Thesis: Sealing is a beneficial and humane practice that should be continued, despite protests people inside and outside our country and organizations such as PETA.

Point 1: Sealing is humane

-“Every year, more than 650 million animals are slaughtered for food in Canada, most of them poultry.” (Canadian Federation of Humane Societies)

Sealing is simply another way of obtaining meat and animal products.

“the large majority of seals taken during this hunt (at best, 98% in work reported here) are killed in an acceptably humane manner. (#3) (Keddy)

- “For instance, IFAW claimed that 40,000 seal pups had been killed in 1983, when, in fact, the seal hunt had been restricted to older seals.” (#4) (Myers)

-The federal government acknowledges that it has laid more than 200 charges against sealers since 1996. (Gyun-Yeen Lennon)

-“Canada has no regulations stipulating how animals should be treated on farms other than federal and provincial animal cruelty laws, and these are only used to prosecute livestock producers in cases of rare and egregious abuse, such as when animals are neglected to the point of starvation.” (Canadian Federation of Humane Societies)

Point 2: Sealing is part of the way of life in Newfoudland and the Inuit culture

-the hunt is done with respect for the animals, and, while it may seem heartless, it is an integral part of life in the arctic. (Franks)

-Inuit people have testified for the government “marine mammals form an important part of Inuit nutrition and diet that comes from generations of living off the land and sea. Despite changes in today’s world, the importance of marine mammals to Inuit remains as true as it ever was as a food source, a cultural source, a knowledge source, a spiritual and inspirational source, and a livelihood source.”(Keddy)

Point 3: Sealing is sustainable.

-“The east coast harp seal population is thriving and growing, now at between five and six million, with a harvest of 975 000 over three years,(Myers)

Point 4: disbanding the hunt would have a terrible socioeconomic impact.

-“The federal government says the landed value of seals exceeded $16.5 million in 2005, providing a “significant” source of income for thousands of sealers. Seal amounts to only a fraction of the 600 million Newfoundland fishery. But for some sealers, it represents up to one third of their annual income.” (Gyun-Yeen Lennon)

-“In 2006, over 6,000 sealskins were exported from Nunavut providing a total income of $530,000 to Inuit hunters in Nunavut alone. Before the 1983 European ban, approximately 50,000 sealskins had been exported in 1975 alone.” (Keddy)

-“Most of the hunt is conducted in economically depressed Newfoundland by some 4,000 off-season fishermen.” (Rawe)

East Coast harp seal hunt

  • Northwest harp seal population: 5.2 million (up from 1.2 million in 1970)
  • Number of seal hunters: 12,000
  • Seal harvest in 2003: 353,000
  • Value of industry: $40 million

Nunavut ringed seal hunt

  • Ringed seal population: 1.5-2 million
  • Number of seal hunters: 500
  • Annual seal harvest: 30,000-40,000
  • Value of industry: about $1 million in cash to hunters; $5 million in replacement-food value

(#7) (Comeau)

Bibliography

Canadian Federation of Humane Societies. Realities of farming in Canada. 14 October 2014 <

Comeau, Pauline. "SEAL OF APPROVAL." Canadian Geographic 124.5 (2004): 30.

Franks, C.E.S. "Sacred Hunt (Book)." American Review of Canadian Studies 32.4 (2002): 723.

Gyun-Yeen Lennon, Kathryn. "Hunting for the RIght Words." Alternatives Journal 6.4 (2010): 26-29.

Keddy, Gerald. "House Publications." April 2007. Parliment of Canada. 19 October 2014 <

Myers, Heather. "Icy Battleground: Canada, the International Fund for Animal Welfare and the Seal Hunt." American Review of Canadian studies 37.2 (2007): 268-270.

Rawe, Julie. "Save the seals by Skipping the Scallops?" Time (2005): 17.