Trapping restrictions oppose wildlife management science
NEW MEXICO voters: HB 366 opposes science. This proposed N.M. ban on trapping on public land is an example of radical, polarized modern politics, not science.
First, trapping is an essential tool for wildlife management. Eliminating trapping as a management tool is a political “end around” of the scientists, biologists and ecologists who are professionally educated and trained to ensure that wildlife and habitat are managed wisely for everyone. The cruelest thing we can do to wildlife is to fail to manage it.
Second, the rhetoric ignores data. Note the absurd article from KRQE-TV titled “Dog Found in Bear Trap,” with a photo of a cartoon image of a bear trap. A huge one, with huge cartoon teeth. Fact: It was not a bear trap, it was a legally set coyote trap. Fact: The story indicates foot damage to the dog, but video of the dog in the shelter shows him trotting around without so much as a limp. Fact: The dog was running untethered and unattended. We all love our dogs, and the author knows it. They are playing on that love to spread fear.
More facts? Explore the Best Management Practices for Trapping in the United States — just Google it! In the past 20 years, millions of dollars of trapping research has taken place in the U.S. to make certain that modern trapping is humane and part of the larger scientific management of wildlife.
We must listen to the experts who have spent decades researching damage mitigation and the science of wildlife management. Improper management leads to overpopulation, disease and millions of dollars of damage to the agricultural community. Proponents of HB 366 fail to recognize these facts.
Third, wildlife managers, trappers, animal damage control professionals and hunters care deeply about all wildlife and their respective habitats. Ending the scientific management of wildlife and handing it over to politicians with no wildlife management training or experience is a recipe for disaster.
I urge all sportsmen and women in New Mexico to call or email their state representative and urge (him/her) to vote no on HB 366. Management of our wildlife should be left to the professionals, not the politicians being pressured by animal rights activists. DAVE HASTINGS President, Fur Takers of America (furtakersofamerica.com) Lemoyne, Nebraska