Why are some state legislators trying to legalize canned hunting in Indiana when most states are working hard to eliminate the repulsive practice?

“It’s all about greed,” said Gene Hopkins, president of the Indiana Sportsmen’s Roundtable.

House Bill 1265, which passed out of the Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday, would make it legal to hunt farm-raised cervidea – deer and elk – confined within a fence. Unlike previous proposals, the bill goes far beyond grandfathering in the four captive hunting facilities already operating in Indiana; it would encourage new operators to open more canned hunting operations in the state.

“I think it’s sad that we’ve got to visit this issue over and over when we’ve got so many more important things we should be working on,” Hopkins said. “This is really, truly a dangerous bill.”

The bill unwisely exempts people shooting the captive deer from having to acquire a hunting license.

State leaders have been dealing with canned hunting for years. Former leaders of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources fought hard to eliminate canned hunting. But current DNR officials are, unfortunately, remaining neutral on the bill despite the obvious ethical and wildlife endangerment concerns it creates.

Owners of the confined hunting operations likely took the opportunity to revisit the issue this year because of the significant number of new legislators who are unfamiliar with the issue’s history or are ignorant of the research and study that show that legalizing captive hunting is a bad idea.

“I studied it for over a year,” said Hopkins, who served on the Citizens Advisory Council for Captive Cervidaes, which was formed by the DNR after a high-fence operator filed a lawsuit against the state in 2005. “I’m an IT guy. I’m a data guy. I’m not an emotional guy. And the data is real clear on this. This is not good.”

Hunting deer in confined areas violates the hunting ethic of fair chase.

“What’s right about shooting a deer or elk behind a 200-acre fence?” Hopkins asked. “These are not wild animals. They are raised on farms, bottle-fed. They don’t have any idea how to hide from hunters. I’m a hunter. I’ve been a hunter all my life and I’ve fought for the rights of hunters for 30 years. This is not hunting.”

In addition to the ethical concerns, there are practical reasons why encouraging canned hunting in Indiana is bad policy. Deer confined in high-fence operations increase the potential for the spread of diseases, such as chronic wasting disease and bovine tuberculosis.

Hopkins said the state’s cattle farmers should be concerned about the bill because the state has already had one case of bovine tuberculosis. A second would endanger the state’s tuberculosis-free status with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and could limit farmers’ ability to sell their beef in other states.

“It’s sad people are seeing short-term greed as being more important than the long-term health of our herd,” Hopkins said. “If we get CWD in Indiana, it will devastate the state and will divert millions of DNR dollars from other needs.”

People pay thousands of dollars to shoot deer at high-fence operations, but canned hunting does nothing to cull the herd, which is needed to prevent overpopulation and protect the health of the state’s wild deer. An unhealthy deer population decreases hunting opportunities and decreases state revenue from hunting. According to the Indiana Wildlife Federation, deer hunting brings in more than $400 million to the state annually and supports more than 2,300 jobs.

“Whether you hunt or not, I don’t care what your beliefs are, this is wrong,” Hopkins said. “People need to get ahold of their legislators and tell them to vote no on this. No compromises, no amendments, just no.”