Fish Empathy Project

The Thursday, July 28 edition of the national paper USA Today includes a story headed, "Anti-fishing folks are hooked on a feeling; PETA puts critical billboard near Bassmaster event." (Sports, Pg 3C.)

It opens:
"PITTSBURGH -- The Citgo Bassmaster Classic, sometimes known as the Super Bowl of fishing tournaments, will be held this weekend on the three rivers.

"A billboard that just went up south of here on Route51 isn't part of the promotional effort. It's a digitally altered depiction of a dog being yanked by a hook in its mouth.

"'If you wouldn't do this to a dog, why do it to a fish?' asks the billboard, funded by the Fish Empathy Project. That is a campaign launched last fall by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), stepping up earlier anti-fishing efforts."

The article say that whether fish feel pain "is a point of debate." We read that Karin Robertson, who manages PETA's Fish Empathy Project "cites research in the United Kingdom that reported in 2003 that trout had nervous system receptors in their heads and responded to damaging stimuli in ways that showed 'pain,' not just reflex.

PETA has asked papers to remove cancel their fishing columns. There is a delightful suggestion from Robertson that a fishing column, if not cancelled, should "at least be included in a more appropriate section like the crime report or the obituaries."

The article also includes quotes from those who love to fish and even describe it as a spiritual experience. Some engage in "catch and release" fishing -- obviously not for food, just for sport. We read that PETA, of course, is not in favor as "fish still get hooked and can be mortally injured." Indeed many fish do not survive the trauma.

You can read the whole article on line at:
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2005-07-28-peta-protest_x.htm

You can read more about the fish pain studies and PETA's Fish Empathy Project at http://www.FishingHurts.com

And you can send a letter to the editor against harming animals for human entertainment (catch and release) and on the joys of a vegetarian diet. USA Today takes letters at:
http://asp.usatoday.com/marketing/feedback/feedback-online.aspx?type=18


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