Homeowner Raigo Sokolov told Maaleht the animal was seen calmly wandering around his yard Tuesday morning, as can be seen in the video below.

"A wolf appearing in the immediate vicinity of a residential building is noteworthy, as the animal was right in the middle of the yard and did so during daylight hours," the Estonian Hunters' Society noted.

A dog kept indoors at the time can be heard in the video reacting to the lupine presence.

The Environmental Board (Keskkonnaamet) at the start of this week issued special permits to hunt six wolves in Viljandi and Pärnu counties – away from the location of the yard visitation captured on video – after wolves in the area had been slaughtering livestock: seven sheep, four cows and even four dogs, in the space of a month, from mid-July to mid-August.

The Environmental Board stresses wolves are not a threat to humans and encounters with the shy animals are rare: If a wolf smells a human, they will usually evacuate the location, though a young wolf or a sick animal may approach.

What should you do in the event of a wolf encounter?

• If you spot one or more wolves, take note of their behavior: If it initially remains where it is, it may not have detected you, particularly if you are inside a parked vehicle – in this case remain inside the vehicle and allow the animal to continue on its way.
• Never leave food out in forested, rural or wilderness areas – feeding wild animals can lead to them losing their fear of humans, a necessary survival mechanism.
• Remember the chance of a wolf attack in Estonia is practically zero with the eradication of rabies which came in the 2000s – the last known incident came back in 1988, involving a rabid wolf.

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