I am deeply disturbed to…

I am deeply disturbed to learn that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, a sector of the government that I have always previously respected and have even previously been employed by, is looking to provide new licenses for penned training facilities for dogs to learn to hunt. I was so shocked by this news, I initially thought it was disinformation because the obvious cruelty of this decision seems so extreme that it calls into question the lack of empathy or sanity of the group of people making this decision. This goes against the Ministry's mandate to protect wildlife in favour of catering to a small number of people who seek to perpetuate practices that were previously ended for good reason. Let's not revert positive changes that were made to recognize the value of non-human life and animal welfare.

I was raised in a family that hunts, I own a dog bred for hunting, I hold a graduate degree in Environmental Science, and I still do not understand the need for these facilities. For dogs bred for hunting, their proficiency at hunting is largely instinctual and does not need to be trained in a pen. From what I can tell, these facilities must only provide either an economic purpose, or entertainment value for people desensitized to their cruelty. This calls to mind images of the Roman Colosseum or wildlife-style Hunger Games -- of spectators watching animals die for fun. How sickening.

I support hunting and recognize MNRF must balance wildlife populations using hunting as a tool, but to me there is a significant difference between hunting an animal for meat or population management in their natural habitat, and relocating an animal to live the remainder of its life in constant fear with no means of self-preservation. It is unnatural to make predators, namely coyotes, the prey, and MNRF's responsibility is to not interfere with natural ecosystem balance while making management decisions.

Not only do I strongly reject the proposal to allow for new licenses, I also believe the existing 24 facilities should be closed. It is also my belief that if the public were aware of these facilities prior to recent news, the current facilities would have faced opposition sooner regarding their continued practices.

Thank you.