Dear Sirs, I am writing to…

Dear Sirs,
I am writing to oppose the proposed permanent Spring bear hunt.
There are factors that need be taken into consideration. A hunter is not able to know that he shot a female bear before the kill. Mother bears may leave alone their cubs in trees and roam in order to forage. Therefore it is reasonably expected that many mothers will be killed unintentionally and many vulnerable orphans will be at the mercy of predators or perish due to exposure or starvation.

There is a lot of intentional misinformation that makes the public fear bears and want to have them killed. The truth is that bears are more afraid of people and only want to protect themselves and their territory. People need to know that bears are sentient beings, basically timid and rarely aggressive.
Hunters themselves need to be educated about bears especially about mothers and how they raise their cubs in order to avoid unnecessary killings.
As regards concerns that bears kill moose, this is not true. Such incidents are rare and have no effect on moose population.

If you proceed to spring bear hunt, then please consider this to take place later on, in June, so that mothers and cubs stand a better chance.
Taking this opportunity I would also point out that the fall hunting season is also disastrous for the cubs. Cubs that are orphaned during that period have a slim chance of survival in the coming winter. In most cases they are condemned to die of hunger and exposure.

I also oppose baiting- this should not take place at all; but if it will, baiting must end when the season concludes and not begin again until shortly before the fall season. In addition, stricter limits must be put in place to protect recreationalists, drivers, property owners, pets and others from bait piles that attract wildlife.
I would also ask you to stop the use of hounds/dogs to chase, tree and/or otherwise harass bears. This is barbaric and causes tremendous stress and torture to a basically harmless creature.

It should be very clear and publicly acknowledged that bear hunt has nothing to do with public safety. Hunting does not reduce human-bear conflict. When people are educated about bears, do not leave attractants and food accessible to the bears, then conflicts will be minimized.
Education, correct and updated information, enforcement of regulations about respect for wildlife will ensure that all people will be able to enjoy nature and co-exist peacefully with the bears.
Thank you for taking the time to review this comment.