Karine Richard, a sheep-breeder in Savoy, said: “If wolves or jackals are allowed to proliferate, it will be the end for us. Our sheep are free-range and we leave them to graze in mountain pastures throughout the summer. We can’t afford to employ a shepherd to guard them.”
Ms Richard, 42, said jackals would also kill other small mammals and would “change the ecological balance”.
Wolves have spread rapidly in France, now officially numbering 360. They killed more than 10,000 sheep and other livestock last year.
The government has authorised the cull of up to 40 wolves nationwide by next July next year, but farmers are demanding to be allowed to shoot them on sight.
They argue that many animals classified as wolves are in fact crossed with dogs and should therefore not be protected. Sky More