Shark Cartilage: is seen as a cancer cure in Chinese medicine, some beauty creams also contain it, and health supplements like Chondroitin. Sharks are also killed for their oil which is used for creams and lotions and Omega 3 fish oil supplements.
Shark Finning: is the inhumane practice of hacking off the shark’s fins and throwing it’s still living body back into the sea. Every year it is estimated 100 million sharks die a slow death because of this. The sharks either starve to death, or are eaten alive by predators or drown by suffocation. They are declining on a global scale, and are being harvested in greater numbers to feed the growing demand for shark fin soup, an Asian delicacy.
The soup is made with shark fin and flavoured with chicken or some other stock, since the fin itself has little flavour, but it is used to add texture to the dish. It is often claimed to have health benefits, such as increasing your appetite, improving your kidneys, lungs and bones.
There is no evidence to support these claims and the reality is that shark meat is barely fit for human consumption. Not only is ‘finning’ barbaric, but their indiscriminate slaughter at an unsustainable rate is pushing many species to the brink of extinction. If you see shark fin soup on a menu, politely ask the owner to consider removing it. Sometimes people are unaware of the effect their eating habits have on the environment. Support an organisation that fights to save marine wildlife such as the HSI. Sign up to the mailing list, take part in their campaigns, send e-mails, write letters or spread the message on social networks. Contact people of influence such as politicians, celebrities or Greenpeace.
Seal Hunting: or sealing is the personal or commercial hunting of seals and is practiced in nine countries: Canada, the United States, Namibia, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Finland and Sweden. Killing seals is huge international business, some 900,000 seals annually. The largest seal hunts are in Canada, West Greenland and Namibia. Canada’s annual ‘commercial hunt’ is the biggest marine animal hunt on the planet, and mainly takes place during March and April. Each year in Spring seals migrate to the east coast of Canada to give birth to their pups, where the hunters cruelly kill them. Beautiful, innocent seal pups between 3 weeks and 3 months of age are brutally shot, clubbed and skinned.
Often haka picks are used, which are clubs with metal hooks at the end, and dying seals are dragged along. A high proportion examined may have been skinned while still conscious. Many of the pups had not yet eaten their first solid meal or taken their first swim. Baby seals are targeted because their skins are in prime condition and fetch the highest prices. People can choose to boycott Canada as a tourist, for as long as the seal hunt is allowed, email the Canadian High Commissioner about your opposition to the hunt, donate to HSI. Support fur labelling legislation which means listing the inclusion of real animal fur on the garment.
Whaling: despite the 1986 whaling ban, Japan, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, Canada, United States, Russia, South Korea, Faroe Islands, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are still whaling. Whales are the largest animals on the planet, and were hunted for their oil to fuel lamps and candles, lubricate machinery and make margarine and lipstick and other products. Modern technology has replaced this need. Whale populations take a long time to recover. They only have one young every 2-3 years.
Current commercial whaling practices that slaughter many whales at once, are still threatening the populations of some species. All the hunted species are badly affected and numbers have dropped about 90% in some. There are no humane methods to kill whales. Explosive harpoons which explode inside them are cruel and painful. One shot doesn’t always kill them. It may take many minutes or hours. Some countries argue that whaling is necessary because the whales threaten the fish populations.
Christians Caring For Gods Creatures 