- HSI/Canada
- NS fishers beat seal pups to death on Hay Island, 2008
Monday, February 8th marks the official start of the season for clubbing baby grey seals to death on Hay Island, a protected wilderness area off northeastern Cape Breton. And now, there are fears that the federal government is quietly preparing the way for an even-bigger slaughter on Sable Island.
Andrew Newbould, an adviser on marine mammals for the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans says the government has set a Sable Island quota of 39,803 grey seals, but no cull has been authorized this year. However, he would not rule out the “hypothetical” possibility of sealing on Sable Island in future.
Newbould says the Sable Island quota was based on a 2007 survey of the grey seal population. He adds the survey showed that up to 50,000 seals could be taken off the coasts of Nova Scotia without endangering the grey seal population.
Federal fisheries minister Gail Shea was in China last month seeking the lifting of restrictions on the import of seal products into a country described on the DFO website as the world’s largest consumer of fish and seafood. “For Canada, sealing is about more than fur,” Shea is quoted as saying in a news release issued in Beijing. “The trade of other seal products such as oils and meat represents a growing share of what is already a multi-million dollar business.” Shea doesn’t mention it, but there is also a lucrative potential market for seal penises in China where they are used in traditional medicines, as sexual stimulants or served as delicacies in restaurants.
Rebecca Aldworth, executive director of the Canadian branch of Humane Society International, says governments are under tremendous pressure to open Sable Island to sealing. “We’re very disturbed about that,” Aldworth says. “With an overall quota of 50,000, Sable is the only place you would find that kind of concentration.”
In 2008, Aldworth was part of a Humane Society team that photographed the clubbing of baby seals on Hay Island. “It was truly horrific,” she says. “There isn’t an Atlantic Canadian, besides those doing the clubbing themselves, who could stomach what we saw.”
Aldworth says the group will be on Hay Island again this year if the seal cull goes ahead. “People will be horrified to see baby seals beaten to death with wooden bats in a protected wilderness area,” she says. “This is not the image Canada should be projecting to the world.”
It’s still not certain whether sealers will be able to find markets this year for the Hay Island pelts. Last year, only 200 baby seals were clubbed to death there because of low prices and a lack of buyers. This year’s overall quota for the eastern Nova Scotia region, which includes Hay Island, is 2,220.
- DFO, 2004
- Aerial photo of seal pup on Sable Island
Many in the fishing industry maintain that seals need to be culled to protect declining fish stocks. But the DFO website makes it clear that seal hunting is not linked to reviving groundfish stocks. “Seals eat cod, but seals also eat other fish that prey on cod,” the DFO site reports. “It is widely accepted in the scientific community that there are many uncertainties in the estimates of the amount of fish consumed by seals. Seals and cod exist in a complex ecosystem, which makes it difficult to find simple solutions to problems such as the lack of recovery of cod stocks.”
A 2006 study by the Bedford Institute of Oceanography says there’s little evidence that seals are mainly to blame for the continued decline of the fish stocks. The study adds that grey seals do eat cod, but cod are only a small part of their diet. It concludes that while grey seals contribute to a decline in the cod stocks, even killing all of them “would not assure the recovery of the cod population.”
This article appears in Feb 4-10, 2010.
I am sorry to hear that the Canadian Government is once again not listening to the international outcry on this horrific and senseless slaughter of defenseless pups. Its a shame but the all citizens of Canada are to blame! If the citizens take more action and stand up for this bloodshed on ice, perhaps the seals stand a change. But currently in February 2010 most Canadians much rather watch the distractions provided on their tv’s such as watching a snow less Winter Olympics onfold instad of taking action and stop the fisherman from even reaching the pups!
Why are we catering to China in the first place, killing seals just so they can take supplements to get the urge to have sex!?? What the heck is that crap? They need population control as it is. It is just sick! I am sick to death about this issue year after year. It has been documented that there has been losses with seal products. Can we not set aside the almighty dollar and think about what we are doing? Money is the root of all evil, and this seal hunt is pure evil! Individuals from Austrailia to London to the US have voiced their opinions about Canadians going ahead with this hunt. They have no respect for us in that nature. I cannot say that I blame them. I also have never travelled to Nova Scotia, nor will I ever support the fisherman. Do any of them have hearts, surely not while beating a living creature with a bat, does not matter if they are cute or ugly.
Seal: it’s what’s for dinner! Yum
Well its a step in the right direction. The cull of fur seals in Canadian waters, going back hundreds of years & there being a population estimated at 4 + million strong. Is proof that a sustainable harvest is possible. I would love to be able to buy a good pair of winter boots made of seal hide, fur on. I remember getting mittens that were made of seal skin, that went over knitted mittens when I was a kid in Cape Breton. They were really warm, out playing in the snow.
If the seals were endangered, or if the Atlantic seal numbers were dropping, I would be one of the first to speak up for a moritorium on the hunt until they could recover. As they are doing fine, I say let our fisherman/hunters continue this traditional way of life. Too bad somebody, say in our Native communities couldn’t start marketing seal skin Products…like boots moccassins, mittens, or coats. I know I would be buying them.
Dear ignorant people,
The seal hunt is as important to the people of Atlantic Canada and the north as the fishing industry is. It has both cultural and economic value. This is a hunt that has been taking place in Canada for years and is a much more sustainable method for obtaining food and skins then the earth killing farms of Alberta.
I urge you to look at the facts. First off the seals are not going anywhere. There are a lot and they are not endangered, deal with it. Secondly I think it is embarrassing for the Canadian government to let foreign countries mess with our domestic policy. Canada should be looking out for the interests of its citizens (the hunters are citizens as well) then to attempt to appease countries with no better slaughter methods then our own. Most of those complaining about the hunt to not understand the context of the hunt nor do they think about the horrors that take place in the slaughter houses for other meats such as poultry and beef. Oh and vegetarians don’t think you are out of this either. Want to be sustainable? Try eating food that comes from the region rather then eating vegees grown half way around the world that are then transported thousands of miles to Halifax (one of the least tropical cities in the world). If you want to be sustainable try something like the 100 mile diet and support your LOCAL economy. This goes for buying garments as well. Canadians should consider buying products from Canadians. It just makes good economics. Your all organic clothing may have been organic in South American or Asia where it was made but it has poisoned the air during the long boat/plane ride to Halifax.
I know people feel bad for the seals but in reality it is not that bad and perhaps one of the most humane hunts in the world. Creatures live wild free of antibiotics, have great living conditions (unlike cattle tied up to those little white houses), and are killed quickly and humanely in comparison to other animals (the flipping is just nerves, that sounds horrible but its true). Death looks bad, sorry.
For those animal activists and environmentalists like myself I urge you to support the seal hunt and consider how we can apply this to other local game. It just makes so much more sense to gather food from the land rather then change the land to make food. Thus ruining natural habitat and putting us all in danger.
These poor beautiful creatures…. the victims of ignorant people who rape the ecosystems.
When I think about the seal hunts I am not proud to be Canadian. All I can say is that it is all greed. We are going to kill ourselves because we are so greedy (yes we will kill ourselves, thousands of people do it every day by eating so much meat that they have heart attacks from obbesity). Its a sad thing that it is the year 2010 and people are still so ignorant.
The whole “seals are eating all the cod” is bs, who are we humans to say that? We are not god! People say that we need to hunt so many deer every year because they are “over populated” and we hit them with our cars. Well the fact is that there use to be cougars that lived here and we decided to kill all of them and so now there may be more deer. But then again we built roads through their homes and we are actually becoming over populated ourselves.
Why don’t we just start killing humans? We are over populated and destroying the world. Thats crazy you may say, but the only reason we don’t is because no one will pay for human skin. If people thought they could benefit financially they probably would. Its disgusting.
Knowledge is power people, as Canadians we should know a little bit more..you would think. But on the other hand iggnorance is bliss. People do not want to know about the cruelty that goes on because they know deep down that they may feel moraly obligated to do something about it.
Nicole, you obviously don’t see much world news !
If you would take a few minutes, go to say the BBC news websight, then go check out the Al Jazeera english language site, look at the Reuters news site.
You will very quickly see that humans are killing each other, they are killing each other daily, & they are doing it all over the planet !
It is obviously sustainable as well, seeing as we’ve been doing it, one place or another for all of History !!
So I find it difficult to get worked up about killing seals, which helps some people, or killing cows or anything else. After all if one really is passionate about killing another creature, shouldn’t we place ‘not killing each other’ on the top of the list.
Also the resource management of this Nation, should not be dictated to it, by other Soveriegn Nations, we do not dictate their affairs.
“”They [the Chinese] need population control as it is.”‘
Who are YOU to say that?
The “one child per couple” attempt at “population control” has been a disaster. The BEST way for a society to stabilize population growth is by stabilizing their economy and social safety nets. Personally, I have more respect for cultures that make full use of an entire animal. like they do.
More of the seals would be used too, if it weren’t for misguided animal terrorists pressuring gov’ts for a “ban”. Quite an irony, isn’t it? You scream that the “poor seal is killed just for it’s fur!”, and the fact that that’s true is actually YOUR fault!
“‘Money is the root of all evil”‘
Um, I think you’ll find that it’s the ‘love’ of money…
“while beating a living creature with a bat”
This is the most humane way to harvest this animal.
I still cannot decide if I am for or against the seal hunt, but I certainly agree that Canada should not let its internal political manners be decided by other nations, whichever way we should decide. I also agree that it looks horrible to see a baby seal clubbed, but I suspect that watching a cow having its head bashed in is no prettier, and ever notice that no on is crying out that we should save the lobsters, whom we kill in a much crueller way by boiling alive? The reason is, of course, because they are not a cute as baby seals… Hypocrisy? Hmmmm…
Regarding a hunt on Sable Island specifically, which is after all, what the article was about – would it be possible in any case? We may be having a whole lot of fuss for nothing. It isn’t called the Graveyard of the Atlantic for nothing – how would the sealers get from the beach with their kill back onto their boats through a pounding surf line (and in a zodiac weighted down by dead seals)? I’m just saying, it doesn’t sound logistically feasible to me, but maybe someone with knowledge about boats and such could weigh in…
I love those people who whine about the seal hunt !
I really find the irony from those who rail against the hunt, & use other countries who don’t support it & hold these countries up as if they have some validity. Like Austrailia, which allows killing kangaroo’s in mass, allows killing rabbits any way you can think of including poison, traps & shooting morning ,noon & night. Then there’s their new program to kill or capture & euthanize (isn’t that a nice fun word) thier camel population ! I love when the EU is held up for finally banning seal products, but they continue to allow bull fighting, fox hunting (when all you do is chase a fox) until the hounds RIP IT APART. or my favorite fun animal fact the stuffing/ gorging of ducks & geese by using a funnel & dumping food down these animals gullets just to increase the size of their livers for a delicacy called foie gras. Let us not forget Icelands killing whales , but only the plentiful ones ,wink, wink !
Oh,yes let’s all support the the Badger Baiters, who use dogs to hold a badger at bay in its sett (home) where they dig it up & set the rest of the dogs on it until its killed (along with as many dogs as it can take with it). & the hare coursers (yes Laura) they still actually use live Hares & sick the greyhounds on them…doesn’t that sound sporting . or the pigeons or squirrels put in clay pots and then stoned (this is done at festivals) or chickens hung by the feet from lines and decapitated by blindfolded villagers in Tordesillas using blunted swords (because a sharp swords probably to quick)or they bury them up to their necks & decapitate them in Aduna.
Let us not forget the Finnsih, Swedish, Danish fur farms, let us close with the fire bulls.
Yes it is exactly what it sounds like, they set fire to firecrackers & other flamables attached to a bulls horns & let it run around on fire. Yes folks thee horns actually catch fire as well.
Me I’m going to check & see if anyone I know down home in Cape breton’s having anything to do with humanely killing seals, IMO anything they do, to quickly & humanely kill the animal is better by far than, feeding it to death, spearing it again & again until it becomes so weakened (I’d like to say tortured) it can be killed with a sword stroke or 2. or the chasing an animals until it finally collaps exhausted & then you allow it to be torn apart, tying it up & decapitiating it…or my new favorite, setting the animal on fire while alive !
So please if your going to be holding other Countries up as an example to us terrilbe seal hunt supporters ,find Countries who’s own animal treatment is at least better than ours, or is your real goal to have us all behave like them ? Is that it, you actually want us to torture them for awhile first …like they do in some parts of the E.U. ?
because if that’s what you really want, you’re all seriously sick bastards !
what the hell is the difference between a seal and any other animal we kill and consume.what is it.to many mindless people that simply follow actors and dim wit musicians such as mccartny.or is it to many cute cartoon shows where animals have human complex traits.there population is exploding.eating fish that we could be fishing,using the money from such fish to increase the wealth of our communities.these people actually side with an animal before a human.thinking the seal has more right then us to the fish.this is how it really is.nothing has no right to anything on this planet.it is whatever can take it while protecting their resource.we are better at that then anything else on this planet so its ours.to hell with the seals increase the quota and reduce the seal populations by 75%.then there will be planty of fish for us.
Everyone thinks it’s all about us people. Yes, there are many animals killed in cruel and unhumaine ways all around the world, but why let another start? Why not try to put an end to animal cruelty? Animals give us so much, food, warmth, protection, and yet we have no problem killing them? Greedy greedy people. Respect animals for once. Put them in front of your economy and so called “declining fish stocks”. They have a right to eat all the fish they want. There not “our” fish. So let nature be for once. Governement and people don’t have the right to control everything.
The people who go beating these animals should be beaten themselves, many many times over, if someone did this to a human they would go to jail. So why can’t these people be beaten? No animal should have to suffer for human gain, I hope that someday, something will completely eradicate mankind so the world can thrive.
China also markets shark fins ( They are not cuddly baby seals) but the head of the ocean food chain, and most almost extinct. I believe that the seal hunt is far outdated barbaric, and shouldn’t be allowed, especially on Sable Island. The eco system there is fragile as it is. I always think of the story Moby Dick, the giant monster whale coming to attack the whalers, and wonder…we have only discovered 3 % of the ocean , and maybe it’s just me but I wouldn’t want to mess with mother nature or her animals.