Seal Clubbing - What do Canadian Divers Think?

[mikerault]

How about research into a sterilization drug that could be shot via a dart gun? No clubbing, just pffft! No more little seal babies for that seal...target a certain percentage of the breeding population.

 

[Doc Harry]

During a similar debate about hunting, a European prime minister was quoted as saying:

"Why do you have to kill animals to eat? Why can't you just eat beef like the rest of us?"

 

[wardric]

During a similar debate about hunting, a European prime minister was quoted as saying:

"Why do you have to kill animals to eat? Why can't you just eat beef like the rest of us?"

 

[tedtim]

How about research into a sterilization drug that could be shot via a dart gun? No clubbing, just pffft! No more little seal babies for that seal...target a certain percentage of the breeding population.

We could use it on humans too. Just think, control the human population so we don't end up with too many of us on this small planet. Hey, there was a very populous country that had a one child policy. People tried to get rid of the unwanted children.


Which seals would you pick and what criteria would you use? Random? One in five? The ones that look to be the most frisky?

 

[tangfish]

Maybe it's the language barrier but I dont understand your post. :huh:

I never said I hunted seals, I said deer. When I wrote: Like deer. I like to see them all year long, but that doesn't stop me from hunting them... "them" refered to deers. there's a dot after deer, not a ","

If I would kill a seal, (which I never did), you bet there would not be much left of it. I try to waste the least possible.

Your second paragraph is unfortunately taken from the video propaganda.
You say mass killing because it's in a concentrated area but in numbers, it does not exceed many other hunted animals. And when deer are killed, where do you think we put the guts? It's left in the forest and of course, it's not as visual as it would be on white ice or snow. And even on the ice, it will not rot since it becomes a source of food for scavenger birds and foxes. Nothing is ever lost for everyone on this lovely planet.

Since it seems to me from your last posts that you either dont read our posts correctly or want to bait us, I think you might be trolling just a bit so I will not reply anymore if it looks like a bait :sigh: If you're not trolling, then it's just a misunderstanding and all is well.

Nope, misunderstanding. Apologies.

I won't be commenting further on the subject and thank you for the responses.

 

[wardric]

Nope, misunderstanding.

It happens a lot on internet.
Apologies from my side too then. Thanks for helping to keep this discussion civil and friendly.

 

[tangfish]

Sorry to revive this dead topic but....

I just came across this video (beware, this is *very* gruesome footage) of dolphins being massacred mercilessly in Japan. I don't think of myself as an animal rights crusader, and I probably use plenty of products that involve testing on lab mice, etc. But, is this type of stuff really necessary? Do those of you who defended the practice of seal clubbing also feel the same way about the 'harvesting' of these dolphins in this way?

Please know that this is not a loaded question; I don't anticipate an answer one way or another, I just wonder where the line is drawn in other peoples' minds, perhaps as a better way to understand my own thinking on the tough subject.

To me, it is inevitable that we kill other organisms to survive, and to some extent, even to enjoy ourselves at the expense of animals. I guess I personally just don't see a life of a bug, a plant or a cow equal to that of a seal, dolphin or elephant. I suppose, perhaps wrongly, that slaughterhouses are much more of a necessary - as a means to provide food to our society - than is killing dolphins for their meat. I know that from a logical standpoint, this thinking likely contains a number of fallacies - but that's just the best I have at this point.

Your thoughts?

 

[DivetheRock]

funkyspelunker,
I live in Newfoundland, so I know a little bit about the seal harvest (not an expert by any means, though). For me, it always comes down to how humanely an animal is killed...no matter what type of animal, big or small. I don't agree with the seal hunt, nor do I disagree with it. Once again, it comes down to how the animal is killed. I think clubbing anything is inhumane, but from my experience and knowledge, people are mostly using guns these days. Do we have to kill seals?...I don't know. When I was a child my mother used to cook seal for us. I enjoyed seal back then, but I haven't had it in years. It was a source of food. We also ate a lot of fish (especially cod), moose, rabbit, turr, partridge, grouse, etc. Was that necessary? Well, it was food, and it depends on family income for many folks (at least back then it did).
I feel that killing an animal solely for the "fur" is unnecessary (and there's a difference between fashion clothes and the type that the native people <Inuit> of, say, Labrador, wear).
Sometimes our emotions get the better of us, and we find it hard to kill animals that look cute, or may resemble us (particularly human babies/children). But that's not necessarily a bad thing, is it? When I was younger (teenager) I used to hunt, but I would not be able to kill a living creature now (haven't since I was 20 yrs. old).
There's a mink farm where I live. Now there's a cruel situation. Just one of many. Once again, it's just for the fur. Why not just wear something manmade (synthetic)?
As for the slaughterhouses, I hate to think of it, but that's another fact of life. Incidentally, my wife and I are having homemade cheeseburgers for dinner - I haven't given it much more thought than "I'm hungry"...strange behaviour, hey?
There's so many ways to look at these issues, but there's also a lot of factors to consider (e.g. propoganda vs. truth).

 

[wardric]

funkyspelunker,
I live in Newfoundland, so I know a little bit about the seal harvest (not an expert by any means, though). For me, it always comes down to how humanely an animal is killed...no matter what type of animal, big or small. I don't agree with the seal hunt, nor do I disagree with it. Once again, it comes down to how the animal is killed. I think clubbing anything is inhumane, but from my experience and knowledge, people are mostly using guns these days. Do we have to kill seals?...I don't know. When I was a child my mother used to cook seal for us. I enjoyed seal back then, but I haven't had it in years. It was a source of food. We also ate a lot of fish (especially cod), moose, rabbit, turr, partridge, grouse, etc. Was that necessary? Well, it was food, and it depends on family income for many folks (at least back then it did).
I feel that killing an animal solely for the "fur" is unnecessary (and there's a difference between fashion clothes and the type that the native people <Inuit> of, say, Labrador, wear).
Sometimes our emotions get the better of us, and we find it hard to kill animals that look cute, or may resemble us (particularly human babies/children). But that's not necessarily a bad thing, is it? When I was younger (teenager) I used to hunt, but I would not be able to kill a living creature now (haven't since I was 20 yrs. old).
There's a mink farm where I live. Now there's a cruel situation. Just one of many. Once again, it's just for the fur. Why not just wear something manmade (synthetic)?
As for the slaughterhouses, I hate to think of it, but that's another fact of life. Incidentally, my wife and I are having homemade cheeseburgers for dinner - I haven't given it much more thought than "I'm hungry"...strange behaviour, hey?
There's so many ways to look at these issues, but there's also a lot of factors to consider (e.g. propoganda vs. truth).

good post DTR,

As for synthetics, well we have to consider also that it is a non renewable ressource (made of petroleum products) and that it is also a polluting industry. Fur on the other hand is a renewable and non polluting ressource if done in a controlled way with quotas and lots of studies. So if we have to wear something, like we do in our frozen land, maybe we should not put fur or leather aside. I do prefer synthetics for trecking and mountaineering but I dont think fur should be demonised.

But I agree that if we kill for fur, why not take the meat also. I think that if you kill an animal, you should try to use as much as possible everything you can, as of respect for this animal. Beavers and muskrats have excellent meat

btw, could we stick to seals because those dolphins threads have a tendency to become nasty and I would hate this one to degenerate and get closed
Maybe a new dolphin thread if necessary :sigh:

 

[DivetheRock]

wardric, I'm clean of any responsibility re: the dolphin post...notice I didn't even use the word dolphin. ;-)
I agree with you, BTW, about the synthetic topic. I also agree about the leather and fur, too. I was merely referring to a possible alternative to fur for the fashion minded individual. I didn't bother to proceed about the pollution, etc. A good point , though.
There was a very good program on the Documentary channel a couple nights ago about sealing and NL. There was an interesting point brought up, about that which I have seen firsthand. Every year hunters come from around the world (US, Germany, GB) to NL (and Quebec, too, as you know) to hunt moose, bear, caribou, and other "game". I know that many if not the majority of these animals carcasses are left behind to rot, while the hunter makes off with his/her trophy head/antlers/pelt. Now, that's a waste! It shouldn't be allowed in our country, or at least give the meat to a family that needs it. Seals, same thing.