To the Editor,
Re: Trophy hunting not honourable, Letters, April 25.
I found Stacey Gaiga’s letter attacking Darren DeLuca’s (and all other) guide outfitters extremely un-factual and misleading.
Regardless of her standpoint on the subject, hunting is a part of our economy in B.C., equivalent to other resources such as logging and fishing. Whether you choose to hunt for meat or buy it from the grocery store it is ridiculous to compare hunting an animal in the wild to “ the same as shooting fish in a barrel”.
A lot of people do eat bear meat and these guides are working to make an honest living, in turn feeding and supporting their families.
People come from around the world to hunt B.C. wildlife and the purpose of the guide outfitters is for these hunters to be guided and properly supervised by professional, experienced guides who are familiar with the animal and the area being hunted. This is to insure that no animals are being “left maimed or orphaned”.
For Gaiga to suggest that any of the bears being rescued by the wildlife recovery center are there because of Darren DeLuca, or any of the other outfitters on Vancouver Island, is completely false and writing it in the newspaper does not make it true.
The whole idea of selective hunting is to take the largest male, certainly not to hunt mother bears and cubs. I just think that it is irresponsible and unjust to write a public letter with such a strong opinion, supported merely by her own false assumptions.
Jen Wallman,
Port Alberni