Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

curiously to the far edge of the ice.

All of a sudden the pup is drawn to
a figure it has never seen before.
This figure, a man, casually walks
up to the pup. The pup looks up
towards the man. The man lifts his
right arm high towards the sky and
strikes the seal pup on the head

Canadian Harp Seal

Hunting
By Chris Quinones, Carlos Figueroa,
and Marlene Castro

Its a beautiful wintery

morning off the eastern coast of
Canada. The sun is barely rising

with a blunt object. To ensure the

pup is dead, he strikes it three
more times. Blood sprays all over
the white mounds of snow. The
pup is dead. Another ritual has
started - Canadian Seal Hunting.

from the distant northern horizon.

There is snow, ice, and water as far
as the eye can see. The sound of
life fills the air as migrating harp
seals gather in one of the few
breeding grounds left this side of
the Northern Americas. Colonies
gather from everywhere for this
yearly ritual. As the adult seals
congregate, a pup wanders

Harp Seals
Harp seals are mainly
indigenous to the north Atlantic
coastal areas of Eastern Canada.
These mammals are very well
adapted to the cold and are able to
stay underwater for as long as

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

fifteen minutes making them

unimagined downfall for the Harp

excellent swimmers. The

seal.

younglings or pups are born with

yellowish fur. After a week that
yellowish fur turns into a beautiful
white fur. (This is the only time the

History of the Hunt

According to Canada

seal actually has fur.) By three

Geographic, seal hunting began in

weeks the Harp seal goes through

Canada during the early 16th

a moulting process which sheds

century by the Basque, French,

the white fur leaving a harp like

British, Portuguese, and Acadians.

design on their skin, hence the

Early settlers sealed as an off-

name. The skin of a Harp seal is

season source of income. In the

very well lubricated with a natural

1750s, a European demand for seal

oil making it less frictional in water

oils began the commercial industry

(Lind, 2012). The skin is also well

of sealing. At the end of the 19th

insulated making it, according to

century a record 33 million seals

Valerie Lind a Wisconsin Biology

have been killed as demand rises.

student, the very reason that

After World War II, the industry

the harp seals were almost hunted

stifled because ships were used for

to extinction. Hunters found the fur

warfare, but demand for seal fur

of these creatures to be very

and leathers becomes the new

valuable. (Lind, 2012) This

necessity for the post-war era. In

capable skin became the

the 1950s, different humane

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

society group observers express
their concerns about seal hunting
in Canada. On March 1964, images
of seal hunting activity is
broadcasted on television. The
anti-sealing movement is born. In

Tools used for seal hunting

According to the Canadian
Justice Laws Website, any person
licensed to hunt seal may do so
with a firearm, either a shot gun or
a rifle. More primitive mean can
also be used, like a round club
made of hardwood that measures
between 60 cm and 1 meter; used

the very reason that

the harp seals were
almost hunted to
extinction. Hunters found
the fur of these creatures
to be very valuable.
1965, as a response to the
negative outrage of sealing, the

to bludgeon the cranium of the

seal. A device known as a
hakapik may also be used, which
has a bent metal spike at the end.
The hakapik is also used to strike
the seal on the head (Justice Laws
Website, 2011).

Canadian government placed

regulations, policies, and
procedures regarding seal hunting,
including for the first time ever,

Canadas Reason for Sealing

Around springtime of each

issuing seal hunting licenses (Seal

year, the Canadian government

Hunt, 2000).

allows hunters to kill baby seals

around two major areas: the Gulf of

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

St. Lawrence and northeast of
Newfoundland. Canadas
reasoning behind seal hunting is
the claim that there is a high
demand for seal fur. Canada
expresses that seal hunting is also
beneficial in other ways, such as a

In Canadian history, seal

source of food, but that has been

hunting has never been illegal. The

proven false. According to a

Department of Fishing and Oceans

Memorial University study from

(DFO) is an organization that

2006, 80% of the seal was simply

manages Canadas fisheries and

discarded, leaving the carcass of

safeguarding its waters (Fisheries

the seal left to rot (The Canadian

and Oceans Canada, 2013). The

Seal Hunt, LiberationBC.org, 2013).

reason seal harvesting (a term

Seal meat is inedible for humans to

used for legal seal hunting) is

eat, the meat is too fatty and

allowed in Canada is the enormous

distasteful, therefore the true

amount of contribution to the

reason for the continuation of seal

Canadian economy. Many

hunting is for their fur

Canadians depend on seal

(HarpSeal.Org, 2015).

harvesting as part of their income,

especially those in rural areas. This

Laws Protecting Sealing

is key in giving Canadians,

especially fishermen, jobs through

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

the low peak seasons. Also, only

was discovered that 40% of seals

those who have a license are

clubbed did not die on the first

allowed to seal harvest, and

impact and on occasion were even

weapons used must kill the seal

skinned alive. The IFAW

quickly and humanely (high-

(International Fund for Animal

powered rifles, shotguns, hakapiks,

Welfare) sent out 5 different

etc.). The DFO monitors and

veterinarians from 3 different

implements strict regulations for

countries to research the hunt.

seal harvesting and as long as its

Their research showed that the

humane, sustainable, and well

hunters did as little as possible to

regulated activity, Canada does

confirm that the seals were

not plan to make the

harvesting illegal
anytime soon.

unconscious or even

It was discovered that

40% of seals clubbed did
not die on the first impact
and on occasion were
even skinned alive.

Canadian Sealers Violate

Regulations

dead before they

skinned them alive.
When the vets did a
postmortem

observation they found that a

quarter of the seals they retrieved

According to The Guardian

website, recent studies were done
by the International Fund for
Animal Welfare on the hunt for
seals in the Gulf of St Lawrence. It

had minimal signs of being

unconscious when they were
skinned (Stuart, 2001).

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

European Ban
In 1983, the European Union
was the first to set a ban against
the purchasing of seal pelts from
Canada. Unfortunately, Canada
managed to find a way around the
ban because at the time the
European Union made the ban on
only buying seal pelts belonging to
that of baby seals. It wasnt until
2009 when the EU banned all seal
pelts of any age and of any
species. Canadas government,

the World Trade Organizations

(WTO) which is an
intergovernmental organization
which is made up of 160+
countries. Their goal, according to
the WTO, is to make and enforce
the trade of countries. The
Canadian Sealers brought their
case to the WTO in 2013. The
largest news broadcaster in
Canada the CBC News printed that,
EU seal product ban upheld in
WTO appeal (CNBC News, 2014)

sealers, and fur industries,

collectively, pursued to overthrow

Russia Federation Ban

the ban in court, but failed to do

so. Yet again four years later in
2013 the Canadian government,
sealers, and fur industries tried
again, only to have the European
Union to dismiss the case.
Canadian Sealers, determined,
pursued their case to higher courts,

In 2011 the Russian

Federation also banned the buying
and selling of baby seal pelts.
According to Harpseals.org, the
President of Russia, Vladimir Putin,
criticized sealers and called it a
Bloodthirsty Industry

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

(HarpSeal.Org, 2015). This made a

Canadian Government has also

huge impact on the Sealing

reassured the public that the

Industry because Russia Imported

sealers are following all regulations

95% of the finished product

placed by the Canadian

(HarpSeal.Org, 2015). Which meant

Government. Anyone Caught by

the Canadian Sealers would have

the Fishery Officers not following

to venture out, and so they did.

the regulations would be subjected

They began to develop markets in

to court-imposed fines and license

Asia, the pelts were

sold in Norway,
Denmark, Poland,
Estonia, and Greece.

prohibited (Fisheries

President of Russia,
Vladimir Putin, criticized
sealers and called it a
Bloodthirsty Industry

and Oceans Canada,

2013).
Its an
unfortunate life for

Seals Today

the Harp Seal. Their only defense

is non-profit organizations that

The Canadian Government

has put in a Total Allowable Catch
as to how many seals can be
hunted for commercial use per
year. The Canadians Fishers and
Oceans department have had it
capped at 400,000 Harp seals per
year for the last three years. The

seek to ban seal hunting and the

few countries that are willing to
ban any commerce associated with
them. Until Canada realizes that
these furry creatures deserve
better than being someones coat,
seals will continue to be hunted
and killed for it.

Canadian Harp Seal Hunting

Government of Canada:
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fmgp/seal-phoque/index-eng.htm
HarpSeal.Org. (2015). Retrieved from
HarpSeals.Org:
http://www.harpseals.org/about_
the_hunt/index.php
Justice Laws Website. (2011, Feb 10).
Retrieved from Canada.Ca:
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/reg
ulations/SOR-93-56/page8.html#h-18

WORKS CITED
Carol, H. (2014, May 29). Opinion, LA
Times. Retrieved from
WWW.LATIMES.COM:
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/
opinion-la/la-ol-european-bancanadian-seal-hunt-20140529story.html
CNBC News. (2014, May 22). Retrieved
from CBC News.com:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/
newfoundland-labrador/eu-sealproduct-ban-upheld-in-wtoappeal-1.2650791
Fisheries and Oceans Canada. (2013,
April 19). Retrieved from

Lind, V. (2012, April 20). Zeal for the

Harp Seal. Retrieved from
bioweb.uwlax.edu:
http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/
s2012/lind_vale/index.htm
Seal Hunt. (2000). Retrieved from
CanadianGeographic.Com:
http://www.canadiangeographic.
ca/magazine/jf00/sealtimeline.a
sp
Stuart, M. (2001, April 6). World News.
Retrieved from
TheGuardian.com:
http://www.theguardian.com/wo
rld/2001/apr/07/stuartmillar
The Canadian Seal Hunt,
LiberationBC.org. (2013, May).
Retrieved from
LiberationBC.org:
http://liberationbc.org/issues/se
al_hunt#baby_seal