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Show Tr uppers Speak Out , The Utah Trappers Association, a conservative organization. is warning Utah residents to be aw are of a petition being circu- latcd hy the Utah Humane Society. This petition, which was ! signed by many well-meaning people at the State I -air was mi--j represented to get signatures. : THE PETITION, bound for the legislature this fall, if enough signatures are gathered would threaten research to save human life, hy unnecessarily raising the cost for obtaining experimental animals. The petition would also outlaw trapping in the state of Utah. Many people were not told of the trapping issue. Many of those who did question society members about the trapping issue said trapping was badly misrepresented, "red Singleton. President of the Utah Trappers Association attended the State Fair on three different occasions, and said trapping w as madly misrepresented to the people of Utah. "If the things these people said were true. 1 would sign the petition my self. They are either misinformed, or choose to ignore the facts." THE PETITION is a very inappropriate measure in a state which relys so much on the benefits of trapping. Farming and ranching would be doomed w ithout trapping as a means to control predators. The states waterways would be threatened by eliminating elimi-nating the only means to control rodents such as beaver and muskrats. Trapping is a necessary tool of wildlife management. It : is recognized as such by most all state wildlife management ' agencies, as well as the National Wildlife Federation, and other ' conservation organizations. Without removing the surplus, animal populations are subject ; ! to starvation and disease. Wildlife diseases are transmitted more rapidly when animals are overcrow ded. A sound harvesting prog-: prog-: ram can reduce overcrowding, improving the health of the re-: re-: maining wildlife populations, and reducing occurence of para-' para-' sites and diseases. Trapping also reduces the occurence of rabies, a disease which threatens human life. Every y ear, nature produces pro-duces a surplus of wild animals including furbearers. Trapping utilizes this renewable resource. Trapping also improves the ! quality of hunting for all sportsmen by reducing the loss of game ; i animals to predators. ' MANY ORGANIZATIONS in Utah stand strong in their sup-I sup-I port of trapping. Many of these are conservation organizations. r j Trapping in Utah is supported by The Utah Wildlife Federation. . I The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. The Utah State Depart- ment of Agriculture, The Utah Woolgrowers Association, The r I Utah Cattleman's Association. The National Rifle Association. j The Utah Shooting Sports Council. The Utah State Rifle and Pistol Association, and The North American Muzzle Loading Hunters Association. In addition, the 20.000 family strong Utah , Farm Bureau vigorously opposes any legislation to ban the use of : steel-jawed leghold traps. r We urge the citizens of Utah to consider the negative impact this potential legislation would have upon our state, and join us in j opposing this petition. |