Seals for fur

[_Ju_]

Every spring there is a massacre of baby seals for fur. What happens with these animals is shocking and is done only to provide a luxury item.
If you feel this is wrong, please have a look at the following site:

http://www.stopthesealhunt.com/site/...3&sid=42247943

I have a feeling that some people might not feel happy about this post. I am sure that it will be pointed out to me that atrocities are commited everyday against human beings and that this type of cruelty is only protested against when the animal in question is cute and cuddly. And I do agree with these opinions. But each one of us is only one person and can do only so much.

Take care and please have a look.

[krieve]

I signed the petition.

[changilass]

I signed the petition.

Yes, so did I, this is horrible

[unicorn]

I did too. Every little helps I hope.

[Liz]

Had signed the petition already. Hope it helps!!

[ice box]

i also signed it's sick that they can get away with this did you see the look on the pups faces there so cute . grrrrrrrr.

[Billy Boy]

we live in a sad world at time's i wonder what there face's would look like if they faced that club

[RandomHero]

I totally agree that this is wrong but I'm sure there is another side to it. I'm not agreeing with the hunters in any way at all but they do have reasons. It is most certainly inhumane and I feel that if it has to be done, there must be a way more humane than this. On the other hand Eskimos must kill for fur in order to survive the cold weather, what do people think about that? I think alot of people oppose seal clubbing because they are considered to be a 'cute' animal. If that's the reason you are against it, I believe you should reconsider your reasoning.

On the subject of animal cruelty, I beleive that one of the most inhumane things I have seen is the Islamic practice of slaughtering animals by means of a sharp cut to the front of the neck. In the West, it is required by law to stun the animals with a shot to the head before the slaughter, supposedly to render the animal unconscious and to prevent it from reviving before it is killed so as not to slow down the movement of the processing line. It is also used to prevent the animal from feeling pain before it dies.

But i suppose because this is in the name of 'religion' it is acceptable?

[_Ju_]

I totally agree that this is wrong but I'm sure there is another side to it. I'm not agreeing with the hunters in any way at all but they do have reasons. It is most certainly inhumane and I feel that if it has to be done, there must be a way more humane than this. On the other hand Eskimos must kill for fur in order to survive the cold weather, what do people think about that? I think alot of people oppose seal clubbing because they are considered to be a 'cute' animal. If that's the reason you are against it, I believe you should reconsider your reasoning.

On the subject of animal cruelty, I beleive that one of the most inhumane things I have seen is the Islamic practice of slaughtering animals by means of a sharp cut to the front of the neck. In the West, it is required by law to stun the animals with a shot to the head before the slaughter, supposedly to render the animal unconscious and to prevent it from reviving before it is killed so as not to slow down the movement of the processing line. It is also used to prevent the animal from feeling pain before it dies.

But i suppose because this is in the name of 'religion' it is acceptable?

I would love to know where I said we should protect seals because they are cute, but anyway:

RandomHero, very few (if any) eskimos kill baby seals for their fur to actualy wear it (Just like sturgoen fishermen do not eat alot of caviar). Aside from the fact that there are modern fabrics that are more efficient in conserving heat, the skin is more valuble to sell on to the fashion industry. The only way I, personally, could partially accept the killing of these animals is if people were deprived of their livehoods. That is not the case since what the sealers make is a pitance and tourism is a much more efficient way to bring money to local populations ( Tourism does not mean a week in Ibiza lying on the beach drunk on sangria to everyone). Seals are also not hunted exclusively by eskimo's by the way.

With regard to religious slaughter, I could not agree with you more. It is inhumane (though stunning has absolutely nothing to do with line speeds and everything to do with animal welfare). It is, in my opinion, an unacceptable practice, but has been legalised in this country to appease religious minorities. Just for your information, the Islamic religion is not the only the only one to have the practice of bleeding without stunning. Like Halal, Kosher meat also results from animals bled without any form of stunning, be it electrical or captive bolt.

Now I am going to ask you a question: a seal is clobbered to death....beaten to a pulp, and sometimes even skinned before it is effectively dead. In Halal or Kosher the requirement on religious and welfare issues is that one clean incision is made, severing carotids and jugulars on both sides (no sawing). This cuts blood pressure to the brain immediately. For a couple of minutes nothing is done to the animal ( for example shackling), untill it is effectively dead. It takes a minute for the animal to die. The seal gets clobbered and maybe (if he is lucky) dies of internal bleeding or (if he is REALLY lucky) brain damage by being properly pole axed. All this for a non-essencial pelt?? I do not consider Hala or Kosher to be more des-humane than "sealing". I think they just bother you more because they happen closer to home.

[unicorn]

Not that I would like either but if I were to be killed I would prefer 1 fast cut throat rather than a slow beating to death.

[connieb19]

I was watching a programme about this last night, and in China, they skin domestic cats and dogs for their fur, whilst they are still alive.

[unicorn]

I saw that video, I still can't get the picture out of my head, it was horrendous

[canuck]

I am not an avid seal hunt supporter, but I recognize that the hunt has a role in modern society. I have found a website which offers the pro-hunt side of the industry http://www.pagophilus.org/hunt/sust.htm

Sealing is an ancient practise in Canada. It has been an important aspect of the The Inuit culture for generations. The skins provide protection against the harsh Canadian winters. The meat is used to feed the dogs which act as the boy-racer vehicles in the frozen north. On the coasts the fishermen need to keep the seal population down to allow the fish stocks to reach a level sufficient for harvest. The seal hunt does provide skins for the garment industry, but it also acts as a cull for the fishing industry.

The seal hunt in Canada is like any other agricultural industry in the economy of the country. It is probably the most strickly regulated and well supervised of any.

Certainly most of us don't wear seal skin coats any more, although I have a hand-me down around here somewhere. But when I think of the air pollution that results from the processing of the petroleum to manufacture the artificial fibre that goes into modern fabrics, I wonder if there isn't a more natural way in animal skins. Sure, wool works, but it just isn't warm enough in the worst of the Canadian winter.

There are two sides to this issue, just like there are multiple sides to many issues of life. I appreciate hearing them. And we are all better citizens when we can look at the many sides. Hopefully we can come to a healthy balance. On this issue I am not convinced that I want to sign a petition to abolish the sea hunt.

[Kenn]

I am outraged by those that seek to exploit any creature simply because it has a pelt,skin or feathers that are beautiful.I would rather see 7 live Siberian tigers(yes that's how many pelts it takes to make a coat) than one bitch walking down the street thinking she is glamorous.
For those that would support a seal cull, I say take a look at what you have done to the oceans with commercial fishing and don't blame the animals for your own shortcomings.
I do not question the right of indiginous people to hunt when they take only what they need to survive but when it is done in the name of commerce and vanity then I am ashamed for the human race.
I have children and a grandchild, I do not want to have to say to them that once this planet was invested with a magical number of species but unfortunately you will never see them because we are a selfish race and we killed them all.

[JAWS]

During part of a recent enquiry into how the Norsemen managed to sail all over the North Atlantic in open boats tests were made into the effectiveness of the clothing and skins they wore in keeping out the cold and wet when compared to the modern equivalent.

The people doing the tests were astonished to find that the clothing worn by the Norsemen was far more effective at keeping them warm and dry than was the modern, super-dooper, top of the range, artificial equivalent.

The only improvement the modern clothing had was that it didn't stink of fish oil. I'm not aware that they did any test to discover if, in the case of some people, the stench of fish oil was an improvement.

The Inuit have been using seals, amongst other things provided by nature, to provide for their requirements for many thousands of years without detriment to their surroundings.
We, on the other hand, in less than a century have managed to destroy and pollute much of the earth in our quest to invent new ways of providing exactly the same things, warm clothing and dwellings.

Most people, when they see the Oil Rigs and huge Oil Refineries think of petrol and diesel. That is only the products left over when everything else has been removed from the crude oil. Most of what is turned out is artificial products such as plastics which are used in a vast number of products, nylon and similar products, which are used as the artificial replacement for animal products in clothing, (fleeces are now virtually a waste product).
If we stop using petrol and diesel tomorrow we will still go on polluting the atmosphere to provide us with the same artificial carbon based products.

In the attempts to provide cotton in sufficient quantities the Aral Sea, one of the largest inland seas in the World, has almost completely disappeared, with all the attendant ecological disasters attached thereto.

We are busily devastating rain forests in South East Asia to provide our need for rubber.

We have exterminated much of the original wildlife of these islands and completely destroyed the native forests which covered Britain from end to end. Where there are still forests the native flora and fauna have been replaced with allegedly more economic alien species, in most cases to the further detriment of any remaining local flora and fauna.

Having done all that, we then discover that it is not economically viable to harvest what has been produced.

Then, having done all that in so short a period of time, what do we do?
We glare disapprovingly at other cultures and, from our superior position, wag our fingers are them and admonish them for their destructive behaviour.

If anybody should think I am exaggerating then take a short trip down the A9 to near Loth where you will find a plaque proclaiming that nearby was the place where the last wolf in Scotland was shot, killed and made extinct.

[doglover]

I totally agree that this is wrong but I'm sure there is another side to it. I'm not agreeing with the hunters in any way at all but they do have reasons. It is most certainly inhumane and I feel that if it has to be done, there must be a way more humane than this. On the other hand Eskimos must kill for fur in order to survive the cold weather, what do people think about that? I think alot of people oppose seal clubbing because they are considered to be a 'cute' animal. If that's the reason you are against it, I believe you should reconsider your reasoning.

On the subject of animal cruelty, I beleive that one of the most inhumane things I have seen is the Islamic practice of slaughtering animals by means of a sharp cut to the front of the neck. In the West, it is required by law to stun the animals with a shot to the head before the slaughter, supposedly to render the animal unconscious and to prevent it from reviving before it is killed so as not to slow down the movement of the processing line. It is also used to prevent the animal from feeling pain before it dies.

But i suppose because this is in the name of 'religion' it is acceptable?

I found this information which is worth a look to anyone interested http://pages.britishlibrary.net/smb/halal.htm

[_Ju_]

I found this information which is worth a look to anyone interested http://pages.britishlibrary.net/smb/halal.htm

I can tell you that your source of information is very wrong on at least one aspect: captive bolt does not stop the heart from beating and the shot causes a state of anestesia (look up the word: absence of conciousness and pain). This is especialy bad from my point of view because it claims these two things to scientific fact. They are not scientific fact at all.
Not everything in writing is true or imparcial, and considering the page title I would doubt impartiality.Then again the same could be said for PETA and IFAW sites I suppose.

As I said before, the only way I could in a way accept this type of hunting is if it were to impact the livehood of a traditional population. However, seal hunted by the innuit are not hunted for the pretty white baby seal fur. They hunt the whole animal and use the whole animal, including the adult pelt. I have absolutely no issue with this.

I have a HUGE issue with clobbering baby seals to death for their pelts ( the rest is tossed overboard). It is wasteful and cruel.

As for "pest control" for fish..... nature does not allow imbalance to exist. Predator and prey populations always exist in balance. The fish stocks dwindle not because of seals, but because man has upset the balance with his gigantic trawlers and polution.

[doglover]

I can tell you that your source of information is very wrong on at least one aspect: captive bolt does not stop the heart from beating and the shot causes a state of anestesia (look up the word: absence of conciousness and pain). This is especialy bad from my point of view because it claims these two things to scientific fact. They are not scientific fact at all.
Not everything in writing is true or imparcial, and considering the page title I would doubt impartiality.Then again the same could be said for PETA and IFAW sites I suppose.

As I said before, the only way I could in a way accept this type of hunting is if it were to impact the livehood of a traditional population. However, seal hunted by the innuit are not hunted for the pretty white baby seal fur. They hunt the whole animal and use the whole animal, including the adult pelt. I have absolutely no issue with this.

I have a HUGE issue with clobbering baby seals to death for their pelts ( the rest is tossed overboard). It is wasteful and cruel.

As for "pest control" for fish..... nature does not allow imbalance to exist. Predator and prey populations always exist in balance. The fish stocks dwindle not because of seals, but because man has upset the balance with his gigantic trawlers and polution.

This is not 'my source of information' as you say, but it is information which I found on the subject discussed. I believe that information provided by scientific research to be more reliable than that of dramatic newspaper reporting.

To get back to the original subject of your opening post, I agree seal clubbing is barbaric and voted against it.

[_Ju_]

This is not 'my source of information' as you say, but it is information which I found on the subject discussed. I believe that information provided by scientific research to be more reliable than that of dramatic newspaper reporting.

.

I don't know what newspapers you might be refering to, but I can say enfatically that the science cited is not correct. The only reason I said "your source of information" is because you used it. I am not criticising you but the info contained in the article. I really don't understand why the use of these words have so offended you.

PS: we do agree with regard to seal battering, apparently

[RandomHero]

I found this information which is worth a look to anyone interested http://pages.britishlibrary.net/smb/halal.htm

Of course, that's an Islamic site. It is a biast view.