Permanently bringing back…

Permanently bringing back the spring bear hunt, is a dangerous, irresponsible move being condemned by environmental and animal protection groups.

The province outlawed the spring bear hunt in 1999 because bear cubs were being orphaned after their mothers were shot to death. After re-introducing spring bear hunt pilot projects, the government now wants to bring this cruel hunt back for good, all to appease the powerful hunting lobby.

Hungry black bears are baited with food, when they emerge from their dens after a long winter of hibernation. When they reach the bait, they are mercilessly gunned down.

Bear cubs will continue to be orphaned if the hunt becomes permanent. While it’s against the law to kill cubs and mother bears accompanied by cubs, mothers often leave their cubs in trees when searching for food. If a mother is killed, her cubs will likely die slowly of starvation or be eaten by predators. Cubs are dependent on their mothers and remain with them until they are 17-18 months old, can be mistaken as small adult bears and killed by hunters.

As it is, black bears have the lowest rate of reproduction of any land mammal in Canada. The survival of adult females is vital for the species.

Hunting bears doesn’t improve human safety. Stopping human-bear conflict is achieved by removing access to garbage and other attractants. We can co-exist.

The government has disclosed a need to reduce black bear hunting in Saugeen-Bruce Peninsula due to population concerns, yet it is irresponsibly proposing to allow the hunting and trapping of these bears in that region for one week each spring.

The economic argument for allowing the hunt shouldn't even be considered. Sustaining our wildlife resources is far more important, at a time when wildlife numbers are plummeting world wide.