TREEING BEARS

   BEARLY LAW (April 24, 2012) -- A key environmental-policy committee today approved an animal-protection bill by Sen. Ted W. Lieu of Torrance that would ban hunters from using packs of dogs to pursue bears and bobcats.
   “California has a long history of protecting its resources and protecting animal welfare,” Lieu said about Senate Bill 1221 after passage by the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. “The practice of hound hunting often leads to them being injured, lost or killed and their continued use runs counters to California’s reputation as a humane state. Hound hunting of bears is illegal in two-thirds of the United States; the time has come for California to abolish this inhumane and unnecessary practice.”
   Hound hunters use packs of dogs, often equipped with radio collars, to chase bobcats and bears to exhaustion. In their attempt to escape, the bear or bobcat often takes refuge in a tree, allowing a hunter to simply track the dogs’ radio collar signal, take aim and shoot the animal. For more, including a link to Sen. Lieu's Fact Sheet on SB 1221, click HERE: