Fish and Game (Wildlife) Outsourcing Killing of Mountain Lion -P-45

Courtesy Google Images

UPDATE: Dept. of Fish and Wildlife to stop issuing automatic depredation permits (kill permits) to livestock owners with lion issues in the areas of Santa Monica mountain range and Santa Ana Mountains.  See bulletin.






By issuing the depredation permit to a private citizen to “take” i.e. kill the mountain lion known as P-45, the Department of Fish and Game, (trying to change their image by renaming themselves Fish and Wildlife) has circumvented the law and permitted a citizen to do that which the Department itself cannot do.

After the massacre of the lion cub that wandered into Santa Monica, against the landscape of a genetic dearth of diverse male lions, and because mountain lions are legally protected, the law was changed.

Fish and Game Code 4801.5 entitled “Removal or Taking of Mountain Lion Not Designated as Threat to Public Health or Safety” was enacted to mandate that nonlethal procedures shall be used to take a mountain lion unless there is an imminent threat to a person and not specifically the responders. The law also allows the Department to authorize qualified individuals to use these nonlethal measures on their behalf. Unfortunately, the law still allows anyone who suffered livestock or property damage by a mountain lion to request a permit to take a mountain lion.

If the Department itself can’t use lethal force to remove a mountain lion that is not threatening people, why would they grant a request to any person trained or untrained to use lethal force when there is no such threat? Are they not circumventing the point of the law which is that mountain lions are legally protected and the Department must so protect them, specifically, keep them alive?

I mourn the loss of the alpacas as well. But those keeping animals must take steps to protect them from reasonably foreseeable dangers including known predators. Killing the lion doesn’t make the rest of the alpacas safer, it just kills the lion.

As for the Department, they need to start protecting the wildlife under their purview rather than treating them like hunting game and assist people in protecting their livestock rather than automatically granting depredation permits. Then their name change will mean something.


P.S. - After a great deal of protest the owner of the alpacas has decided not to pursue killing the lion. It does not, however change the fact that Fish and Game needs to rethink its actions.

New Mountain Lion and Swap Meet Laws in California!

This has been a good week for animals in California!

Governor Jerry Brown signed two new animal protection bills into law.



The first mandates that the Department of Fish and Wildlife (formerly Fish and Game) must use nonlethal force when removing or taking mountain lions that do not pose an imminent threat to public health and safety. The bill is specific in that the aggressive behavior not be due to the presence of the responders. This is key as we have seen responders agitate a lion until it becomes aggressive and then shoot him/her.

Hopefully the Department will train its officers in the proper use of non-lethal methods and in the definition of "imminent" so that they will be both successful in complying and able to assist and train other law enforcement that may be at a scene first.



The second will only permit the sale of animals at swap meets and flea markets if requirements for their humane treatment both at the swap meet/flea market and in transit to and from the event are complied with. This legislation fills the gap left by the ban on roadside sales bill enacted last year that did not cover swap meets and flea markets.


Hooray!

Mother Mountain Lion and Her Three Cubs Killed in Northern California

courtesy Google images

The Department of Fish and Game killed a mother and three baby mountain lions, who they asserted were "terrorizing" Rescue, a neighborhood in Northern California. Despite the fact that this lion family was suspected of killing a residents' goat, and perhaps other livestock, the people of Rescue were upset that Fish and Game, again, resorted to killing the cat and her cubs.

As we search for space, fresh air and "nature", we forget that we encroach upon the natural habitats of animals with whom we share this planet. These animals are also part of the "nature" that we seek as a respite from crowded and smoggy cities. These animals need food and water regardless of whether houses stand where once they did not.  In other words, just because we change our address does not mean the wildlife we displace consents to politely starve to death and to stop behaving naturally. 

It also means that those charged with the responsibility of enforcing the protection of our native and protected species, (a class in which mountain lions reside), must behave better than the rest of us and work to negate our egocentric ignorant assumptions and behaviors.  Teaching people to cope, exploring relocation options, and creating wildlife corridors to expand areas of natural habitat could ultimately help save the lives of both the lions and the goat. It is also up to residents of areas where it is foreseeable to encounter a mountain lion to take steps to keep pets and farm animals in secure, indoor enclosures at night.

The Department of Fish and Game has always rejected that they were in the preservation business when criticized for too hastily hunting and killing one of our "game" animals. They insist that hunting and "taking" of "game" is necessary to manage herd populations. They have also had a terrible season during which their Commission president posted pictures of a lion that he killed out of state, a baby lion was gunned down at their direction in Santa Monica as well as other such difficult incidents. Yet, this past legislative session they removed the word "game" from Fish and Game and replaced it with "wildlife" so as to diminish and eliminate the hunting connotations emitted by the word "game" - clearly a distinction in "game" only.

They are not fooling anybody nor will Californians mistake such flimsy appearances for reality. Instead of asking the words to do the work of softening their image so as to appear less like government hunters why don't they just act that way? 

Trust me - this word play is no game to lions or goats.

Elephants Are spcaLA Business!

spcaLA early horse ambulance

After speaking out on the recent court decision condemning the treatment of the elephants at the Los Angeles Zoo, I received some advice from some members of the public to "stick to spcaLA business and stay out of the business of elephants and everything else".

Though these comments were few in number, I feel compelled to say something.

Since 1877 spcaLA has been caring for all animals, including women and children of the species human. Be it work horses, beasts of burden, circus animals, sharks or a pet canary, spcaLA was and continues to be here to stop and prevent animal cruelty. In the 1860s Henry Bergh, the father of the spca movement, was known to have fights with P.T. Barnum himself outside the big top when the circus would come to town!  California state law gives us jurisdiction over "every dumb creature" which includes elephants, mountain lions, mice and dogs.

It is spcaLA business to prevent cruelty to animals through education, law enforcement, intervention and advocacy whenever and wherever it exists.

Henry Bergh was nicknamed the "great meddler" as he always spoke up and interceded on behalf of an animal in need. I accept that mantle and raise the bar to that of "equalizer" as spcaLA has and will continue to protect our vulnerable animals by equalizing the disparity in power, neutralizing the bullies and leveraging the law until it is no longer necessary to do so.

The treatment of elephants is spcaLA business.

      
  "A man is truly ethical only when he obeys the compulsion to help all life which he is able to        assist and shrinks from injuring anything that lives."   Albert Schweitzer

NEW Update on Gunned Down Santa Monica Mountain Lion

Santa Monica lion courtesy Google images

UPDATE:  They heard us -Fish&Game 2 review policies to include non-lethal alternatives in dealing with mountain lions - http://ow.ly/j0c6d


Many of us expressed concern following the recent gunning down of a baby mountain lion whose quest for something to eat led him into downtown Santa Monica. In response, the Police Chief of Santa Monica, Jacqueline Seabrooks, convened a focus group comprised of representatives from the Santa Monica Police Department,  Department of Fish and Game, Animal Welfare Representatives, (including me, your spcaLA), National Park Service, veterinarians and others to review, discuss and suggest ways to avoid something like this from recurring in the future.

To her credit, Chief Seabrooks committed to providing specific training to her officers, purchasing additional resources, and creating a "phone tree" of experts in the community who can respond, assist and act should there be future wildlife encounters in the city.

However, this is not enough. Due to the protected status of the mountain lion in California, only the Department of Fish and Game or its delegate can tranquilize or take a mountain lion. Therein lies the problem. It was clear from the discussion that there are tranquilizers and delivery systems available to quickly and safely drug and control a mountain lion so that lethal force would remain a last resort. In other words, a drug that worked quickly and a "gun" that delivered the drug in a less painful and provocative method may have saved this lion's life.

The Department of Fish and Game uses Telazol and a dart gun, neither of which the experts in the room considered to be the best tools for the job. (To that end, the necropsy report was silent on how much of the Telazol was actually found in the lion.) It is therefore unknown whether the lion reacted to the pain of being stabbed by a dart, the number of people surrounding him, the Telazol itself which may have agitated before sedating, or because no drug was in his system at all and he was simply acting like a lion.

Your spcaLA specifically asked the Department of Fish and Game representatives to review the possibility of converting their drug and delivery protocols to something more effective. It seems to me that while anything can happen, the heart of the problem was the failure to sedate the lion and to have a proper plan in place for human personnel while waiting for a drug to take effect. It is this failure that could potentially also endanger the public. All I ask is that best practices be employed so that we maximize our chances of protecting both our people and our wildlife. If you agree, please email Charlton H. Bonham, the Director of Fish and Game at Director@dfg.ca.gov and echo my request for a thorough review of their capture protocols.

Finally, there is a proposal to create a wildlife corridor at Liberty Canyon under the 101 Freeway. This would connect two areas of natural habitat on either side of the freeway thus increasing the lions' roaming area while keeping them and motorists safe from a chance encounter. Caltrans applied to the federal government for a grant to do this last year which was denied but I am told that they will apply again. At that time I will ask for your assistance in persuading the government to award the grant. Clearly, preventing the lions from coming into the city in the first place will help prevent future killings.

courtesy Google images

As we continually develop cities and encroach into areas inhabited by wildlife, it is incumbent upon us to commit to doing our best in the face of a chance encounter. With your help - let's make it so.

Lion Slaying Fish & Game Commissioner Must be Fired

Courtesy Google Images

The President of the California Fish and Game Commission, Dan Richards, whose mandate it is to protect native species, killed a mountain lion in Idaho and posed grinning with the carcass. It has been against the law in California to hunt mountain lions since 1990 so Richards is reported to have paid about $7000 to hunt this cat.

Today, outraged by this behavior, 40 members of the California State Assembly, led by Assembly-member Ben Hueso, called for Richards' resignation in a letter. In addition to expressing their outrage in his exercise of judgment and resultant behavior, the lawmakers went on to say:

     

 "Your actions have raised serious questions about whether you respect the laws of the people of California and whether you are fit to adequately enforce those laws. Without the proper credibility to hold such an important representative position as the one you hold, you can only succeed at one outcome, eroding the public's confidence and trust in their government."

To say the least! The people of California have led and continue to lead the nation in animal protection initiatives. I and many other animal protection advocates have come before the Fish & Game Commission to plead for the lives of bears offered up to hunters, to stop the imports of frogs and turtles that decimate California's native species and to increase humane protections for our captive wildlife.  It was us, the people of California who passed Proposition 117 which actually banned the hunting of mountain lions. Commissioner Richards knew that when he signed up for his hunt and essentially gave us the "Bronx Cheer" while flaunting his trophy. This is who is supposed to serve as guardian of our native wildlife. 

The legislature has the authority and must so exercise it to immediately remove this man from his position. I would also like to see an investigation into whether or not he brought the $7000 body back with him to California which is also illegal.

It is irrelevant whether his acts were legal in Idaho or not. What is relevant is the act itself. It speaks volumes about Richards' attitude towards protecting wildlife. It shouts his lack of regard for the opinions of the California public and it has, in the end, killed a lion.

 
"I'm glad it's legal in Idaho," said Richards. 

"Shame on you" said us. 




Article first published as Legislators Demand Resignation of California Fish & Game Warden Who Killed Lion on Technorati