Officials say the feeding station is intended to keep elk away from Sun Valley towns.
SUN VALLEY, Idaho – The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) provides food to moose to reduce conflicts between them and Sun Valley residents.
On Thursday, the IDFG announced the Jan. 5 start of its bullwhacker feeding site west of Ketchum. Officials said they feed about 125 elk annually and help prevent the animals from becoming “year-round or seasonal residents in communities throughout the Wood River Valley.”
“Large game residing in and around communities are at greater risk of being struck on streets and highways, becoming entangled in fences, falling through thin ice on ornamental ponds and into household window wells, and being chased by off-leash dogs. “tangled in swings and hammocks,” officials wrote in a news release.
IDFG said feeding the animals outside of communities will reduce conflict with Sun Valley residents.
Officials said the Bullwhacker site originated in the 1950s and became an annual site in the 1980s. The department advises the public to avoid the site during animal feeding times and not to feed wildlife.
Officials said the feed site will remain in place until April 2025.
For more information about winter animal feeding, contact the IDFG Magic Valley Regional Office at (208)324-4359.