Week #7: Contemplating Controversy

When treating a sick animal, the ending is not always a happy one. Sometimes, especially while dealing with undomesticated animals, it is too late and they are too sick to be treated. What to do in that situation is what leads to controversy. One of the biggest controversies in wildlife medicine is the use of euthanasia. 
Euthanasia is used to put animals to sleep by causing them to go in and out of consciousness followed by cardiac arrest. Using Euthanasia is meant to lower the stress and discomfort of the animal while it is being put down. However, there are many different opinions on this topic. 
First of all, many people believe that Euthanasia is better for the animal and that it is more humane. Some people who live in areas that have high populations of undomesticated animals believe that lethal methods are good for population control. By using Euthanasia, people have a better sense of controlling numbers and amounts of animals in certain areas. However, many people believe that killing an animal, even with euthanasia is wrong. Most of Americans think it is a better idea to simply relocate these animals. New York residents were surveyed and most believed it was a better idea to trap the animals and relocate them while not harming the animal. While this in theory is a good idea, translocating is not always problem-free. In fact, there are many problems with translocating like the low survival rates of the animals and spread of disease. Also, while moving animals to a different location does have a positive outcome for the New York residents, there is no way to guarantee that the overpopulation of animals will not pick up again in a different place.
          Because wildlife euthanasia is so controversial the NWCOA (national wildlife control operators association) decided to review their guidelines and evaluate the different outcomes of different euthanasia. They interviewed and experimented the impacts of many different types of euthanasia and came up with results indicating both negative and positive effects. The NWCOA decided that wildlife professionals must consider the welfare of the animal in any and every of their activities. Along with the basic laws and regulations of wildlife veterinarians, this controversy ended in a new guideline which basically says that wildlife professionals need to use their professional and best judgment to determine the best method for each individual situation. 

References

Julien, Timothy J., Stephen M. Vantassel, Scott R. Groepper, and Scott E. Hygnstrom. "Human Wildlife Interactions." Euthanasia Methods in field Settings for Wildlife Damage Management (2010): 158-64. Academia. Web. 22 Feb. 2014.