PETA incensed over Alaskan Girl Scouts killing beavers

[YogsVR4]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Let other Girl Scouts make bird feeders out of Clorox bottles and glue together little birch-bark canoes — Troop 34 in Alaska is learning to trap and skin beavers. In a practice that has angered animal rights activists, the girls are killing the beavers as part of a state flood-management program. "We think it sends a very, very bad message that when animals cause a problem you kill them," said Stephanie Boyles of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. She said the Girl Scouts should want girls to become "stewards of wildlife, not abusers." Last spring, about 10 members of the Fairbanks troop and their families helped catch two beavers using lethal traps. The girls were taught how to find the animals’ dens and how to lay the traps. Working under close supervision, the girls used knives to skin the beavers. The troop had the pelts tanned and plans to make hats and mittens once a dozen hides are collected. The girls also want to cook beaver meat. They plan to begin setting traps out again this month. Alaska Girl Scout leaders said they know of no other troop in the country to take part in such a program. Officials at the Girl Scouts’ New York headquarters did not return repeated calls. But in a Sept. 16 letter to PETA, spokeswoman Courtney Shore said the organization does not promote trapping or hunting and does not offer merit badges for those activities. Shore noted that Troop 34, made up of 13 girls ages 10 to 12, participated after an invitation from the state Department of Fish and Game. "It is understandable why the troop responded positively when approached by a state authority to conduct an activity that is commonplace in that area of the country," Shore wrote. The state-run Take a Kid Trapping program is aimed at controlling flooding and other damage caused by an increasing number of beavers along the lower Chena River in Fairbanks. It is open to kids as young as 7. Alaska scout leaders said the program is a "non-issue" in Fairbanks, where trapping has a long history.
Troop 34 leader Dona Boylan said she wanted to impart lessons in responsible game management to Troop 34’s members, who are city girls, at least by Alaska’s standards. Fairbanks is a city of nearly 30,000. "Trapping may not be pretty, but the girls understand the seriousness and huge responsibility of taking a life," Boylan said. "They understand that when humans impact their environment, they become ultimately responsible for maintaining a healthy population of the animals they have to coexist with in these urban centers." Girl Scout leaders said none of the girls would talk to The Associated Press. "I feel like PETA doesn’t have a concept that trapping is considered a heritage here in Alaska," said Mike McDougall, a trapper who worked with the scouts. "These kids are learning more than just how to take an animal. They’re learning about ecology. They also got a definite sense of respect for the animals." The program is helping to curb a burgeoning population of the large rodents, which in Alaska can weigh up to 70 pounds. Their growing numbers are attributed to recent warm winters and a drop in commercial trapping. "Beavers are a valuable source of education for our young people," said Tom Seaton, a Fish and Game biologist. "Their carcasses can used in many ways — for food, for warm garments. Almost everything about beavers is good except when they flood your yard or knock down live trees."
-------------------------
PETA People Eating Tasty Animals

They hate any activity related to an animals death - unless of course its a human one.

[TexasF355F1]

Thats great stuff Yogs. Nothing brightens my day more than PETA getting upset. I guess they will also be upset the my cousin is going to Alaska for a black bear hunt, hahaha.

[BLU CIVIC]

i listened to that on the radio this mornin....it was said that since this is how that culture is in Alaska, we should respect that...who knows how long this has been going on there......also they said that once we encroach upon an animals habitat, it is then our responsibility to take care of it....and the flooding that the beavers would probably cause wold have a profoud impact on the human society as well as the altered animal scoiety......it isn't like they're like they're killing them and discarding the bodies in the trash....they're using every part of it....

[TexasF355F1]

Originally Posted by BLU CIVIC

i listened to that on the radio this mornin....it was said that since this is how that culture is in Alaska, we should respect that...who knows how long this has been going on there......also they said that once we encroach upon an animals habitat, it is then our responsibility to take care of it....and the flooding that the beavers would probably cause wold have a profoud impact on the human society as well as the altered animal scoiety......it isn't like they're like they're killing them and discarding the bodies in the trash....they're using every part of it....

Off topic, but why'd Blu Civic get banned?

[taranaki]

Originally Posted by TexasF355F1

Off topic, but why'd Blu Civic get banned?

He's had that user title for some time now,and still posts,so either he's chosen it himself for a prank,or he's had a short suspension,and not altered it afterward.He's still current.

Back on topic.Animals are part of our food chain.They may not be ideal food,as any man who has ever eaten beaver will tell you[ ],but if they can be processed for profit,the net result is the same.Like anything else on this planet,if they become a nuisance,we manage them.If we can manage them in such a way that we make better alternative use of them,without obliterating the species,then there's no big deal.I should imagine that life can be hard in Alaska.Teaching kids at an early age to minimise potential hazards and maximise any potential assets that come their way is no bad thing.

[Oldercarguy]

Only peta would be whacko enough to have beaver issues. Personally, a good beaver can be fun to spank and then eat afterwards.
peta has never fully understood the concept of what over population of a certain species can mean to our ecosystem. Someday, I wonder when we over populate this planet, if Peta will protect us as well.

[2strokebloke]

Besides if girlscouts stop killing beavers, where am I going to buy my hats?

[99civic03]

Isnt Pamela Anderson a spokeswoman for them now?

[bm2boats]

Go Girls Go!!!

[Cbass]

Originally Posted by 99civic03

Isnt Pamela Anderson a spokeswoman for them now?

Have to be policically correct, she's their spokesperson