Seal hunters don't waste any time. Over the last three days, 19,000 seals have been brutally slaughtered. Along the North Atlantic Coast, a baby seal is clubbed, blood spattered along the ice, and then skinned, all for the discounted price of $33. What remains of this formerly beautiful animal, is thrown away like trash. Horrific images of this degenerating "tradition", is circling around the world and have actively decreased the demand for seal pelts, but the Canadian Government still persists in continuing this mass-murder.
The Scope of the "Harvest"
Commencing in March, the St. Lawrence Gulf region areas of Prince Edward Island and the Magdalen Islands are the host for 30 per cent of the cull - and that is just the appetizer. In April, off the east coast of Newfoundland, hunters have their main course. By May, it wraps up, until the next year.
Demand
There are federal quotas for three types of seals: harp seals, hooded seals and grey seals. However, the hunt is mostly for the harp seals, despite dwindling demand. Prices have dropped from $105 in 2006 to $33 in 2008, but the 2008 harp seal total allowable catch was set at 275,000, up slightly from 2007.
Skinned Alive
The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) claim seals are often "skinned before being rendered fully unconscious" and said its observers found that few sealers check for a blinking reflex to confirm brain death before skinning begins. Many other groups support this accusation, citing studies claiming that 45 per cent of seals are "skinned alive."
Although hunting opponents say clubbing isn't properly performed, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) says the club is "an efficient tool" that kills "quickly and humanely." However, since 1996 the federal government has laid more than 200 charges against sealers.
Are There Benefits?
Many supporters claim the hunt provides a significant source of income for the sealers and their families, and according to the DFO, "other fishing options are unavailable, or limited at best, in many remote, coastal communities."
For the IFAW, the commercial murder of hundreds of thousands of innocent mammals is unacceptable. "The only economically valuable part of the seal is its fur, a non-essential luxury product that no one really needs."
Another controversial issue is the endangerment of the seal population. According to the DFO, Canada's seal population is "healthy and abundant" at about five million animals and "triple what it was in the 1970s. Despite their claims, Greenpeace says the population quotas are "scientifically indefensible." It doesn't take into account the real number of seals killed in the hunt, since many are "struck and lost," or discounted due to pelt damage.
Stop the Hunt
Few Canadian issues are as controversial as this one, and whatever your view is, the harsh reality remains. Just under 300,000 seal pups will be brutally slaughtered in the next two months, and you can do something about it. Russia and the European Union have made moves to ban the trade of seal pelts. Visit stopthesealhunt.ca and help put an end to the commercial slaughtering of pups.
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