The Canadian Seal Hunt

[Catherine]

The Canadian Seal Hunt is the first real animal issue I became aware of. I was shocked. Over fifty years later, the hunt still goes on and I am still shocked.
In those days they killed the fluffy white newborns. They can't get away with that now, but they still kill helpless baby seals on the ice before they can swim. They also shoot adults so no doubt some babies are orphaned.
http://www.ifaw.org/canada/our-work/seal...ling-cruel

There are a number of petitions. Please sign any that you can.
http://www.ifaw.org/canada/get-involved/...oCFmbw_wcB

http://www.hsi.org/world/canada/work/pro...ign=Grants
There are big name stars joining the fight.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundla...-1.3032663
Sea Shepherd Society has worked a long time to stop the hunt.
http://www.seashepherd.org/seals/seal-hunt-facts.html

It is brutal and crude and a total massacre. As a Canadian I am ashamed that my country still allows and even encourages this. Every year I know this is happening in my homeland and we don't seem to be able to stop it.
Canadians are polite, but if I were to express myself fully, the Forum censorship program would block me anyhow.

[LPC]

This barbaric killing of babies is still going on....?!

Catherine, I tried to sign the first petition (IFAW), but it insists on a Canadian province and Canadian postcode, even if a different country is selected - so I couldn't sign that one. I will try a different petition when I have more time.

[Tobi]

I also tried to sign, but although I could choose which country I am based in, I had to choose a Canadian province, or the form wouldn't go through.
I tried changing my "Country" (top right) which I could do, but every time I changed it to "UK" I was directed to a completely different page and couldn't get back to the petition page.
Maybe they only want Canadians to sign.

[Catherine]

I will look for other petitions and post them.

Sadly yes the seal slaughter is still going on. They are using the same barbaric methods they have used all along. It is questionable that the seals are actually dead when they skin them. Almost certainly some are still alive. It seems beyond belief that this is still going on.

How is this different from the dolphin slaughter in Japan?


https://hsi.netdonor.net/ea-action/actio....id=386862

http://www.e-activist.com/ea-campaign/ac...teId=52335
It is important that Europe keep the pressure on Canada to stop the slaughter. Refusing to buy the seal products ultimately will be what ends the slaughter.
http://www.e-activist.com/ea-campaign/ac...teId=52061

[Tobi]

This is terribly sad and brutal. I hope it will be stopped. I can understand indigenous peoples' needs to hunt especially if living in Arctic environments. But who else needs to?? No-one!

[Catherine]

The massive seal slaughter is not carried out by indigenous people. They would never leave the meat behind. They would use the whole seal and would never kill so many. Also if you are hunting for food, you don't kill the babies.

Sadly this slaughter is about the fur industry. They want the soft baby seal pelts. There is not much market for them as long are Europe refuses to buy. If you look at any of the videos you know that these are not humane kills. The whole thing is brutal.

In the old days they killed the fluffy white 3 day old seals. They would do it again if they could, but the protests have at least stopped that much. It should not be legal to kill a baby anything that just lies there helpless. What kind of person can go out and kill a helpless baby animal?

[Catherine]

I am shocked to find that there is actually a hunt crueler than the Canadian seal slaughter.
Of course it is relatively crueler. Both hunts are outrageous.

These slaughters are not part of traditional hunting methods which are done to provide food for a family or tribe. They are done to provide fur for the fashion industry.
So the only hope of stopping this is to reject any fashions that use fur. That even means rejecting the whole brand if fur is part of some of what they sell.

Sadly we will never give up cruelty because it is wrong. We will give it up when it stops being profitable. What does that say about our species.

If I could declare that I am not the same species as the seal killers I would do it. Because, on some fundamental level, I am not the same as them. And I am glad of that.

[Catherine]

I didn't hear the final numbers. Thank-you for posting them.
It was a bad year, far too many babies died.
Places like Europe do not buy the skins so the market isn't that good. They are killing them for nothing. I understand the hunt isn't even the main income for people in the area. They don't need it to survive.

The hunt is cruel and pointless. I can't even imagine what it must do to a person to go out and kill baby seals each year. It must destroy something inside them.

This is an election year. We need a whole new government. We need to elect people who will do something about this and a whole lot of other issues where Canada is failing animals and the environment.
I will be doing some serious thinking before I cast my vote.

[LPC]

Europe won't touch the skins from either Namibia or Canada - yet the barbarity goes on. Thanks for the link about Namibia, platy, which seems determined to continue hunting and is actively seeking markets elsewhere. I'm not holding my breath over which country will stop hunting first.

[Tobi]

The only thing people who care can do is to keep casting their votes in favour of animal welfare....signing petitions, making a noise about it...and boycotting all companies who involve themselves in cruelty to any animal. And that's going to involve careful research and conscious buying. Also letting go of certain ideas...such as "designer bags"..."soft leather"..."shoes which cost more and last longer"...."labels" etc

You are right Catherine. What does it say about us as a species that we will only care when monetary profits are affected? In that respect, humans can be worse than any terrifying sci-fi "alien" concept!

Thank goodness that some of us are definitely NOT the same species as those who are like this.