Whaleback Pack wolves attack Dorris rancher’s herd: Rancher shares ‘the truth’

Publisher’s note: The Pacific Wolf Coalition provided this information on the Whaleback Pack. 
Pack Status: Active. Designated in 2021. WHA01F, a female wolf collared by CDFW, and OR85, a male wolf originally collared by ODFW in February 2020, are the breeding pair of the Whaleback Pack, occupying a 480 square-mile territory in eastern Siskiyou County. OR85 was likely born in 2019 and dispersed from Oregon’s Mount Emily Pack before entering California in November 2020. WHA01F is one of OR7’s offspring from the Rogue Pack in Oregon, according to genetic analysis. The Whaleback pair produced seven pups in 2021. Eight pups were born to the pack in 2022, delivering the largest known litter of wolf pups in the state in over 100 years. Another eight were born in 2023, and at least six were born in 2024. In March 2023, OR85 was recollared, and WHA12M, a yearling male born in 2022, was collared. In January 2025, WHA01F and WHA29F, a pup born in 2024, were both collared.  At least three wolves from the Whaleback Pack were detected in Modoc County in the first quarter of 2025.  A minimum of 10 pups (five females and five males) were confirmed to be born into the pack in the spring.

And here’s a Facebook post describing the attacks by Jenna Mariluch Nonella of Porterfield Ranch.

I don’t really like to post much on social media, but it’s past time for others to be aware of what we have been going through this spring.

Most people can associate spring time with the miracle of life, warmth and the hope of new beginnings. This spring, however, has been a season of death, suffering, desperation, and despair.

The wolves have been relentlessly and viscously attacking the cattle on the Porterfield Ranch.

These monsters have killed, attacked, injured and stressed all of the cattle from new born baby calves to cows and yearlings. These terrorists do not even eat many of their attacks. They bite and maim these defenseless babies leaving them to suffer.

They will bite the calves’ hind ends or backs and leave going on to their next victim. Some of these poor babies are not injured enough to die immediately, but suffer through an agonizing and frightening death; from the trauma of the attack or even dying several days later because infection from the bites have spread throughout their bodies.

The wolves will also attack a cow at its most vulnerable moment of giving birth. We found a cow that was laying down giving birth to a baby calf and the wolves came in ate the calf while it was being pushed out of the birth canal and then killed the cow while she was down. I know this sounds graphic, but it is graphic, and it’s the harsh reality of what we have been living with.

My kids who are 9, 7 and 3 have helped my husband calve out all of the first-time heifers this spring. They have done the night time and early morning checks, helped pull calves, helped teach babies and new mamas learn how to nurse, brought in cold calves to warm up, bottle fed baby calves that needed extra help, and now they have to watch these same calves they have been stewarding and protecting be violently killed finding their bodies mutilated by the wolves.

These kids have enough common sense to know how wrong this is and how we should be able to protect ourselves, our property, and our livelihoods.

I worry about my kids’ and my husband’s mental health. No one should have to see this much death and not be able to prevent or stop it.

My husband has been staying out all night driving through the cattle that are close to the house trying to deter these attacks. And then he has to be up all day finding the casualties of the wolves night assaults.

All of this on top of trying to perform all the daily duties that working a ranch in the spring time entails. The stress, lack of sleep and physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion is real. Not to mention the stress having these wolves in our literal back yard.

My three children’s physical safety is constantly being threatened by the wolves. With a confirmed wolf kill being only 300 yards from our house and shop.

On top of all of this CDFW is being dishonest and deceiving to the public about what is going on. They have put out posts saying that their deterrents are successful and they are working with ranchers. They posted that in 2026 there has been 14 confirmed or probable wolf related losses in Siskiyou County by the whaleback pack.

That is a lie! The Porterfield ranch alone, per our county trapper, who has to come in and confirmed each kill that we find, has 17 confirmed or probable wolf related losses. Seventeen for just one ranch!

But here is the scary thing about that number. Those 17 were just the ones that have been found. This ranch is huge and the cattle are turned out on their spring grazing permits. These permits are out on BLM and Forest Service land and are acres and acres of brush, trees and rocks making it almost impossible to find many of the kills and attacks.

Our ranch has done its due diligence to try to deter these attacks. We have hired a night patroller to patrol for wolves and have also hired the USDA to come in and fly drones to try to haze these wolves. These deterrents are still proving to be unsuccessful.

With many of our confirmed kills coming while the USDA drones have been on the ranch. The Whaleback Pack needs to be removed. Studies have confirmed that their primary diet is cattle and they have trained their young to eat cattle as well. The only thing that can be done at this point is to have this pack removed!

If you have stayed with me for this long, thank you! I truly appreciate anyone who reads this post. This post is meant to alert people to what is going on.

The CDFW can’t lie and hide what they are doing to the ranchers. We need people to know. We need loud voices. We need common sense people to see what is going on. We need this shared so that media, people with power, and people who have connections can see this.

Please share this post if you want to spread awareness. I am going to post pictures and videos so people can see with their own eyes what is happening. Thank you again.