Activists in California are protesting against Assembly Bill 1038, which seeks to revive the use of hound dogs for bear hunting, a method banned over a decade ago. Ann Bryant from the Bear League describes hounding as inhumane and counterproductive, while Assembly member Heather Hadwick argues that the bill addresses a growing black bear population and rising human-bear conflicts. However, critics like Bryant highlight that bear populations have remained stable, and the bill does not effectively tackle the issues it purports to resolve.
In a statement, assembly member Hadwick says the bill is intended to control the black bear population, reading in part: "California's black bear population is out of control, more than doubling in the past decade. Human-bear encounters have skyrocketed as a result, leading to ecological disruption, property damage, and the first confirmed fatal black bear attack in the state."
Bryant opposes this statement. "This is not a bill that even remotely addresses any bear-human conflict issue, any population issue with bears," she said.
Hounding is the practice of putting GPS collars on packs of dogs who then chase down bears for hours, eventually retreating up a tree and that's when the hunters step in.
It is cruel in the worst of ways," Ann Bryant of the Bear League said. "It's a ploy to bring back hounding; that is basically what this is.
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