Migratory bird hunting season starts: In most EU countries the hunting season for migratory birds starts these days.
The stalking has already started in Malta and Cyprus, in France 1.2 million hunters stand for the start of the season on September 13th. Gun at your feet, the 700,000 Italian hunting license holders lay down on September 20. Come on!!
Depending on the country, up to 50 species are approved for shooting. In addition to ducks, pigeons, and chicken birds, various songbirds and waders can also be killed in most southern European countries.
The annual hunting range is around 50 million birds, including around 10 million song thrushes, over 1.3 million skylarks, and around 100,000 lapwings.
Lovebirds (photo) are also very popular with hunters – although the bird of the year 2020 is endangered throughout Europe, between 2 and 3 million lovebirds are shot legally every year!
And I mean…And that happens in the EU!!!
In the EU, whose countries call themselves civilized
And the EU calls this mass murder legal hunting.
And that’s not mentioned anywhere in the media!!
The hunting lobby extends to the highest levels of government many politicians are hunters … The lobby goes up to the highest levels of government ..That’s why everyone wants to keep the fun of shooting everything around! and therefore it is difficult to change anything.
Add to that the whole shit like tradition, you can also see the same crimes in other areas like bullfighting, whaling etc.
What criminal politicians are we governed by …
what criminal journalism are we being informed about …
and let us become a society without empathy, without conscience, without action…
The Devon and Somerset Staghounds met three times a week before the coronavirus lockdown(iStock)
WAV Comment – I think we can speak for the majority of UK citizens who will be very bummed off when they hear about this. Ex hard working older folk around the country cannot afford to pay a TV license; and yet government money is handed out like sweets to hunt scum. There is something wrong big time ! – and its called ‘a government’.
Stag hunt handed taxpayer-backed £50,000 coronavirus loan and £10,000 grant
Exclusive: Numerous hunts around UK believed to have used government lending schemes during pandemic
A stag hunt has been handed a £10,000 grant and a £50,000 loan from taxpayer-backed schemes that help struggling businesses survive the coronavirus pandemic.
The Devon and Somerset Staghounds is understood to be one of a number of hunts that have won grants or taken out loans through government programmes during the Covid-19 crisis.
During lockdown, hunts have been unable to carry out their usual fundraising activities such as point-to-point horseracing, which pays for expenses such as hound kennels and staff wages.
The Devon and Somerset pack – which rides on horseback to chase and shoot deer – earlier this year applied to its local district council for £10,000 of public cash, which it was awarded, a hunt report revealed.
The hunt, which already had £40,000 in bank accounts, does not have to repay the grant.
Local authorities administer emergency grants for businesses in England, through the small business grant fund and the discretionary grant fund, set up to try to keep traders afloat as economic activity crashed.
The Devon and Somerset Staghounds also used the government “bounce back” loan scheme to borrow £50,000.
The scheme is aimed at businesses that are losing income because of the Covid-19 outbreak. The borrower does not have to make any repayments for the first 12 months, during which the loan is interest-free.
The pack said its income from April to June had been down by 34 per cent on the same period last year but that some of its lost income had been replaced by the £10,000 grant from Somerset West and Taunton district council.
The report by the masters states: “The hunt has taken advantage of a government-backed unsecured Bounce Back loan of £50,000, which is free money for 12 months. This money will be paid back before the interest-free 12-month period ends.
“The money will sit as a form of overdraft facility should it be needed during the next year. Excluding this loan, the hunt has £30,000 in the bank plus a further £10,000 sitting in the Hunt Club account.”
about:blank about:blank javascript:void(0) The League Against Cruel Sports says it understands that hunting groups have encouraged packs to apply for government support to to recover lost income during the pandemic, and that they have widely been accepted.
“Most hunts trade as companies or commercial organisations that make a profit,” said spokeswoman Emma Judd.
Somerset Wildlife Crime, a group that monitors and reports hunts, illegal badger persecution, trapping, snaring and poaching on Exmoor, told supporters: “Bet you’re all delighted to know your council tax is propping up the stag hunts.”
Although the Hunting Act 2004 outlawed the hunting of wild mammals with dogs, it allows hunters to use up to two dogs to hunt wild animals for “observation and study”.
The Devon and Somerset uses this legal exemption to chase deer across Exmoor and the Quantock Hills, helped by supporters in vehicles, before shooting them, insisting it is not illegally hunting for sport.
The group, which usually meets three times a week in season, says it has the support of farmers and landowners in managing the large deer herd on Exmoor.
Dozens of social-media users were outraged at the grant and loan.
One Facebook user commented: “Money should go into public services – never right.”
Others argued residents should withhold some of their council tax.
One said: “Outrageous when we have so many people needing help at this time.”
The Independent has asked the Devon and Somerset Staghounds to comment on the grant and the loan, and has asked the Countryside Alliance to clarify how many hunts in the UK have been given coronavirus support loans.
The Independent also asked Somerset West and Taunton district council on what basis the £10,000 grant was awarded.
None of the three groups had responded before publication.
The hunt for dolphins and other small whale species begins again off Japan’s coasts. In the run-up to the drive hunt, which lasts from September to March, measures were taken against possible protests in the whaling town of Taiji, where most of the dolphins are caught.
The animals are cornered by several fishing boats in driven hunts. The fishermen hit metal pipes that protrude into the water to frighten the dolphins. The dolphins try to escape this noise and flee to nearby bays.
There they are encircled – and their traders can choose the most beautiful and strongest animals for dolphin shows. Dolphins that are not selected for the dolphinariums are easy prey for fishermen. They are brutally slaughtered with harpoons, spears, or knives.
A live dolphin is worth up to $ 150,000, one dead 600 dollars.
According to local media, emergency services trained to intercept small boats. Drones were also banned in this year. The police set up a temporary guard for the duration of the hunt.
In the picturesque lagoon near the small whaling town of Taiji around 700 kilometers south of Tokyo, animal trainers sort out the most beautiful specimens on behalf of dolphinariums at home and abroad.
Animal rights activists call prices of up to $ 150,000 each. Then a brutal slaughter begins.
Fishermen drag the wildly wriggling animals, which were not sorted out for sale, in three or four groups, hanging on the side of motorboats, into a neighboring lagoon – while doing turning maneuvers they drive over the captured dolphins. Others are slaughtered with spears, hooks, and knives in the bay, which is closed to the public.
These gruesome scenes repeat themselves year after year between September and March.
(original text): Étant donné que vous soutenez la chasse à courre et le déterrage des renards, ces images One Voice
pourraient vous intéresser.
🦊 Ceux qui sont contre, merci de vous mobiliser ici : https://referendumpourlesanimaux.fr/
” Killing animals is not violent, ” say the hunters.
And I say: There is only one permanent problem in nature, one with long-term damage and that is the hunters who are only interested in one thing in the forest, namely to kill defenseless animals for fun.
They are criminals!
And these are their daily crimes
Protected by criminal politics
with criminal journalism
with ignorant societies
And that’s what happens in the EU! whose countries call themselves civilized!
The corruption of a state can be recognized by the fact that it shows itself too weak and too cowardly to prohibit such crimes.
Flanders lifts hunting ban on Belgian wolves’ land as cubs grow
Friday, 28 August 2020
Hunting will again be allowed in areas populated by wolves in Flanders after regional authorities announced that a ban imposed to protect newborn wolf cubs will not be renewed.
Flemish Environment Minister Zouhal Demir said that a blanket hunting ban will no longer be necessary as the cubs have grown up.
“The wolves are now also able to move to other resting areas in their habitat, which is quite extensive,” Demir told HLN.Related News:
The hunting ban had been imposed in March, when a wolf called Noëlla was reported to have given birth to three cubs and was put in place until 31 August.
Demir moved to imposed the hunting ban to protect the wolf and her litter after another wolf named Naya and her newborn cubs were presumably killed by poachers.
Naya’s death sparked outrage with residents and animal conservation groups since it jeopardised their much-celebrated return of wild wolves into Belgian forests.
A thousand-euro reward for any tips leading to the presumed poachers was set up by conservation groups as well as an anonymous Belgian entrepreneur.
Despite the lifting of the ban, other measures to protect the wolves will remain in place, including regular checks by forest rangers and inspectors with the Flemish Agency for Nature and Forests.
Additionally, intensive monitoring with tracking technology and wildlife cameras will also be employed to ensure the animals are safe, while authorities will continue providing support to small livestock farmers active in the area.
Call on Gov. Inslee to End WDFW’s Assault on Wolves
Last fall, Washington Governor Jay Inslee instructed the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) to better support co-existence between Washington’s livestock industry and the recovering population of endangered gray wolves. In his letter, Governor Inslee instructed WDFW to “make changes in the gray wolf recovery program to further increase the reliance on non-lethal methods, and to significantly reduce the need for lethal removal of this species… The status quo of annual lethal removal is simply unacceptable.”
Two weeks ago, WDFW gunned down the last two known survivors of the Wedge wolf family in response to predation on cattle grazing primarily on public lands. Today, the agency is out hunting for up to two wolves from the Leadpoint pack.
WDFW has killed four state-endangered wolves since receiving Gov. Inslee’s letter, and 34 wolves since 2012, when wolves had just begun to return to Washington after their extermination in the 1930s by livestock interests and government eradication programs.
This full-page advertisement paid for by Predator Defense appears in today’s Seattle Times. Consider amplifying its message by contacting Governor Inslee today!
It’s almost been a year since Governor Inslee instructed WDFW to change the way it manages wolves. The agency cannot continue to ignore this instruction. To change the status quo, Governor Inslee must act now.
Please take action by respectfully calling on Governor Jay Inslee to end WDFW’s assault on wolves.
Emergency: Stop the Senseless Killing of Washington’s Wolves
On August 17, 2020, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Director Kelly Susewind confirmed killing the last two known remaining members of the Wedge wolf pack (an adult male and an adult female) in response to cattle depredations, primarily on public lands.
Although peer-reviewed research demonstrates that killing wolves is an ineffective solution to deter predation on cows and can even result in increased attacks, WDFW gunned down an adult female wolf on July 27, and as science predicted, livestock attacks continued after her death.
Killing is not the answer.
Yet WDFW has resorted to killing wolves living in this same spot rugged forest land for years. In fact, they killed the original Wedge pack in 2012 for the very same reason. The original Wedge pack was accused of preying on livestock in the Colville National Forest eight years ago and, under Washington’s wolf management plan, the state opted to issue kill orders in an attempt to protect the livestock. The state killed the entire family of state endangered wolves.
In the eight years since the original Wedge pack was destroyed, not much has changed. Livestock owners still graze their cows on rugged, forested public lands that are better suited for native ungulates, and WDFW is still killing wolves to benefit the profit margins of private businesses. In fact, at least 26 of the 34 state-endangered wolves that have been killed since 2012 were shot on behalf of the same livestock operator.
While it’s too late to protect the other 34 endangered wolves WDFW has gunned down since 2012, other Washington wolves still need our help.
Please take action to respectfully call on WDFW Director Kelly Susewind and Washington Governor Jay Inslee to immediately end their assault on Washington’s wolves.
It was renamed to the League Against Cruel Sports in 1938.[
Ernest Bell (Vegetarian and animal rights activist) – yes, England even had them in those days !
They had a vision and they acted on it – something which many people try to do today.
Wonderful activists from many years gone by – but still very much alive now with their group – 100 years on called the LACS.Wonderful, woderful people !!!
Jessey Wade (c. 1861 – 1952) was an English suffragist and campaigner for animal welfare, known for founding the Cats Protection League (now known as Cats Protection). She co-founded a number of other animal welfare organizations and helped create and was editor of the feminist journal Urania
Illustration from the Animals Friend Cat Book – Jessey Wade – Wikipedia
George Greenwood
Sir Granville George Greenwood (3 January 1850 – 27 October 1928), usually known as George Greenwood or G. G. Greenwood, was a British lawyer, politician, cricketer, animal welfare reformer.
GG Greenwood – George Greenwood – Wikipedia
2019 was a superb year for the League Against Cruel Sports and we had hoped to bring our members the good news face to face at our AGM.
However, assuring the safety of our members – many of whom are in the age groups most susceptible to the worst effects of the virus and many of whom travel long distances on public transport to make our events – must be our top priority. We have therefore taken the decision to cancel the AGM this year, in line with Charity Commission guidance and with their expressed permission.
The future is not certain and with spikes in the outbreak and regular changes to the pandemic rules and control measures, we wanted to bring certainty to proceedings and avoid any potential wasted payments should we have to cancel later on.
Whilst we are disappointed not to be able to bring you the news of our successes in person, we have captured all that we did last year in our Annual Report and Accounts and our Impact Report. They tell of a League that is doing exactly what our members, supporters and the majority of the wider public expect. Thanks to your support we are in good shape and with our full staff in place, we are more determined than ever to stop cruel ‘sports’.
Thank you for your understanding during these strange times.
Dr Tim Holmes Chair
Andy Knott MBE Chief Executive
Who we are and the history of the League
We stand on the side of animals and protect them from being harmed or killed in the name of ‘Sport’. Millions of animals each year are neglected, distressed, suffer cruelty or are killed by cruel ‘sports’. We redefine what is acceptable and were instrumental in helping bring about the landmark Hunting Act 2004. We are driven by compassion and empowered by knowledge. We aim to inspire change, as we know that most of the public share our view that harming and killing animals for ‘sport’ is cruel. We manage sanctuaries to protect wildlife, carry out investigations to expose law-breaking and cruelty to animals, and campaign for stronger animal protection laws and penalties.
A lot of animal cruelty takes place out of sight and often the only way to expose these activities is to go undercover. Our trained team of professional Investigators, which includes former police officers, work continuously to ensure we have effective animal protection laws that are properly enforced. Determined to make sure those who break the law are brought to justice, our professional Investigators expose animal cruelty by gathering the vital surveillance needed to bring those responsible to justice. Our unique and confidential Animal Crimewatch hotline allows anyone witnessing illegal activity in connection with cruel sports to report it to us.
Often animal cruelty takes place because people don’t recognise it for what it is. Hunting with dogs was perceived for a long time as a civilised pursuit, until organisations like us educated the public to the true nature of what goes on.
We continue to educate the public and policy makers through high profile work in the media and expert behind-the-scenes lobbying in Parliament. We also protect animals through our successful campaigning work, by creating awareness of the cruelty inflicted on animals through ‘sport’. More people are raising their voices leading to changes in the law.
How we are changing attitudes
When the Hunting Act 2004 was introduced, just one Conservative MP voted for it; now we know that more than 50 Conservative MPs would stand up against legalising hunting.
Most of the public in the UK also share our view – more than eight out of ten support a ban on hunting with dogs.
Despite this, cruel ‘sports’ is still happening. This is not a small problem – the number of animals involved in the UK is in the millions every year. But we promise to continue to work hard until cruel ‘sports’ becomes a thing of the past as the history of the charity demonstrates.
Over 189,000 signatures so far – keep on making more – share with all your contacts
Stop the sales of foot hold/leg hold traps and snares in the United States
Amazon, Federal Officials, and State Officials: Stop the sales of steel-jaw leg hold/foothold traps and snare traps. Please sign & share this petition.
This is a request to Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, to immediately cease the sales of steel-jaw leg hold/foot hold traps, snare traps, and attractants on Amazon.com, as these are used in poaching and the maiming of bears and other wildlife. Amazon’s outreach and large selection of such traps put wildlife in danger everywhere. The enormous amount of leg hold/ foot hold traps for sale on Amazon makes it incredibly easy for a person, anytime and anywhere, to begin trapping wildlife, resulting in the maiming and killing of the animals. The easy obtainability of these traps has already resulted in this, based on the number of traps Amazon sells online along with attractants for bears.
The use of leg hold/ foot hold traps for bears is illegal in the United States. Bear traps are illegal to use but are not illegal to sell. Many types of steel jaw traps are legal for use on other wildlife such as foxes, wolves, and coyotes. Selling items illegal for bears is propagating illegal acts and causes horrific impacts on bears along with all wildlife and Amazon should not want to be part of this. These leg hold/ foot hold traps maim wildlife, as has been seen in the historic tragedy in the Asheville, NC area where there are 12+ bears missing limbs. These bears with missing limbs might have suffered this fate because of products sold by Amazon. In addition, our pets and children are at risk-as they could easily step into a trap. With Amazon’s customer outreach, anyone can be trapping within days near you and hurting the things you love. Please sign and share this petition to persuade Amazon to urgently stop the sales of these traps.
The listing of prohibited items on Amazon includes, “Products intended to be used to produce an illegal product or undertake an illegal activity.” Therefore, per Amazon’s OWN policy, the sales of such traps should be banned on Amazon.com and the signers of this petition are asking for that.
This is also a request to state and federal officials to ban the use and sale of steel-jaw leg hold/ foot hold traps and snare traps in the United States. According to the Library of Congress, steel-jaw leg hold traps are banned in over 100 countries including China. Tragically however, they are not banned in the US and are for sale on large sites such as Amazon.com.
Asheville, NC has 12+ bears missing limbs from trap escapes. This could be your city or town next! These maimed bears and their struggles are shown on this video, along with traps sold easily in stores and on Amazon. We hope the video will help convince you to both sign this petition and convince others to sign as well. With your efforts, we can stop this cruel trapping and prevent the horrific death and maiming of wildlife that occurs with steel-jaw traps and snare traps.
The questions to ask yourself when deciding if to sign this petition are simple:
Should kids, pets, bears, and other wildlife be safe living their lives in nature without the threat of stepping into traps like these?
Do I want these traps around my home and family or in places of nature we might visit?
All signatures and comments will be sent weekly to the Amazon head office and to Federal and State officials. Your comments will mean a lot!
“Steel-jaw traps work by slamming shut on the paw or leg of an animal and holding it until a trapper arrives. The devices are outlawed in more than 100 nations, but not in the U.S….Iraq bans them. So do China, Somalia and Sudan….But in the United States, steel-jaw traps are not only legal, they are the go-to tool for trappers who capture and kill millions of wild animals a year for the global fur market.” Credit: Tom Knudson/Revealnews.org
A gang of poachers is said to have killed more than 100 animals, including protected birds of prey. The gang is said to have been active in the districts of Gmunden, Salzburg-area in Austria. The police also found dozens of firearms.
The poachers were equipped like members of a special military unit. Rifles, silencers, and night vision devices were used to shoot everything during night operations which is not allowed.
The list of slain animals is long
At least 26 deer, gray and little egrets, beavers, foxes, buzzards, goosander, brown hares, pheasants, weasels, muskrats, crows, pigeons, jackdaws, jays, sparrows, green and black woodpeckers, house sparrows, blackbirds, squirrels, and brown trout were killed without to pay attention to any restrictions or closed seasons.
Beavers, foxes, squirrels, blackbirds – almost everything was poached
Frozen wildlife in the house
The police have been looking for the accused, who are between 19 and 52 years old, for months.
A 27-year-old was the first to go online during a traffic check in the early morning hours of June 1st in the Gmunden district.
He had a hunting rifle in his car, and in his house, there were frozen wild animals and some hunting trophies.
Further investigations led to more and more poachers, and house searches revealed more and more illegally hunted animals. In addition, 78 firearms of all categories, several thousand rounds of ammunition of various calibers, 31 silencers, night vision devices, and thermal imaging cameras as well as extensive equipment for self-production of ammunition were seized. Often they shot out of moving cars.
After extensive investigations, more than 55 acts of crime have so far been identified in which the accused were active in alternating cooperation and in different combinations in many districts.
The animals were hunted with rifles, silencers and night vision devices
According to the police, all seven suspects basically confessed at the interrogations. Provisional weapons bans were issued against all seven. The property damage caused by the gang is said to amount to a five-digit amount. WWF speaks of “ecological amok running”
The nature conservation organization WWF Austriais appalled: “We are shocked by this ecological rampage. Such crimes are among the main threats to strictly protected species and destroy decades of conservation work. The illegal pursuit of animals is not a trivial offense, but has to be punished with the full severity of the law, ” says WWF conservation expert Arno Aschauer.
The WWF takes the politicians to duty and demands more resources for the investigating authorities and severe punishments.
1. Expensive telescopic sights, night vision devices, thermal imaging cameras, 31 silencers, 78 rifles, and several thousand rounds of ammunition!
Who can afford that?
Guess!! people from the military.
2. “The perpetrators explain the offenses because of their interest in hunting and weapons. The awareness of injustice is likely to be very low,” says a district inspector.
Is it different by hunters?
Of course not.
Hunters also kill pregnant animals, mother animals, young animals, pets, stray animals …everything that moves.
Hunting is murder, hunters are murderers, it doesn’t change whether the murder is committed by the poacher or the hunter.
3. (the best at the end): “Among the victims are nine owners of hunting grounds who want to be compensated with around 15,000 euros” !!!!
For those who didn’t understand: the poachers have murdered in foreign territories! that annoyed the hunters, who had leased the territory, then they demanded that the “others” have to pay for it. The financial loss counts for the hunters, not the animals!
Compensating hunters as victims because others have murdered their animals and not themselves, that’s what I call an indictment of the government and the media.
Beavers, foxes, squirrels, blackbirds – almost everything was poached
The animals were hunted with rifles, silencers and night vision devices
World Animals Voice 
