Dear Friend of Wildlife,

Please join Project Coyote to take immediate action to stop a brutal coyote killing contest scheduled for January 18-19th in Crane, Oregon.  There is no place for a wildlife killing contest in our civilized society.

Contest participants, in teams of two, with no geographical restrictions will slaughter coyotes for thrills and compete for cheap prizes (including cash). Awards will be given for the most coyotes killed, the largest coyote, and other categories including a calcutta. This is not hunting but a gratuitous massacre that is legal in Oregon and across the country. Children under the age of 16 are encouraged to participate with free entry on Saturday. 

Specific details:

What: Eighth Annual Coyote Killing Contest
Where: Crane, Oregon                         
When: Saturday, January 17th through Sunday January 19th, 2014  
  Immediately contact the following to voice your firm but polite protest:
 
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
4034 Fairview Industrial Drive SE
Salem, OR 97302
(503) 947-6000
odfw.comments@state.or.us
 
Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber
900 Court Street NE, 160, Salem, OR 97301
(503) 378-3111
 
Harney County Chamber of Commerce
Chelsea Harrison, Executive Director
484 North Broadway, Burns, OR 97720
(541) 573-2636
director@harneycounty.com

Please post polite comments on the Facebook pages of Travel Oregon and the Eastern Oregon Visitors Association:

Travel Oregon/Oregon Tourism Commission
Judiaann Woo, Director, Global Communications   
1(800) 547-7842
info@traveloregon.com
https://www.facebook.com/TravelOregon

Eastern Oregon Visitors Association
Phone: 1 (800) 332-1843
eova@eoni.com
https://www.facebook.com/VisitEasternOregon
 
Talking Points (please personalize your letter and if you recreate in Oregon please mention this):

1.  Wildlife killing contests are ethically indefensible events allowing participants to kill wildlife to win prizes. They are biologically and ecologically reckless, not only harming individual animals, but also altering predator-prey dynamics, disrupting the social dynamics of predatory species, and increasing threats to public safety, all for fun and prizes. They have no beneficial management purpose but, rather, promote gratuitous violence against wildlife. They demean the immense ecological and economic value of predators in an ecosystem while teaching children to hate and trivialize the lives of predators.

2.  Killing contests have nothing in common with fair chase, ethical hunting.
Technology, baiting, and "calling" place wildlife at an even greater and unfair disadvantage. Killing predators, or any wild animal, as part of a 'contest' is ethically indefensible and ecologically reckless. 
 
3.  Bloodsport contests are conducted for profit, entertainment, prizes and, simply, for the "fun" of killing. No evidence exists showing that predator killing contests control problem animals or serve any beneficial management function. Coyote populations that are not exploited (that is hunted, trapped, or controlled by other means), form stable "extended family" social structures that naturally limit overall coyote populations through defense of territory and the suppression of breeding by subordinate female members of the family group.

4. The importance of coyotes and other predators in maintaining order, stability, and productivity in ecosystems has been well documented in peer-reviewed scientific literature. Coyotes provide myriad ecosystem services that benefit humans including their control of smaller predators, rodents, and jack rabbits, which compete with domestic livestock for available forage. 
 
5.  Wildlife killing contests perpetuate a culture of violence and send the message to children that life has little value and that an entire species of animals is disposable.
 
6.  Wildlife killing contests put non-target animals, companion animals, and people at risk. Domestic dogs are sometimes mistaken for coyotes and wolves (see article on sidebar).

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Thank you always for your support & action on behalf of wildlife!
 


 

Our Mission:

Promoting coexistence between people and wildlife through education, science and advocacy.