This image of a sealer dragging a bleeding seal across the ice while another sealer takes aim at a different pup was taken on day two of the Canadian commercial seal hunt. 

Please consider donating to the International Fund for Animal Welfare's hunt monitoring teams to purchase equipment, fuel and fund research efforts that allow us to make the legal case that this hunt must end. 

Comments

[Larisa]

How barbaric, cruel, heartless... I will boycott anything made in Canada. Killing innocent babies,just magnificent animals for profit or pleasure... bloody bastards. Sure, human babies have all the rights to live, but what about baby seals ? Those in power to stop this abomination - PLEASE, STOP IT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Stuart]

I have been appalled by the scenes of this horrific slaughter in in Canada. is it a case of the goverment not listening to the rest of the world or are the rest of the world and Canada not acyually standing up and saying NO!!????? I am disgusted and ashamed of humans when i see these people running aover to a helpless seal and clubbing it over the head. Today i witnessed scenes of baby seals being skinned alive from sky news. Please can the IFAW provide some of us with transport over to Canada so we can turn up and club the fishermen around the head to see how they would like it..IM SO ANGRY, i planned on visiting Canada to Ski this year but not anymore until this is stopped....SHAME ON YOU EVIL BASTARDS!!!

[knox g.stallbauer]

Hört endlich auf mit dem grausamen Robenmord und stellt Euch vor, wie es wäre, wenn ihr unten liegt und auf Euch eingedroschen wird und euch die Haut bei lebendigem leib abgezogen wird. Mahlzeit! Man sollte es an Euch auch ausprobieren.Tut ja nicht weh, ihr mitleidslosen Robbenmörder, oder so denkt ihr doch...´
knox

[Gabrielle]

I will never understand the seal hunt, ever. It is beyond barbaric and cruel.

[Matt M.]

You guys are insane... crazy vegans! I'm fairly sure smashing a pick over ANYTHING's head will kill it humanely. I know if I was to be killed, I'd like to be shot or smashed - it's not like I'd have consciousness.

[Sandra]

Matt,

If you were more informed, you'd know that according to veterinary studies, over 40% of the seals are skinned alive so no, smashing over the head does not insure death.

[Matt M.]

According to which studies? Do you have a link or any source with the complete study?

Facts without a source are as useless as pure speculation.

However, my speculation is also based on common sense. For example, I would trust that bringing a sharp metal object down on a skull (if it's a direct blow) would cause irreversible damage immediately leading to death.

Unfortunately we can't guarantee that every seal will be killed the first try, but what industry is 100% efficient? I think you should look to nature, as well. Does the pack of wolves kill a deer as painlessly as possible? I think not.

[PM]

This website is a joke, Matt. No sources are cited anywhere as far as I can tell. The "myths" page in particular makes several claims regarding percentages, absolute numbers, and specific occurrences without any reference to verifiable, independent documents.

It's a shame because I think a lot of people (including me) would be much more receptive to movements such as this if they dropped the rhetoric and actually provided some substance.

[BEVERLY]

I dont see why canada cant leave a ban on the seals.thses animals should be put on the endanger list and if anyone does nit like it then to damn bad.these animals should be left alone.STOP LIKKING THEM NOW!!and i do not feel sorry for the hunters that got hurt this weeken,they got what they deserved!

[Nanieke]

Matt,

Accoring to this study..

http://www.decanadesezeehond.nl/pdf/artikelen/veteranary%20report.pdf

I've read it completely. You should too.

[Claudia Lienhard]

This happening in Canada shows how Man treats a heap of pure and beautiful life.
This is distressing for me -to know that this is the way Man reacts towards a piece of unprotectd innocent life.

I have another picture in my head. I see a Man walking over the ice as if he is a part of the creation, bending down to this beautiful animal, talking to him, giving him his love, his respect, his support.
That is what I would do. Would you?
I am not perfect - I would not, at this stage, do this with a Human being.
But I would do it with someone that does not hurt me, that has no bad intentions towards me.
We have to start with what we do.
Make me Love you.

[claudia lienhard]

All those who are hurt by this killing, look for support, not opposition.
Those that do not feel with the animal, that are not touched by this nightmare, will not b reached by your words or tears.

I want to know what I can do, I want to know what others are doing against it.
The last I want is loose time with those that are blind and cold.
Pray.
X

[Sandra]

That's funny Matt, where were your sources when you offered your commentary?? But as you wish, here are my sources http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/dfiles/file_95.pdf pg 8 to make it easy for you.

Now please provide your sources since you just stated "Facts without a source are as useless as pure speculation". Or, is your perception and speculation of "common sense" a fact?
You say a bringing a sharp metal object to a skull would lead to irreversible damage and immediate death, are you a doctor? Because common sense would really indicate that is not always the case. One doesn't need a source to know that this is always the case.

I agree that one can't guarantee 100%, but the Government should be out there making sure the sealers are abiding with the laws and conducting it as humanely as possible instead of jerking the animal organizations and journalists around.

Your example of wolves killing deer is just stupid, clearly, wolves aren't killing deer to make fur coat and make a buck.

[Matt M]

You are still providing biased information.

I don't want IFAW propaganda, I want a peer-reviewed, independent study (independent as these veternarians seem to be, the study was FUNDED by a group with a vested interest in one outcome - an unnecessary risk). Obviously you would dismiss any study claimed by pro-hunt groups as nonsense, so why not give me one?

Also, the "study" involved 76 seals. That is so small a sample size that it is mathematically insignificant! Considering there is a 275000 or so quota, this "study" involved 0.028% of the hunt.

Come back when you have some REAL data to show for your propaganda.

matthew4@gmail.com

[Sandra]

Matt, I think you forgot to cite your sources, oversight on your part I'm sure.....

[Matt M.]

Obviously, I read the link YOU gave me.

http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/dfiles/file_95.pdf

That should have been fairly obvious, I got my information from the study itself (and I'm sorry, I should have used the 2001 quota, 226000, changing the value to 0.033%).
It's on the executive summary, in fact. One of the FIRST PAGES.
Being picky, the 2001 quota can be confirmed from a quick google. cbc.ca and the government confirmed it, unless they're all lying and this is a giant conspiracy to kill all the seals by huge amounts of underreporting, of course.

[Sandra]

I'm talking about your original posts where you said "smashing a pick over ANYTHING's head will kill it humanely". Where did you get this information or was that your personal opinion? You're the one who called me out, so do me the same courtesy and put your sources to that information.

Obviously, I know you can't provide it because that's inaccurate information but it's funny how you insult others here for standing up against cruely when it's clear you have no interst in animal welfare. What kind of person does that make you..........

[rza]

humanshitmustdie

[Christine Davies]

Please stop CALLING Canadians BASTARDS etc etc. I am Canadian and I have been fighting this seal hunt, it makes me angry I cry, I scream. No one is listening. The Canadian government is not listening to international crys or the Canadian people who cry for these seals

[Matt M.]

Anybody have a link to this oft-quoted "60, 70% of Canadians oppose the hunt"?
I don't mean a scientifically inaccurate online poll. Anything done by a licensed poll company?

@Sandra.
I have interest in sustainable and reasonable animal welfare. Well, like... animal shelters (of which HSUS operates NONE, read up on activistcash.com, although I'm sure that site has another agenda)
However, when animal rights clash with human rights, I support humans.

[Sandra]

That's fine, but in this case, it doesn't clash with human rights. Just because someone makes a living off something (even a small portion like this), doesn't make it ethical, humane, right etc.

And even if it did, it should be conducted humanely and you yourself agree that the sealers do not comply, making it inhumane.

[Matt M.]

"Saving" the seals will reduce the ability of some outport fishermen to pay the upkeep on their boats and pay their debts. It's by no means a large industry ($16.5 million according to the federal government in 2005 - http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/sealhunt/ ), but it's not spread out across a large amount of people. Without that income, those several thousand sealers will have to find another suitable source of income. Unfortunately, Newfoundland outports aren't known for their strong economies and the only real option is to take their families and leave (They also come from proud families and traditions and will generally refuse handouts like a complete buyout of the industry). The outports are dying fast enough as is, forcing sealers to move is not a smart decision.

Another argument I've stated...SOMEWHERE around here.. is that if you compare the amount of animal suffering caused by humans directly to the amount of suffering by animals in general, you'll find that nature is all about pain and suffering, throughout history!
It's really the way of things.
Now, are you going to train a lion to eat soy? The amount of suffering any other wild animal causes is comparable to humans as a species (except for the coming global warming and pollution problems).. Long after humans are gone, there will still be carnivorous fun going on and nobody will be able to save animals from being snacks then.
So you say, at least we can prevent suffering from going on now... well, we can manage these resources and prevent extinction, so the seals will continue to exist, but given the literally billions of years of life, this will not matter in the end. As in math, the limit to infinity of 1/x is 0. That's how much this is going to do. Nothing.
So, with proper management of stocks of course, support your fellow species!

[Sandra]

God forbid these people find another source of income, just like anyone else that's laid off, fired, injured on a job etc. Do you seriously believe that we should put pride before humanity? Oh yes, wait, I'm sorry Mr. Sealer, go ahead and slowly kill this young pup, don't worry about doing it humanely, we know you have your pride...........

Yes, offers HAVE been made to buy out the industry but as you can see, it's been declined. Why is that? If the seal hunt is crucial to their survival and someone offers to pay them to stop, why not stop? Obviously, they enjoy it.

Your argument about lions eating soy and wolves killing deer are just plain ignorant. There is a difference between nature and profit and I'm surprised that you fail to see that.

I can assure you Matt, I will NEVER support savagery, abuse and torture - for ANY species and neither will anyone else that stands up against this issue.

[Matt M.]

Like I said, there ARE no more sources of income without uprooting their entire families. Foreign (and local) overfishing largely destroyed cod stocks so now the basis of life in these communities has pretty much disappeared.

If somebody came up to you and offered you welfare for the rest of your life, no work required, would you accept? I sure wouldn't.

[Sandra]

If my only options were to club seals or sign up for welfare, I can assure you I would take the latter.

However, that's not what we're talking about here. If this was just an economical problem, the offer made by Ms. Kangas should have been accepted. That was not welfare; it was a program that would be developed to buy back sealing licenses and launch eco-tourism. This would replace the seal hunt where the sealers would have an opportunity to earn even more money as tour guides.

So don't give me your crap saying without sealing, all the families would go under. It is after all, only a small supplemental income.

[Matt M.]

Supplemental income that has been estimated at 30% for some fishermen. Even if it's far less, that little extra bit is what makes the difference between paying off the boat and losing it.

Eco-tourism... I doubt very much it can provide thousands of dollars per person. There aren't that many whales around, and what? Do you think people will be interested in seals once the animal rights people take the spotlight off the hunt? Would they give us free advertising?

[Sandra]

Matt, lets try to stick with facts shall we, it's a $16 million dollar industry, and lets not forget that the industry is subsidized by the government as well. Who do you think has to pay for the search and rescue missions, locating the nursery and directing the boats, "monitoring" of activities and killing, the cost of the legal teams now fighting EU's proposal to ban the import and the delegation over there arguing for the hunt etc. Who do you think pays for that? Oh that's right, the tax payers pay for that.

Whales....eh no, the eco tourism was a suggestion to promote and yes, help advertise the seal nursery for visitors around the world. I'm not sure you're a travel & tourism major, I believe you said physics in another post but I can assure you that in the general scheme of things, $16 millions aren't that much.

But since you consider yourself to be so wise, explain to me why the offer was declined. You said the hunt was an economic necessity for the sealers, I'd like to know then why, the offer to create a change was declined.

[Matt M.]

However, Steven Outhouse, spokesman for Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn, said the federal government would not be taking Kangas up on her offer.

"Besides the fact that most within the industry say it's worth more than $16 million ... and notwithstanding the fact that this is an annual income, I don't know whether she was planning to offer $16 million a year for the next decade or if this was a one-time deal or what have you,'' he said.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060407/pamela_sealhunt_060407/20060407?hub=Entertainment

Is she going to provide 16 million a year indefinitely? I never heard any mention of that. You can't just stop the hunt for one year by buying people off. If you want to do it, give the people 20 years worth of money! Hmm, wait, NO OFFERS OF THAT!

[Sasha]

Sure there are other jobs. Cutting trees, drilling for oil, catching more already-depleted fish. Are you willing to promote those?

Yes, there's eco-tourism; plenty already exists there. But the tourist season (summer) is about two months long...a short period to make a year's income on. As for seal tourism, I doubt enough people will make the long trek across land and sea in Canadian winter to make it profitable.

I don't like sealing. But I don't hate sealers.

From studying and visiting Newfoundland, I agree with Matt about the people there. They do not do this for fun. They are proud, and will not stop just because somebody else says to. And they are humans. NOT EVIL MONSTERS.

I don't know if sealing is sustainable. It sure doesn't look painless to the seals. I personally wish it didn't happen. But it sickens me to see so much hate here.

[GRID]

I am revolted that this shameful hunt always exist in 2008 in Canada. What shame for the Canadian government which authorizes it simply for profit. Let us continue to fight against one of the biggest scandal of our time, I am sure that we shall win one day. Courage, all together. Gilles - France