Each fall, some state wildlife agencies dump hundreds of thousands of non-native pheasants into the landscape for shooters. The pheasants are raised in barns and have no survival skills. If not shot, predators, exposure to the elements, or starvation kills the birds.
Pheasant stocking is a costly and cruel practice with no place in sound wildlife management.
Stocked birds grow up in a series of boxes and pens. Keepers sometimes cut off their beaks or put plastic "blinders" through their nose holes to prevent the crowded, stressed pheasants from pecking each other.
At some release sites, shooters wait in parking lots for trucks bringing crates of birds, or line up just before stocking to take the first shot.
Releasing pheasants from a truck at an announced date and time violates the fair chase principle that animals must have a reasonable chance to escape.
News & Events
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November 16, 2009
NY Pheasant Stocking
This week, The Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society of New York, New York League of Humane Voters and New York State Humane Association submitted comments to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation opposing the continuation of pheasant stocking.
Our Victories
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May 14, 2013
USDA Revokes License of Mississippi Roadside Zoo
A roadside zoo in Mississippi has lost its exhibitor license after 43 years. The U.S. Department of Agriculture revoked the license following an undercover investigation and legal complaints to state and federal officials by The Humane Society of the United States.
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May 8, 2013
Court Upholds Calif. Law Preventing Cruel Trapping and Poisoning of Wildlife
A California court has upheld the constitutionality of Proposition 4, a 1998 state ballot measure banning use of cruel traps and poisons for the purpose of killing wildlife.
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April 8, 2013
Maryland General Assembly Passes Legislation Banning Shark Fin Trade
The Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society International, National Aquarium, National Wildlife Federation and Oceana applaud the Maryland General Assembly for banning the possession, sale, trade and distribution of shark fins.
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April 8, 2013
Arkansas Legislature Praised for Banning Primates as Pets
The Humane Society of the United States commends the Arkansas legislature for passage of House Bill 1391, a bill to prohibit the future private possession of apes (which includes chimpanzees), baboons and macaque monkeys.
