to stupor, spasms, convulsions, and death. Symptoms of acute sodium cyanide poisoning develop rapidly. A published study conducted by personnel from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the 1980s used M-44 devices (see below) and penned dogs and coyotes to establish a timeline. Symptoms develop at 32 seconds of exposure. Animals are dead within two minutes.
Understanding Wyoming's 2026 Wolf Hunt: A Population at the Federal Floor
Wyoming's 2026 Trophy Zone wolf hunting quota was cut by 50%, from 44 tags down to 22. That decision was driven by an event most Wyomingites probably didn't hear much about: a severe disease outbreak that reshaped the wolf population in ways the state's usual harvest calculations don't typically account for. Here's what happened, how the state is responding, and why WYCAP believes more protection is still needed.
Changing Cultural Norms and Attitudes: Our Recent Outreach Efforts
“You know, looking at your pull-up posters really makes me uneasy. When I asked myself why, I realized it was because I had no idea about any of these awful animal cruelty cases. Thanks for educating me and for what you do”. It was one of many similar comments I received recently while staffing a booth at the annual meeting of The Wildlife Society in Sheridan, Wyoming.
A Good Bullet Should Kill Just Once
Hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific articles exist on the impacts on wildlife of lead poisoning from lead-based bullets, lead shot, and fishing tackle. The insidious, long-term impacts of lead poisoning have been known for centuries. Lead in paint and children’s toys has been regulated in the U.S. for years. But lead ammunition and tackle remain largely unregulated. Lead poisoning was first identified as a disease in wild birds in an 1842.