Wildlife advocates in Vermont said state officials should conduct DNA sampling to determine whether wolves, or coyote-wolf hybrids, are widely present in the state and deserve protection.
Vermont Fish & Wildlife should consider the interests and safety of the public, as well as the welfare of coyotes, and adopt a 21st-century policy on coyote hunting.
The incident was likely a “one-off,” said Chris Bernier, a biologist with Vermont’s Fish & Wildlife Department. Vermonters “shouldn't feel like they need to fear coyotes as a result of this one incident,” he said.
There are relatively few hounders in Vermont and therefore, so far, we have been lucky. However, given the incidents that have occurred already, it is irresponsible to keep trusting to luck.
In this era of climate change and other threats, both known and unknown, impacting wildlife, we should tread lightly. A good start would be no more killing solely for recreation.
Many opposed to the proposed policies expressed concern that the bills seek to limit hunting in general, while those in favor of the bills say the practices at their center are cruel and should have been prohibited long ago.
All farmers have a responsibility to take steps to ethically protect their livestock from predation and to do so without the unnecessary killing or wanton waste of wildlife. Coexistence with wildlife should be a first priority.
We have to stop normalizing cruelty to animals that's passed off as "tradition."
This commentary is by Lisa Jablow of Brattleboro, a board member of Protect Our Wildlife and of WinDART, and a district leader of the Humane Society of the United States. With all of the recent uproar over events in Washington, D.C., it’s easy to forget that there are other issues deserving of our attention. There […]
After two coyote carcasses were photographed strung up outside a Bloomfield home, activists are renewing calls for the state to crack down on coyote hunting.
The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department condones the persecution of coyotes, including shooting them on sight, 365 days a year.
Gov. Phil Scott allowed a controversial bill on coyote killing competitions to become law, but without his signature.
News Release -- Protect Our Wildlife May 10, 2018 Contact: Brenna Galdenzi [email protected], 802.768-9862 Stowe, VT - A passionate and persistent coalition of landowners, biologists, farmers, hunters, wildlife enthusiasts, and others overcame opposition from paid lobbyists and Vermont’s own Fish and Wildlife Department to ban coyote killing contests for prizes. Vermont will be only […]
A bill that would ban coyote tournaments has brought the philosophical debate over governing human behavior to the Statehouse.
