CALGARY—Animal Justice, Canada’s leading animal law organization, is calling on the Alberta government to scrap its plan to legalize enclosed Cervid Harvest Preserves (CHPs), also known as “shoot farms” or “canned hunting” where elk or deer could be fenced in and shot for “sport.”
Alberta has not permitted captive elk and deer hunting since at least 2002, with successive governments recognizing that the practice is out of step with public values. A 2024 poll showed that only 11% of Canadians and just 8% of Albertans support trophy hunting.
Additionally, much of the hunting industry disagrees with captive hunting, recognizing that the concept of “fair chase” is nonexistent in a facility where vulnerable animals are pursued in high-fenced enclosures.
“These fenced killing grounds for paying clients haven’t been permitted in Alberta for decades for good reason. They are totally out of step with the values of both the hunting community and the general public here in the province,” said Alexandra Pester, Calgary-based staff lawyer at Animal Justice.
The hunt farms can also increase the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD), tuberculosis, and brucellosis, threatening captive animals, livestock, and wildlife, including vulnerable species like caribou.
“The government’s role should be in leading efforts to protect wildlife and fragile ecosystems, not encouraging new ways to exploit animals and expose wild populations to disease,” said Ms. Pester.
Contact:
Josh Lynn
Public Relations Manager
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