Kazakhstan Hunter tortures wolf as onlookers laugh WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

• Horrific video shows a hunter using his rifle butt to beat a wounded wolf
• The clip, filmed in Kazakhstan, shows the man clubbing the dying animal
• It appears to have broken its back legs and is unable to run away from him
• The video raises questions about the treatment of wolves in Kazakhstan

By Corey Charlton for MailOnline

Published: 5 January 2016

Horrific footage has emerged of a hunter torturing a wounded wolf by beating the dying animal with his rifle butt. A video clip of the incident, filmed in Kazakhstan, shows the man hitting the animal on the head as it tries in vain to defend itself, despite both its back legs appearing to be broken. His companion is heard in the background of the video shouting in Kazakh: 'Hit it on the head, on the head'.

The hunter was filmed using his rifle to beat the badly wounded wolf while it is unable to run away

Footage of the incident in Kazakhstan showed the animal being repeatedly struck on the head

The man's companion is heard in the background of the video shouting in Kazakh: 'Hit it on the head'

Local reports stated the man seen in the video had not yet been identified, though his actions provoked outrage after the footage surfaced online.

Although wolf populations are strongly protected in Europe, no such legislation exists in Kazakhstan, where wolf cubs are sometimes bought and used to protect land and property. 

An internet user named Kayrat, writing on a local forum, said: 'A real hunter would never do such a thing to a wolf, he would just shoot it instead of torturing it.' Social media users were also overwhelmingly apprehensive about the trend of buying wolves, although a few accuse the government of failing to cull wolves in the first place. 'You can't blame villagers for using wolves to fend off wolves', one person wrote on social media. However, wolf experts say keeping a wolf as a pet is dangerous and they are like a 'ticking time bomb'.

Footage of the cruel incident comes just months after a video surfaced showing another Kazakh hunter holding a wolf by its ears for a photograph before appearing to strangle it to ensure it is dead.

The footage, which emerged from eastern Kazakhstan, showed the hunter grabbing the stricken animal which has collapsed to the ground. Blood from the bullet that struck the wolf can be seen staining the fur on its hind legs.

The hunter was caught on camera lifting up a dying wolf by the ears and forcing it to pose for the camera

After holding up the animal, it begins to fight back and even tries to bite the hunter but he manages to subdue it 

He then forces the wolf down to the ground and appears to strangle it to death before leaving it to die

The wild animal then tries to fight back as it writhes around in the hunter's hand and even attempts to bite him. But despite its best efforts, the hunter persists in pulling the wolf by the ears in order to get the trophy shot. The man is dressed in traditional Kazakh hunting dress and smiles proudly while holding up his kill.

Eventually he forces the animal to the ground and then appears to strangle it with its bare hands to make sure it is dead. The hunter was identified as Erzhan Aga, who is well known in the local area as a specialist for tracking down and killing wolves under licence from the local authorities. 

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