Oh, pity the pigeon.
Photo Credit: http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/File:Pigeon_Talk.jpg
Today, its name is equated with “nuisance.” It’s known as the annoying bird that attacks your crackers, leaves “presents” on your windshield, and doesn’t add anything particularly useful to society. And I’ll admit it too: as far as birds go, pigeons aren’t perched at the top of my favorites list.
But does our general disdain for pigeons mean we can treat them however we want? Some gun enthusiasts in Pennsylvania sure seem to think so. While illegal in all other US states, live pigeon shoots are a fairly popular diversion for Pennsylvania gun clubs, who are now pressuring Pennsylvania State Legislature to keep pigeon shoot protection laws alive and well.
The pigeons hail from New York and New Jersey, where they’re illegally caught, trapped, and trafficked across state lines to their final destination. Once in the hands of a gun club, they’re kept until it’s time for a pigeon shoot to occur. It’s not a complicated or even a newfangled idea; the shoots work much like clay pigeon shoots, except with live targets filling in for decoys.
Unfortunately, the majority of the shots aren’t “instant kills.” The gun clubs employ “trapper boys,” usually children, who find wounded pigeons, snap their necks, and toss the bodies in a trashcan. But those birds are the lucky ones; if a shot pigeon isn’t found, it’s left on the ground to die from its wounds.
So, why hasn’t anyone done anything?
They have.
Unsuccessfully.
For years, animal rights activists have demanded legislation against these pigeon bloodbaths, and for years, lobbyists from the National Rifle Association have muscled them out of the picture.
Now, however, that can change. The Humane Society of the United States, writes ForceChange.com’s Bonnie Taylor, reports that “the Pennsylvania State Legislature is once again considering an amendment attached to a bill that would outlaw live pigeon shoots.” Back in April, the Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee voted to adopt this amendment, but the full Pennsylvania Senate must approve it before it becomes law.
If you would like to support the efforts to save pigeons and outlaw this practice, please sign this petition:
http://forcechange.com/10243/stop-live-pigeon-shoots-in-pennsylvania/
Show your support for the amendment, and show the Pennsylvania State Legislature that profits and recreation do not come above life, no matter how seemingly insignificant.
Source: Green Answers
