Should there be a law to ban coyote killing contests?
The better question is this: Why does New Mexico even need a law banning a contest that crowns a winner by counting coyote carcasses? In a more humane world, we would not need to ban coyote killing contests. Such contests would die a natural death, unlike the coyotes.
That’s not the world we live in, and coyote killing contests are legal in New Mexico. Perhaps, as some ranchers believe, they are necessary to safeguard calves and lambs from predators. Some believe that contests help reduce the number of coyotes, although many biologists disagree, arguing that killing the predators causes remaining coyotes to have larger litters. We would argue that the real purpose of such contests is selling ammo and enriching contest promoters. Make no mistake, there is profit in slaughter.
Still, coyote killing contests are popular across the West. Once again this legislative session, there is a move to ban them. A bipartisan bill, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, and Sen. Mark Moores, R-Albuquerque, passed the Senate Conservation Committee without debate on Thursday and will move on to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senate Bill 268 likely will pass the Senate, as it has before, but the legislation has faced greater opposition in the House of Representatives. There’s no certainty, even with the support of lawmakers from both parties, that this legislation will reach the governor’s desk. Supporters should not give up.
Rome, as they say, was not built in a day. Animal-friendly legislation can take several sessions to pass — after all, it took more than 20 years of squabbling to outlaw cockfighting in New Mexico.
Ranchers do not need killing contests to safeguard their herds. They can shoot coyotes when they believe it necessary, targeting the predators in the pasture. Hunters will continue to hunt; it’s an enduring New Mexico tradition. Most hunters want to put meat on the table and feed their families, not eliminate as many creatures as they can shoot. Banning killing contests will not hurt legitimate hunting.
This is sensible, humane legislation. Someday — maybe this year — New Mexico will stop the cruel practice of killing coyotes for fun.
