New Zealand Did Not Ban Hunting (Yet!)

[bearpaw]

New Zealand Did Not Ban Hunting

New Zealand passed a law Tuesday recognizing animals as “sentient beings.” The Animal Welfare Amendment Bill updated the country’s Animal Welfare Act of 1999 by acknowledging animals have emotions and can experience pain and distress, and as such cannot be willfully or recklessly ill-treated. Animal owners are required to provide for the welfare of their pets or livestock; those who fail to comply will be subject to various penalty levels, with animal welfare inspectors issuing compliance notices.

While the bill does indeed have far-reaching consequences, a rumored ban on hunting is not one of them. Yet.

But the bill’s passage begs the question: If New Zealand has went so far toward recognizing animals as sentient beings, how long will it allow hunting to take place? That remains to be seen, but savvy hunters would do well to take their trips to the country soon.

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[jamesfromseattle]

I'd be shocked if they did anything to restrict hunting down there. Not a gun friendly place, but hunting is culturally important and ecologically important there. They really struggle to keep the animals in check down there to prevent erosion, damage to native plants and animals, etc.

I think they still do both helicopter and chemical culls on the deer and tahr.

[pd]

I'd be shocked if they did anything to restrict hunting down there. Not a gun friendly place, but hunting is culturally important and ecologically important there. They really struggle to keep the animals in check down there to prevent erosion, damage to native plants and animals, etc.

I think they still do both helicopter and chemical culls on the deer and tahr.

I lived there for a few years.  I can state with certainty that culling of animals (whether you call it hunting or something else) will never be banned.  Remember that ALL mammals (excepting a few bats) are invasive species to both islands.  Deer, goats, wapiti, sheep, rats, dogs, cats, and so on forever.  The deer and wapiti are very harmful to the native vegetation, especially in Fjordland.  Bearpaw, I really doubt hunting will disappear.

[bearpaw]

I've spent a few months in NZ myself, I was surprised that this was passed, there is widespread support for hunting. But the fact remains it was passed, so the question is what will the future be for sport hunting in NZ?

[starbailey]

They better not ban hunting! I have a deposit in for a hunt next spring.

[elkboy]

It's one thing to recognize animals as sentient living things, but quite another to have the next logical step be a ban on hunting.  Just because an animal is a high-order sentient creature does not mean it is not an ethically appropriate game animal!  I despise what most people consider cruelty to animals, but have no trouble engaging in a well planned hunt with accurate, sufficiently lethal weapons.  What we as a hunting community need to do is communicate that distinction to the reasonable segment of society.