It’s become a little safer to be a fox, and a lemon shark, in Florida
February 19th, 2010 by admin
This week The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) met in Apalachicola. Probably the most talked-about item on the agenda was a discussion of fox penning. In this blood sport, dogs are encouraged to attack foxes and coyotes confined inside a fenced enclosure. The Commission voted to institute a temporary ban on fox penning and to revisit the issue at its June meeting. Foxes and coyotes are safe for now, and there seems to be support on the Commission to make the ban permanent. FWC Chairman Rodney Barreto stated in a news release, “I don’t see any sport in the animals’ having no escape. I personally don’t agree with the practice.” FWC Commissioner Dwight Stephenson described fox penning as, “a terrifying and cruel situation.” Thank you to everyone who contacted the FWC in response to ARFF’s recent e-mail alert (click here to join ARFF’s e-mail list).
Also during this week’s meeting, the FWC prohibited recreational and commercial killing of lemon sharks in Florida waters (lemon sharks can still be hunted in federal waters). The vote is intended to protect this slow-growing species of sharks.