Sickening photographs published online by a Wildlife Services official of his dogs brutally attacking a coyote in a leg-hold trap began circulating last week and are stirring outrage among wildlife advocates and the public.
The images were posted by Jamie Olson on his Facebook page in an album titled "work" and began making their way around the Internet after being spotted by an environmentalist. The images, which begin with a single one of a sad-looking female coyote in a trap, progress through the attack and death and finish with one Jamie Olson sitting proudly over her broken, lifeless body are hard to stomach.
Sadly, this was apparently not an isolated incident for Olson. Other images of his dogs going after a bobcat and raccoon also surfaced.
Almost as hard to stomach is the fact that we pay this guys salary. Olsen is a "wildlife specialist" who works as a trapper in Wyoming. It is completely unacceptable for any trapper, let alone a government employee, to engage in such acts of blatant cruelty against any species of animal.
Please sign the petition calling for Olson's immediate termination from Wildlife Services.
As someone who is concerned with the humane treatment of animals and wildlife management practices, I was horrified to learn that Jamie Olson, a Wildlife Services employee, turned his dogs loose to savagely attack a coyote in a leg-hold trap and that this was evidently not the first such incident he was involved in.
Olson obviously lacks the compassion, professionalism and respect of wildlife, that are called for in accordance with your alleged policies and should clearly not be allowed to engage in any activity that relates to lethal predator control.
While it would be nice to believe this was an isolated incident, previous reports of government employees abusing wild animals in traps have already surfaced and problems with Wildlife Services' questionable lethal predator control practices are gaining public attention.
It is completely unacceptable for any trapper, let alone a government employee, to engage in such acts of blatant and barbaric cruelty against any species of animal. I sincerely hope you will terminate Olson immediately.
