The highly secretive arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture known as Wildlife Services killed more than 3.2 million animals during fiscal year 2015, according to new data released by the agency. The total number of wolves, coyotes, bears, mountain lions, beavers, foxes, eagles and other animals killed largely at the behest of the livestock […]
Tag: wildlife services
POLL: Should Congress disband Wildlife “Killing” Services?
Wildlife Services—ever heard of it? No, not the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. That’s something different. The Fish and Wildlife Service is part of the Department of the Interior, charged with enforcing wildlife laws, restoring habitat, and protecting fish, plants, and animals. Wildlife Services isn’t your state fish and game commission, either, which issues hunting […]
POLL: Should the killing of animals by Wildlife Services be stopped?
After anti-government protesters took over Oregon’s Malheur National Wildlife Refuge earlier this month to support two ranchers convicted of arson, it emerged that the convicts, Steven and Dwight Hammonds, had received thousands of dollars in financial support from the federal government. The public aid included the killing of five coyotes by a US Department of […]
Meet the Government Agency Using Your Tax Dollars to Kill Wildlife
They’re like a government kill team that targets wildlife — and our tax dollars are keeping them in business. Who are they? A little-known government agency called Wildlife Services. This rogue agency spends tens of millions of taxpayer funds to kill over 100,000 defenseless wild animals every year. And right now, they’re getting away with […]
Animal torture, abuse called a ‘regular practice’ within federal wildlife agency
It was a productive day for Gary Strader when he pulled his vehicle up to a remote site in northeast Nevada and found nine coyotes caught in leg hold snares set by the federal government. As was routine, Strader, a former trapper with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, signaled his dogs to attack. His supervisor, […]