Indiana Attempts to Legalize Animal Cruelty

by Stephanie Feldstein · 2011-05-12 08:34:00 UTC
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Hunters call it "training," animal protection groups call it a bloodsport. Coyote and fox penning is the practice where packs of dogs are set upon wild coyotes and foxes trapped in fenced enclosures. The dogs run the terrified captive animals to exhaustion, often tearing them apart once they have them cornered.

To stock the pens, coyotes and foxes are trapped with leghold traps, crammed into small cages and shipped (sometimes hundreds of miles with no food or water) to these facilities where hunters pay to let their dogs loose on the victims.

This cruel practice is legal in at least 19 states. Last year, Florida was debating whether to regulate or ban penning. The Sunshine State did the right thing, thanks to pressure from a coalition of animal advocates, and opted for the ban. Now it's Indiana's turn.

Initially, the Indiana Natural Resources Commission proposed rules to outlaw the barbaric practice of wildlife penning. But then they pulled a one-eighty and are now considering a proposal that would legalize the cruelty.

Apparently, state wildlife officials don't want to wait any longer until the public comment period is over next week and the proposal is properly considered. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources waived state permit requirements for a penning facility in Greene County, prompting the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Project Coyote and the Animal Welfare Institute to file a lawsuit against the department and its director, Robert Carter, Jr.

Camilla Fox, Executive Director of Project Coyote, points out that "Americans recognize that dog fighting and cockfighting are unacceptably cruel and that such spectator events don't have a place in civilized society. When NFL quarterback, Michael Vick, admitted he was the owner-operator of a dog-fighting ring, most Americans were shocked and rightly outraged. How different is penning?"

Answer: It's not. Money is laid down while people watch animals tear each other apart.

The proposal to legitimize this cruelty has been opposed by several wildlife and humane organizations, as well as a group of Indiana veterinarians. The commission needs to hear from you, too, before the May 18th deadline.

Help ban the brutal practice of wildlife penning in Indiana.

Photo credit: public domain

Stephanie Feldstein is a Change.org Editor who has been part of the animal welfare and rescue community for over a decade, and most recently worked for an environmental organization.

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