Six hour hunt for wolf released from sanctuary by suspected animal rights activists

Animal rights activists have been blamed for releasing a wolf into the wild, sparking a desperate search for the animal yesterday.

Police sharpshooters were mobilised and residents urged to stay indoors - but in the end Torak the wolf allowed himself to be led back to captivity like a puppy.

Indeed, during his brief taste of freedom the Alaskan timber wolf even sauntered through a field of sheep without harming any of them, despite warnings that he posed a danger to man and beast.

Still, it did take nearly six hours for him to be tracked down and recaptured by police and staff from the sanctuary where he normally lives.

Staff at the UK Wolf Conservation Trust, in Beenham, Berkshire, discovered on Thursday morning that Torak’s cage may have been tampered with.

The Trust’s founder, Teresa Palmer, said: "When I got to the front of the enclosure I found that the gate was open. I think somebody deliberately opened the gate. A lot of people don't particularly believe in having animals in captivity."

Ms Palmer and her staff assured people that Torak was an "easy-going wolf" and a "gentle giant", but Thames Valley Police were taking no chances.

People were warned not to approach the animal - whose favourite foods are pheasant, deer, meaty ice lollies and bananas - and armed officers were on stand-by prepared to shoot him if needed.

Around mid-morning yesterday teams searching for Torak caught sight of him in woodland. An hour later there were reports he was heading north, near the A34/M4 junction.

Thames Valley issued a statement on the force’s Facebook page, saying: "Officers are currently in Beenham, West Berkshire. At around 8am today the force received a call from a member of the public reporting a wolf had escaped from a sanctuary in Picklepythe Lane.

"Officers have sight of the wolf and are working with staff from the sanctuary to detain it.

"Members of the public may notice an increased presence in the area and are advised not to approach the wolf if they see it.”

Sian Champkin, whose husband works at Elstree Independent Boys Preparatory School, in nearby Woolhampton, said its pupils were told not to go outside.

"He phoned me to tell me about it because we have a child, a dog and a cat and not to go outside,” the 37-year-old said. “I was slightly shocked, nothing like this has ever happened before."

Locals implored police to use a tranquiliser gun rather than bullets to capture Torak, after another escaped wolf was shot dead last year after escaping its cage.

Three-year-old Eurasian wolf Ember, who gave birth to five cubs earlier that year, was killed by a keeper after being discovered outsider her enclosure at Cotswold Safari Park.

Eventually the hunting party caught up with Torak near the West Berkshire village of Curridge, eight miles from his sanctuary.

Here Ms Palmer, 62, managed to coach him into a trailer, where he allowed himself to be put on a lead.

"The fact he went through a field of sheep on his way shows he would never be a threat to the public,” said Ms Palmer. "Now he's given up. He's had his moment of freedom."