Why are so many of you killing wildlife??

[MeepBeep]

To answer the question I'm a realist and I have not been domesticated to the point that I believe everything in the wild is rainbows and unicorns...

Really? How many kids have been attacked by coyotes there?  Attacks are so incredibly rare that they normally make the national news and I haven't heard a thing about this.

Why do you think this is...

1. Because humans have let them do whatever they want, breed uncontrolled and welcomed them into our lives and friends
2. Because humans have culled their populations, kept those populations in check and instilled a natural fear of humans

Killing animals for simply being seen is, frankly, irrational.

I fully beg to differ, it depends on the circumstance... A coyote (for example) roaming around my house or barn is not there to make friends and socialize, he/she is looking to take/kill a meal and that coyote faces culling... But, on the other hand if I see him out in the distance, keeping his distance that is a different story and I'm not going out of my way to cull them, just because I saw them...

Wild animals aren't lurking to eat your grandchildren. Your grandchildren have a far greater chance of being attacked by a neighbors dog, or for that matter, their own dog, than they do from a wild animal.

And you know why? It's because of 1000s of years of hunting of instilling a fear of humans into those animals, once that respect and fear is gone they very well will turn to attacking humans, pets and livestock because once that fear is remove you become prey...

The blunt reality is that once a coyote for example feels comfortable walking around my house and barns in broad daylight, it's a clear indication to me that it's natural fear of humans is diminished and gone, and it will keep pushing those boarders and will almost certainly pose a threat to my livestock or family in the near future... I have said it here before, my mom had a coyote that got so bold and had lost it's fear of humans that it was coming into her enclosed porch for a meal, in full daylight none the less, do you believe that should be met with a welcome mat instead of removal? Should I not worry about when my young children step out grandmas porch to play and come face to face with a hungry and now potentially 'cornered' coyote?

What a great lesson it would be to teach them children the benefits that wild animals provide to ecosystems and the intrinsic value that nature brings to our lives. Instead of teaching them wild animals are to be feared and killed, they could instead learn how to respect and enjoy them from a distance.

Are you not aware WE are also animals and part of that ecosystem you keep talking about right? The lack of humans being the human animal and alpha predator of the wild is actually part of the problem...

And shooting is not a more cost effective method to protect property.  Nature hates a void and thus compensates by creating a  'vacuum effect' in which territory that is opened after the death of an animal is immediately filled by another. Killing requires an endless cycle of killing just to maintain the status quo.

It's hardly that simple in the real world... Many predators especially of the K9 family will learn to respect established territorial boundaries, and thus culling those that infringe actually does not create a void and in reality creates a bubble that the human fills...

I spend many $100s of dollars a year just target shooting, I'm hardly worried about the few dollars a year I might spend on culling predators... As for 'cost effective' vs other methods I beg to differ, I own the guns regardless for sport shooting, the cost of bullets I use on predators over a decade is likely less then most people spend on a cheap live trap or roll of fence...

Humans not only can, but should, learn to share the land with the wild animals that were here first.

The world isn't all rainbows and happy endings, not all animals live in harmony, in fact most don't...

Again WE humans are just another animal, we have a part in the ecosystem and that part is the alpha predator, to stake out territories and protect our territory... No matter how domesticated many of us have allowed ourselves to become, it doesn't change our role in nature as a natural alpha predator, that claims and defends territory... So if you want to stand on the natural balance leg, don't ignore where we fit in...

In the end if you choose not to kill, that is certainly your choice and I'm not going to force my ideas upon you or anyone else and demand or even suggest you follow my ways, and I would appreciate you return the same and not try to force your ideals upon me

 

[jak2002003]

I too am shocked by so many people killing wildlife.... and also just shooting any creature that might eat their chickens.. regardless or if they have actually do anything or not. Even people say on this site they are killing PROTECTED and rare animals and don't care about the LAW.

Cost is not the problem .. Add up the cost of animal traps, guns, ammo, poison, etc.. Then add up the hours and time you need to keep using these things, over and over again over the years, and add up how many birds are still getting killed each time, before you go out to kill the predator. So much time and money and valuable birds are wasted.

I can only think that some people get a satisfaction from killing something.. and not thinking about the long tern.

If they just build a predator proof pen and coop in the first place then that's it. They never would have a predator problem, and would not have to kill any wildlife.

It seems that its just an easy lazy, and rather destructive and uncaring way to deal with the problem using a gun or trap.

In the UK is very rare to shoot predators.. as most people don't own guns. Also most kinds of trap are illegal too. So people have learnt to build proper enclosures for their stock.

As for wild animals attacking people.. that is so rare... far more people get killed by cars, falling off ladders, and accidents in the home, than being attacked by a bear... but people don't go around shooting cars and toasters.

I love to see wildlife in my area... even rescued a python from our water tank... I know if can not eat my chickens as their coop is build properly.

I never kill any wildlife... as most of it is declining and needs our help. Respect nature and learn to live with it... or go and live in the city. Wildlife is part of our countries heritage and it keeps the balance of nature. Predators prevent problems such as a population explosion of rats and mice, deer. etc. all of which would destroy human food crops and spread diseases.

 

[N F C]

In the end if you choose not to kill, that is certainly your choice and I'm not going to force my ideas upon you or anyone else and demand or even suggest you follow my ways, and I would appreciate you return the same and not try to force your ideals upon me

Thank you MeepBeep. This is a touchy topic that people tend to have strong feelings about.

 

[sdm111]

Troll. And yeah I kill predators trying to kill my fowl

 

[jtn42248]

Actually I'm glad you brought this up because my husband and I are cattle ranchers. We raise 300 mother cows using only non lethal livestock protection methods. Our cows calve in pastures with coyote packs and in areas with mountain lions and we rarely lose animals to predations.
In fact, we value and appreciate the predators for the free pest control they bring to our pastures and without the coyotes, our ground squirrel populations would swell. Also the presence of predators makes us better ranchers. They force us to keep a closer eye on our stock which helps us catch things we might otherwise might miss like calving problems or sick animals that need to be doctored.
We have had the occasional attack but it is very rare. I even saw a golden eagle chasing one of our calves ( one far to big for it to kill) across the hills. Don't know what that was all about, but I do know that even if we killed every predator we came across, we would still suffer an occasional loss, so we consider it the cost of doing business.
Overall though, predators have proven to be much better neighbors that the vast majority of humans I have lived next to.

Perhaps that is the issue then. "The cost of doing business..." For someone who has hundreds of acres and hundreds of cattle the occasional loss of one to a predator is perhaps balanced by the reduction is other pests and vermin that the predator feeds on. However, to the small farmer that has only a few acres, is perhaps retired and on a fixed income, depends on what little they do have to supplement that income and/or provide food for themselves and their family losing one animal to a predator under the guise of cost of doing business can be devastating and can spell ruin for their operation. It could be that this is all an issue of perspective?

 

[earlybird10842]

I'm shocked that so many of you have not taken the time to build predator proof chicken pens and instead seem to feel trapping and killing wildlife is a reasonable way to protect your chickens. As a predator friendly rancher who raises cattle and other livestock around mountain lions, coyotes and more, I find all this trapping unnecessary.
There are so many effective non lethal options to protect pets and livestock that are cheaper, more effective and more humane than waging a never ending war on wildlife. A simple google search of predator proof chicken coops reveals tons of options and coupled with predator deterrent lights (Predator Guards, Nite Guards, Foxlights--there's tons of different brands and they have been proven effective in situations ranging from protecting livestock from snow leopards in Nepal to protecting crops from Elephants in Africa). or motion activated sprinklers, guardian dogs, electric fencing etc.. With so many effective options available to us today, there is simply NO excuse for the indiscriminate killing of wildlife to protect pets and livestock.
Raccoons, coyotes, bobcats, skunks, opossums etc all perform important ecological benefits to ranch lands and neighborhoods. A single coyote can eat 1800 rodents a year, and the rest are no slouches at this either. Skunks too eat tons of mice as well as yellow jacket nests spiders etc, making these animals great, free, eco friendly pest control services for those of us wise enough to learn to live peacefully with them.

Although we have never had to resort to killing, we would if we had to. Here's why.
-It's not just the chickens, its our cat and our disabled (three-legged) dog. They are in danger from certain predators too.
-Even if our coop is predator-proof, we like to free-range our chickens from time to time
-Animals in our rural neighborhood tend to go a little crazy with confidence if they've gotten too close to humans once. If they are stalking our chickens, its also likely that they are getting into the neighbors' chickens as well as goats, garbage, and birdseed.

I wouldn't kill unless it is a last resort, but I certainly am not against killing wildlife to protect our chickens if it comes to that.

 

[RichnSteph]

Troll. And yeah I kill predators trying to kill my fowl

X2.

 

[N F C]

With over 300,000 members here at BYC there are bound to be differences of opinion. Who's to say which opinion is the only correct one to have?

darbydog, going by the number of posts to your user name, it appears you're a new member. How about a typical intro with a little bit about you? Tell us about yourself. For instance, other than cattle, do you have poultry? Have you been raising animals for a long time? What are your hobbies? What do you hope to add or get out of joining BYC? You know, typical "hi and how are you" stuff.

 

[torilovessmiles]

With over 300,000 members here at BYC there are bound to be differences of opinion. Who's to say which opinion is the only correct one to have?

darbydog, going by the number of posts to your user name, it appears you're a new member. How about a typical intro with a little bit about you? Tell us about yourself. For instance, other than cattle, do you have poultry? Have you been raising animals for a long time? What are your hobbies? What do you hope to add or get out of joining BYC? You know, typical "hi and how are you" stuff.

Agreed. Not every one of those 300,000 people have the same situations, we all have our reasons behind our choices!

 

[darbydog]

Nope-- not an issue of perspective at all. We don't own the cattle, we are hired hands who run the cattle for the ranch owners. However we have a small number of our own cows we run as well and the same philosophy goes for them. We are in our fifties and live in a double wide trailer and own nothing besides a couple of beat up trucks, a few horses and a small herd of cattle. My husband as been a cowboy his whole life and I'm a retired horse trainer. Not exactly rich. I'd be willing to guess you have more than us.
However in this case doing the right thing actually ends up saving us money. However people with closed minds can always find a excuses for not changing their ways and I've read a million here. In the time i've spent refuting everyone claims about why this works for me but won't work for them, many of you could already be on your way to using more effective and humane solutions.