ACT NOW: Legislation needs your comment
housands of animals die each year in gin traps and other predator eradication practices on South African farms.The commonly used methods (e.g. gin traps, killer traps, dog hunting and poisons) are ethically unacceptable and ecologically damaging. New legislation proposes to keep them legal and even rename gin traps as "soft traps".
Watch this video of a leopard caught in a soft trap (not for sensitive viewers).
More than 80% of South African land is under commercial agriculture. This legislation (The Norms and Standards for the Management of Damage Causing Animals) affects the management of all wildlife on agricultural land.
Meat, wool and mohair come from South African farms. The public buy the products of this cruelty.
THIS MUST BE STOPPED. SIGN NOW
1600 signatures were handed in on the 31st January 2011 to government. Keep clicking with your signatures - we need as many people to know about this as possible and as many voices to speak out. The fight will continue until legislation is changed and practiced. We are extremely grateful for your support. Keep this petition going.
Read more in the Landmark Foundation's latest newsletter.
Many farmers have proven that alternatives to lethal predator controls work more effectively than blanket eradication programs. Guardian dogs,shepherds and protective systems have resulted in the reduction of livestock losses by 53 - 97 % in one study area alone. Yet the current government legislation wants to continue the use of gin trapping and allow hunting with dogs under pressure from certain lobby groups.
The Norms and Standards are silent on activities like poison baits, snaring, denning, helicopter hunting and killer snap traps that should be prohibited outright. Innocent wildlife gets killed in the onslaught of these methods. Eagles, cape foxes, antelope and the rare aardwolf are a few of the innocent victims. The legislation even allows for profiteering from the hunting of threatened species like the leopard on a Damage Causing Animal permit. This opens the system to massive abuses.
Since 2004 the Landmark Foundation has rescued 37 leopards. HELP NOW.
Read more about the slaughter of biodiversity on South African farms and how change is possible. Sign up to our newsletter for updates.
Yours Sincerely
Dr Bool Smuts
Director
Landmark Foundation
