Stop Willful Animal Torture in the USDA

The Wildlife Service, long known to be a rogue agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture has finally hit the bottom of the social cesspool when their nefarious behavior was outed by Christopher Ketchum’s disturbing expose in Harper’s, March 2016 issue. He exposes a culture of cruelty and torture that is beyond the pale for civilized people. Ketchum’s article opens with the torturing of dogs supposedly to test cyanide pellets meant for coyotes. The lead "trapper" forces the dog’s mouth open and shoots the pellet in his mouth, followed by kicking the screaming, convulsing animal into a garbage pit. He then states that the chemical may be old but it still works. Another employee screamed at him to stop, but the lead trapper, along with his men, laughed. All this being heard by the caged dogs awaiting the same torture. This is hard to stomach, and it doesn't stop here. Since 2000, Wildlife Service operatives have killed at least 2 million native mammals and 15 million native birds. Many, says Ketchum, are iconic in the American West and beloved by the public. He goes on to say that the goal of this slaughter according to the agency’s literature is to provide “federal leadership and expertise to resolve wildlife conflicts…” Be that as it may, there does not appear to be a mandate that allows or encourages torture using cyanide ejected inside a dog’s mouths leading to agonizing, inhumane and amoral deaths, in the name of “research”. It would appear that the Wildlife Service employment screening fails to eliminate persons with sociopathic tendencies in order for them to fulfill their mandate. Please sign my petition telling Secretary Tom Vilsack it is unacceptable to continue to allow this arm of his agency to act in this unethical and unconscionable manner. Insist he place oversight and introduce transparency to this branch’s actions, eliminating the culture of cruelty. Insist he punish and prosecute any person being paid with tax dollars, who engages in the inhumane treatment and torture of animals. Insist on accountability within this department.