Tag: trophy hunting

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animal welfare News/Blog Promoted Uncategorized wildlife

Call for a complete ban on BC’s grizzly bear hunt

Have your say on trophy hunting of B.C.’s grizzly bears

On August 14, 2017, the B.C. government announced that effective Nov. 30, 2017, it will end the trophy hunting of grizzly bears province-wide and stop all hunting of grizzly bears in the Great Bear Rainforest.

While VHS welcomes the effort to end B.C.’s notorious trophy hunt, we have serious concerns about a proposed regulation that would allow grizzlies to be hunted for meat throughout the rest of the province. This would create a loophole that would allow the trophy hunt to continue under the guise of a meat hunt.  

Grizzlies are considered a vulnerable species and a new report from B.C.’s auditor general found that the provincial government has not fulfilled long-standing commitments for managing grizzly bears. This report underscores the importance that now, more than ever, we need to end the grizzly bear hunt in its entirety if we want to help alleviate the pressures facing this keystone species. 

The province is seeking feedback from the public regarding the proposed grizzly bear hunting regulations. Comments can be sent to grizzly.bear@gov.bc.ca and the deadline is Nov. 2, 2017.

VHS is calling for a complete ban on all grizzly hunting across the province, as outlined in our submission to the Fish and Wildlife Branch. Please feel free to use our submission to guide your own.

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animal welfare compassion News/Blog Promoted

This is your chance to speak up for BC’s grizzly bears!

 

bear

91% of B.C. residents oppose hunting animals for sport, according to an Insights West poll in 2015. Yet, the provincial government allows the grizzly hunt to continue.

The Grizzly Bear Foundation, a new organization dedicated to the welfare of grizzly bears, has launched an inquiry to hear British Columbians’ views on the health, welfare and long-term survival of the population in B.C.  This inquiry will hear from all stakeholders including hunters, guide-outfitters and First Nations. You can make your views known by submitting your comments by email or mail, or by registering to speak at the meetings in Vancouver (October 18) or Victoria (October 20).

VHS believes that trophy hunting is an immoral and unsustainable use of wildlife, but especially so when it comes to large carnivores, as their population statistics are often in dispute. A low rate of reproduction combined with habitat loss and hunting are imperilling B.C.’s grizzly bear populations and VHS will be attending the inquiry and representing our supporters’ views that hunting this iconic animal should be stopped.

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animal welfare News/Blog

VHS opposes grizzly hunt expansion

Grizzly bear

VHS has written to B.C.’s environment minister, Steve Thompson, to express our opposition to the expansion of the trophy hunting of grizzly bears in the province.

The government is proposing to implement grizzly hunting in the Kootenay and Cariboo regions, where it is currently banned, and is asking for feedback from the public on the plan (see below).

The proposal comes just weeks after a poll found that 88 per cent of B.C. residents are opposed to trophy hunting. A new study also suggests more grizzly bears are being killed than the government estimates.

VHS’s letter to the minister states that: “Grizzly bears are a provincial and national treasure” and that it would be “unethical to further endanger populations with an increase in hunting.”

To give your input into the proposed changes to the grizzly hunt, click here (Please note: you must register for an account first to leave a comment on the government’s website.)

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