HUNTING

The majority of people in this country do not hunt, but the practice continues. 134 million animals are recorded being killed by hunters each year, with thousands more killed by poachers, or simply wounded to escape and die somewhere. Animals are killed using guns and bows and arrows. They are chased by radio-collared dogs and treed until the hunter can arrive and shoot them down. They are baited with donuts and rotting meat so that a hunter may shoot them while they unsuspectingly eat. They are shot behind fences or tied to stakes.

This is all done for sport. Though hunters claim to be hunting for the sake of the animals, so that they don't become overpopulated and starve, this is a elaborate lie. Please, before you consider picking up a gun, think of the welfare of the animals, and if you are opposed to these practices please do something!

HUNTING IS CRUEL AND UNNECESSARY
*The number of hunters has been declining for years, but there are still too many animals dying for this "sport"
*It costs far more to eat meat from animals that hunters hunt than to eat meat from the grocery store.
*Most hunted species NEVER become overpopulated. The 5% of species that are hunted
are purposely manipulated by state wildlife agencies (by planting certain crops, burning areas to create ideal breeding conditions, and skewing sex ratios) so that there will be more animals available for hunters to kill.
*Many animals that are hunted are predator species which are needed to keep the populations of other species in balance and healthy. If hunters were trying to prevent overpopulation they would support predator reintroduction programs and would be willing to stop hunting predators, which do not become overpopulated.
*Hunters kill thousands of other animals like ravens, opossums, and squirrels with no premise of killing them so that they do not starve.
*Hunters kill bucks bcause they like the antlers, but if they wanted to limit populations they would hunt only does. A single buck can impregnate and entire herd of does.
*Hunting disrupts the natural behavior of animals. Many animals learn much of what they do from other animals, and with hunting, very few animals reach old age.
*Even species whose populations have been in decine are still hunted.
*Some animals are introduced into an area with the sole purpose of killing them. Some of these animals are from different climates, and if they are not killed by hunters they will surely die.
*State wildlife agencies actively recruit children out of fear that the numbrs of hunters are declining.
*Land that is set aside by hunters is done so only to give them a place to hunt, and does not provide natural habitat for the animals. Groups like the Humane Society of the United States set aside land for all animals, not just those hunted, and has a no-hunting policy so that the animals' natural behavior is not disrupted.
*Hunters even kill animals on National Wildlife Refuges, places that were set aside as REFUGES for the animals.
*Hunters often justify themselves by saying that nature is cruel, but that really isn't for us to decide. Animals can suffer as a result of natural conditions, but suffering and cruelty are two very different things. We are moral agents and nature is not, and we can take many steps to reduce the amount of suffering around us.
*There are alternatives to hunting like Immunocontraception, which has been successful in the deer it was tried on. Because we have mnipulated habitat, removed predators, and skewed sex ratios, there are more deer in some areas than there would be naturally, but the idea of overpopulation really only apples to deer which are a very small percent of the total animals killed, and we could reasonably control their populations through ethical means. Hunting groups have fought to block this form of birth control.
*94% of the public is interested in the protection and welfare of animals. Please take the side of the animals!

CANNED HUNTING
Canned hunting consists of shooting sometimes wild, sometimes tame animals either in cages, fenced enclosures, over feeding stations, drugged, or tied to a stake. People (like Dick Cheney) pay money to shoot these animals which often come from zoos or are retired circus animals, and are accustomed to people or are too arthritic to run away. This violates the concept of a fair chase, causing many sport hunters to condemn the practice. It is illegal in California and seven other states. Please learn more about canned hunts to the left.