Wolves kill 35 sheep at Groot Schietveld in Brecht, Flanders' deadliest attack since 2018

The attack on Groot Schietveld

Wolves killed 35 sheep on the Groot Schietveld military site in Brecht, Antwerp province, on 4 October 2026. Shepherd Bert Plasmans found the dead animals during a routine check of the fences, and he says most were pregnant ewes of the Flemish flock breed. Seventeen other sheep were injured, and some of them have since died from infections. Three sheep are still missing, although one German-language report gives the number as two. The herd of 450 sheep grazes the site on behalf of the Defence ministry and the Agentschap Natuur en Bos (ANB), and Plasmans owns the animals.

“It is not a pile of meat to us. These are animals you work with intensively.”

Plasmans added that the flock also carried valuable genetics, which is lost with each dead ewe. He said only one sheep was actually eaten, while the rest were killed in what he called surplus killing, a pattern he links to wounds that trigger infections. He has filed a damage claim.

Killed35

Injured17

Killed

35 sheep

Injured

17 sheep

Data from the article text

Why it surfaced only now

The attack became public because the ANB published an overview titled "De wolf in Vlaanderen" that lists all damage cases since the wolf's return to Flanders. The first entry is dated 20 January 2018, when the female wolf Naya killed a sheep in Meerhout. DNA analysis confirmed that wolves were responsible, and the likely culprits are the local pair Ben and Emma. INBO researcher Koen Van Muylem said the DNA samples were too poor to show exactly which wolves took part. The overview also lists several cattle killed in Antwerp province, which ANB spokesman Jeroen Denaeghel said does not necessarily mean a wolf is targeting cattle, since it was probably a wandering wolf.

How the wolves got in

The flock was held inside a flexible electric netting fence, a temporary type of enclosure. The fence was meant to keep wolves out, but the terrain is uneven and investigators found digging marks under the netting at several points. Van Muylem explained what happens when wolves reach a large flock.

“When wolves get into an enclosure with so many sheep, they end up killing a large number.”

He added that wolves do not eat all their prey at once and store some of it for later, which is why so many animals die in one visit.

Guardian dogs and legal limits

Plasmans wants to protect the flock with livestock guardian dogs and is taking part in a pilot project for them. The vzw Vlaamse Schapenhouderij launched the project, and its first meeting is scheduled for this month. Jan Loos of the group Welkom Wolf says Flemish rules currently stop herders from using the dogs, and that no official has been willing to take responsibility for allowing them.

“There is not a single Flemish official who has the nerve to take responsibility for deploying these dogs.”

The office of Flemish Minister for the Environment Jo Brouns (CD&V) confirmed that the dogs are not yet permitted in public areas, but said pilot projects are running on closed domains. Loos argued that the Groot Schietveld, a fully closed military site, would not raise the same concerns.

Pattern in Flanders and the Netherlands

Brecht has now recorded its sixth wolf attack this year, according to 7sur7, while earlier attacks there killed only one animal each time. Four attacks in Kalmthout in August killed nine sheep in total. In the Netherlands, BIJ12 data show 44 animals killed in Ede in July 2024, and 41 sheep were killed in Doornspijk in February 2026. Several outlets describe the Brecht attack as the deadliest wolf attack in Flanders in a century.