The Canadian Seal Hunt

I think as a Canadian, the seal hunt is a sore issue. This massive killing of seal pups happens each year…right here in Canada. The brutal ways of killing these gentle mammals is enough to make someone sick. More than 97% of seals that are killed are actually pups. There is a rule that no hunter can kill a pup under 11 days old. After that, they are considered legal to kill.

There are tons of videos out there that actually document the seal hunt, but I have chosen not to include these videos on my blog because they are so horrific. If you need to see it for yourself, visit any animal welfare website and there will be media you can watch.
Some Canadians argue that this is part of our culture and it is something that needs to be done. But, I think that what many people don’t know is that even though 5000-6000 Canadians derive some income from hunting seals, they are commercial fishermen and they earn, on average, less than 5% of their income from the seal hunt and the remainder comes from fisheries.

The Humane Society International has a great fact sheet that will answer some general facts about this issue:
http://www.hsi.org/assets/pdfs/fast_facts_seal_hunt.pdf

Each year, sealers kill hundreds of thousands of seal pups in commercial slaughters. Shot or clubbed mainly for their fur, the animals die a cruel death. Some are left wounded and suffering, and others are skinned alive. Canada's annual commercial harp seal hunt is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on Earth. Sealing is an off-season activity for fishermen who typically earn only a fraction of their incomes from it. Seals are not overpopulated, nor are they jeopardizing the Canadian cod fishery. Seal product trade bans and HSI's Canadian seafood boycott are increasing pressure to end the hunt. HSI supports a government license buyout for fishermen and promotion of ecotourism.

HIS is against the commercial seal hunt, but take no issue with subsistence seal hunting undertaken by aboriginal people. They also talk about making Canadian seals into ecotourism instead of slaughter...much like what happened when we banned the whale hunt.
"At the rate that seals are being killed, there won’t be enough left to hunt in a few years. It is far more sustainable to explore ecotourism as an attraction for the area. Since Canada banned commercial whale hunting in the 1970's, the whale-watching industry has grown considerably and is now worth more than the seal hunt".

Tragically, the government of Nova Scotia allows the commercial slaughter of grey seals in the protected Scaterie Island Wilderness Area (Hay Island). This is happening in our backyard!
This one of the cruelest seal slaughters HSI has ever documented. Sealers herd seals into groups, then club moulted pups as young as a few weeks of age with wooden bats and cut them open with box cutters just inches away from newborn pups and their mothers.
This is a cry from all over the world to stop this unnecessary seal slaughter. Many places in the world have even stopped buying Canadian seafood in attempt to show Canada they do not approve with this gruesome slaughter.
Please click on the TAKE ACTION link below to help stop the annual Canadian seal hunt. It’s happening, and we need the support of Canadians to help stop this unnecessary suffering.
TAKE ACTION
PeTA and many celebrities (including Perez Hilton, Pamela Anderson, Brody Jenner, Kelly Osbourne and Steve-O), are also taking a stand against the seal hunt in their “Save the Seals” Campaign.