A debate is brewing over whether more wild animal control is needed in the municipality of Shuniah.

Dr. Jack Remus said wolves and lynx are getting more aggressive and pose a danger to pets and children.

Dr. Jack Remus says wolves and lynx in Shuniah are putting pets and children in danger. (Supplied)

"These animals ...have no fear of humans. It will be a tragic kind of thing."

Remus, who owns a summer property in Shuniah, stressed he was speaking as a "concerned grandparent and animal owner," not in his role as past-president and a director of the Thunder Bay Humane Society.

"The municipality has got to do something," he said. "People are... taking two year olds and three year olds around. They have to have a concern."

Shuniah reeve Maria Harding said wolves and lynx are part of life in the country.

A former pet owner herself, Harding sympathizes with residents who have lost their cats and dogs to predators, but said trapping and culling wild animals is not the answer.

"We have to take into consideration that we live in the wild, we live in the bush," she said. "We, as pet owners, have a responsibility to our pets. We don't just open up the door and let them go out. That's my personal opinion."

But Remus doesn't accept that view.

"There is a danger that has come," he said. "What are we going to do about it? Does it come to the point where everybody has to arm themselves?"

Remus said he plans to lobby for action until something is done about the situation. He suggested options could include trapping or shooting predatory animals.