I am opposed to ERO 019…

I am opposed to ERO 019-3685, Proposal to allow the issuance of licenses for new dog train and trial areas and the transfer of licenses. Your own website indicates that "New train and trial areas were last approved to be established in 1997 and were intended to be phased-out over time."

Establishing new dog train and trial areas just to appease a small sector of hunters is a backward step - not a forward one. The practice of holding wild animals captive for sport purposes is barbaric. To rationalize otherwise is just word play.

The main reasons given for allowing this practice are ludicrous. The most egregious rationalization is that hunting dogs are kept fit in the off-season. Wow. What about the health of the foxes, rabbits and coyotes that are run to exhaustion over and over, injured and basically hunted to death? Why are hunting dogs given this special privilege? This outdated practice should, more to the point, be outlawed not promoted by a minority interest. It's the animal equivalent of the Hunger Games. Cock fighting has been eradicated in most enlightened countries - why are we still condoning dog trialing?

If the Ministry does move to approve this proposal, it will be tone deaf to the public at large. In 2023, this type of policy-making is exceptionally uniformed, archaic and wrong. Please reconsider.