Category: Wildlife/Marine Mammals

House members reintroduce bill to ban cub petting, keeping big cats as pets

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

Americans today are more aware than ever before about the horrors that big cats endure in captivity at the hands of exhibitors and roadside zoo owners. Photo by the HSUS

A bill that would prohibit public contact with big cats like tigers, lions and leopards and ban the possession of these animals as pets was swiftly reintroduced in the U.S. House today, suggesting that the measure is poised for early action in Congress. The Big . . . 

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In 2020, we helped disband a trophy hunters’ advisory panel, retained protections for grizzly bears and ended more wildlife killing contests

Animal Rights & Environment, Humane Society International, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

We are urging South Africa to stop allowing the trophy hunting of elephants, lions, rhinos and leopards and our partners are urging China to ban the imports of rhino hunting trophies. Photo by Skynesher/iStock.com

Trophy hunting is a cruel and dangerous pastime that is pushing some of the world’s most iconic animals closer to extinction, and the Humane Society family of organizations has put our might behind stopping it. In the past four years we have encountered tremendous challenges . . . 

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Mink living in the wild near Utah fur farm tests positive for coronavirus, increasing urgency to end fur farming

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

The Swedish National Veterinary Institute says that wild mink infected with the virus do not pose an additional risk to humans beyond the ongoing, pervasive threat of person-to-person infection. Photo by Dreamstime

A mink living in the wild near an infected Utah fur farm has tested positive for the coronavirus, providing yet another pressing reason why the United States needs to end all mink fur farming without further delay. While it is not clear if the infected . . . 

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World’s largest fur auction house will close as demand for animal pelts drops

Animal Rights & Environment, Humane Society International, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

The Netherlands has announced it will move up its deadline to close down mink fur farms by two years, to 2021. France recently announced it will phase out fur farming. And last month, Israel became the first country to announce it will ban the fur trade. Photo by Dreamstime

The world’s largest fur auction house says it will close its doors for good within the next three years, in yet another dramatic setback for this cruel trade that contributes to unnecessary suffering and death for millions of animals worldwide each year. Kopenhagen Fur, founded . . . 

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The U.S. just delisted gray wolves so trophy hunters can kill them

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

Gray wolf in the mountains, looking back

The Department of the Interior bulldozed this rule through despite the fact that nearly two million Americans left comments to register their opposition to it after it was proposed last year. Photo by Nathan Hobbs/iStock.com

In a heinous move that defies both science and common sense, the United States has prematurely lifted federal protections for gray wolves in the lower 48 states, giving them carte blanche to open trophy hunting seasons on these beloved native carnivores. The Department of the . . . 

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Tell Missouri to trash its black bear hunt proposal; it’s based on research funded by Safari Club

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

A cute black bear cub sitting under a tree

We have seen so many states and even the federal government play into the hands of trophy hunters time and again in recent years while ignoring real research and science. Photo by Eric Faulknor/iStock.com

Missouri’s proposal to open season on black bears has the trophy hunting industry’s fingerprints all over it. But the state’s residents now have a chance to voice their opposition to it. The Missouri Department of Conservation has just opened formal public comment on this ill-conceived . . . 

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China urged to protect rhinos by ending trophy imports

Animal Rights & Environment, Humane Society International, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

With a growing number of nations legislating against the import of threatened wildlife species body parts in recent years, the trophy hunting industry has turned its attention to places like China where they see an emerging market. Photo by iStock.com

In 2016, China made a historic decision to ban the trade in ivory and other elephant body parts, claiming a spot on the frontlines of the global war to end the trafficking of threatened species. But China is still the world’s second largest importer (after . . . 

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California leads the charge to protect mountain lions but other states backslide

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

California policymakers have put their best foot forward for mountain lions, but that has not been the case in Utah, Colorado and Washington. Photo by Joe Austin/Alamy Stock Photo

California, which took the pioneering move of banning mountain lion trophy hunting three decades ago, is still standing strong for these iconic animals. This week, California lawmakers passed groundbreaking legislation to ban the use of certain rodenticides that have been held responsible for the illness . . . 

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USFWS director says federal protections for wolves will be removed by end of year

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

Aurelia Skipwith told the Associated Press in an interview this week that her agency is “working hard” to lift federal protections for gray wolves across the lower 48 states by the end of this year. Photo by David Osborn/Alamy Stock Photo

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the federal agency tasked with protecting American wildlife, is getting closer to allowing trophy hunters and cattle ranchers to open season on the gray wolf, one of our nation’s most iconic—as well as most persecuted—animals. USFWS director Aurelia Skipwith . . . 

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Black Bear Cub

Florida black bear cub poaching incident is a reminder of the need to coexist with wildlife

Animal Rights & Environment, Public Policy (Legal/Legislative), The Humane Society of the United States, Wildlife/Marine Mammals

Black bears have historically been at the losing end when they cross paths with humans: they are hit by cars, shot by poachers and trophy hunters, often unfairly killed in the wake of human encounters and specifically targeted if there are conflicts with livestock. Photo by Sarkophoto/iStock.com

Last month, so many Floridians were shocked when the decaying body of a yearling bear cub, fondly nicknamed Bailey by members of the sprawling community that he sometimes visited, was discovered. This was an unlawful killing on its face, one that violated Florida regulations, but . . . 

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