A More Humane Hunt? You decide....

[hedgewitch]

This year the Canadian government promised a more humane hunt. They said “Canada’s seal hunt is humane, sustainable and responsible.â€

[Gytrash]

Thanks for those horrible images!

I thought this had been banned.

Terrible stuff going on there. Makes me very ANGRY!


(Thanks for posting it up, Hedgewitch. I'll forward it to as many folks as I think will care! And some more who should, but probably don't ).


Cheers
Dave

[Bonniegirl]

These people are right on the top of my scumbags list alongside the Japanese whalers!

[Gytrash]

Seals eh?!

Them bastids are responsible for... erm..

Yeah, loads of stuff. Like eating fish and laying around a bit.
Sh*t, that could be half my mates~! Club them all into oblivion!

Them seals... I bet they, er, eat oil or summat! They must do that, or something. Who'd be bothered to expend so much time killing them otherwise?!

[Gytrash]

They're a bit rubbish them seal killers.

I mean - if I were them I'd use a rifle or summat. Clubs seem a bit... daft.

Do people still use clubs?

[hedgewitch]

Regulations state that sealers may only kill seals with hakapiks (clubs with spikes in), rifles and shotguns. In addition, sealers using hakapiks and clubs must strike the seal on the forehead until the skull is crushed and then must perform a blinking reflex test or manually check the skull. Hunters must administer blinking reflex tests as soon as possible to confirm that the seal is dead before proceeding to skin it. Sealers are not allowed to skin or bleed seals until they are dead.

Despite these explicit regulations, IFAW has videotaped evidence of sealers using what appear to be illegal weapons to kill seals, hooking live seals and dragging them across the ice, failing to administer blinking reflex tests and even the skinning and bleeding of live seals.
This apparent disregard for the regulations has been observed and documented repeatedly during IFAW’s annual trips to Canada’s commercial seal hunt.

The Canadian government claims the seal hunt is “closely monitored and tightly regulated.â€

[hedgewitch]

It seems the IFAW web site is having a few problems. Please be sure to check back here for that link, I'll keep an eye on it to make sure it's working later.

[hedgewitch]

Links are working now.

[Rachjamos]

I signed the petition yesterday and posted a link to it on my myspace page blog (hopefully for others to sign). Seal hunting in the 80s was what shocked me during my early teens and opened my eyes to the world of animal welfare.

Nowadays it's so easy to have your say - click on the link and send that email!

https://community.hsus.org/campaign/tra ... ectseals08

Rach

I just realised my link is slightly different - so what the hell - sign em both!

COPY OF THE LETTER

Minister David Emerson
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
125 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0G2
Canada

Dear Minister Emerson,

As Minister for International Trade, you are well aware of the
importance of Canada's international reputation to your economy.
I am asking you to protect both by working to end the commercial
seal hunt now, and spare the lives of hundreds of thousands of
baby seals.

There are many reasons why I feel this way.

- Opposition from Canadians. 67% of Canadians support a ban on
seal products.

- Opposition from other countries. Belgium, the Netherlands,
Austria, Germany, Slovenia, France, Croatia, Italy, Mexico and
Panama have either ended their trade in seal products or plan
to.

- Opposition from consumers. Half a million individuals and over
3,500 restaurants, grocery stores and seafood distributors have
signed the boycott of Canadian products.

- Effect of the boycott. Canadian seafood exports to the United
States alone bring in about $2.5 billion to the Canadian
economy, compared to roughly $12 million contributed by the seal
hunt in 2007.

There is little economic reason to continue the commercial seal
hunt and every reason to end it.

You have an unparalleled opportunity to protect Canada's economy
and the seals. Please do everything in your power to stop the
cruel and needless slaughter before it is too late.

Thank you for your time and consideration in this important
matter.

[hedgewitch]

I just realised my link is slightly different - so what the hell - sign em both!

Amen sista!