Defender Radio and The Switch

There are few mammals who are as outwardly tough and intimidating as Gulo gulo, the wolverine. These solitary individuals are considered a species of special concern federally and threatened in some jurisdictions like Ontario and are notoriously difficult to monitor or track for scientific purposes. But modern technology is changing that. The combined use of digital photography and videography wit...

More than two dozen incidents of coyotes scratching and biting people have occurred in Vancouver's Stanley Park since December 2020. You've likely seen media coverage of this – and yes, much of it has been wildly sensational with a great deal of guess work. But the truth is difficult to find in this series of events. Factually, we're aware of many pieces of evidence: coyotes are a natural part of...

The name Takaya may ring a bell if you follow wildlife news. He was the lone wolf who lived on Discovery Island and other islands in the Salish Sea, an archipelago on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island. The word, Takaya, means wolf in the Indigenous language of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation. Cheryl Alexander, a conservationist, photographer and educator, spent several years forming a distanced, but...

Having a chipmunk come up, sniff your finger cautiously, then nip a treat and run off is magical; I won't lie – it's pretty remarkable. But the consequence of that single moment of joy for a person can lead to devastating impacts to ecosystems, communities and individual animals. Be it for a close-up experience, because of a perception of hunger and need, or even incidental feeding from outdoor pe...

Host Michael Howie brings you updates on The Fur-Bearers' Read-a-Thon event happening soon and how to register, as well as a look (and the need for your participation) in a new series coming to your Defender Radio podcast feed!  Episode art for this week from the collection created by Michelle Lee of Broadview Design for The Fur-Bearers' Read-A-Thon event. Michelle Lee on Instagram: https://www.in...

Parachutes for Pets in Calgary is a grassroots organization that is working to build community supports to protect the connection between people and their companion animals. Their programs include providing pet hampers that have food and supplies, vaccine and wellness clinics, emergency pet packs and more. Often, their services are called upon when people are leaving abusive situations and need su...

Urban Resource Institute, America's largest domestic violence residential service provider. and the National Domestic Violence Hotline, recently released the results of their national survey. The PALS survey, part of URI's People and Animals Living Safely, clearly showed the fear for safety of pets is a critical component in a persons' decision in leaving abusive situations. The findings are stagg...

There's been a lot of talk about the wildlife trade since the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic hit the global stage in early 2020. While much of the attention has been paid to locales overseas, the United States is also involved in the wildlife trade; in fact, more than $2 billion of items – over 400,000,000 items - were imported in 2014 alone. Faunalytics , a non-profit that conducts research and shares knowl...

Old growth logging is in the news cycle again, with the Fairy Creek blockade on Vancouver Island being the latest in the persistent debate on how to manage old growth trees. Much of the media coverage is glossing over the intricacies of old growth logging – why is it more valuable, why is it a risk to ecosystems and endangered species, and what tools exist for community members speaking out. Charl...

Defender Radio is back after a pandemic-related hiatus. New episodes will be launching this month so stay tuned! In this update, hear from host/producer Michael Howie on the hiatus and changes in his personal life, how the show will be changing (only a little), and how you can help find new topics, special features and more. Follow The Fur-Bearers on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FURfree/ Tw...

Getting governments to change isn't easy; often, there are roadblocks in the path to communicating an issue, particularly ones related to non-human animals. There are tools out there, however, that are making it easier and more effective for Canadian parliamentarians to hear from constituents and learn more about issues related to animals in Canada. Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal MP for Beaches-...

As we press through these colder months of the winter, I'm seeing more questions about coyotes pop up on social media and traditional media. Of course, this is often in response to bad memes or misinformation designed to frighten people, rather than educate them. Check out TheFurBEarers.com for some the articles we've written to try and respond to these concerns. But it's also an opportunity to ta...

The coronavirus pandemic has forced a lot of change in the world in the last 13 months. One of the most notable, unfortunately, is an increase in plastic waste entering our oceans. Personal Protective Equipment, or PPE, which is frequently made with plastics more than doubled in size as a global industry in response to the pandemic. Oceans Asia, a non-profit focused on marine conservation, release...

Luci Cudman, the executive director of the North Shore Black Bear Society and Ellie Lamb, bear behaviour expert and bear viewing guide and instructor joined me for a call the late days of fall 2020 to talk about how our actions – and inactions – impact the behaviour of bears, why some strategies to coexist aren't as successful as others, and how we as individuals can truly make a difference for be...

I've got good news, better news and bad news, folks. The good news is that yesterday a book launched that will change minds, hearts and lives around the world. The better news is that Jo-Anne McArthur, co-editor of this book, took time out of an incredibly busy schedule this morning to chat with me about it. The bad news is that, because it's 2020, the recording software I use didn't record my sid...

A lot of animals are tested upon and killed in the name of science, particularly biomedical research. In conversation, many people adopt a utilitarian attitude – the lives and deaths of these non-human animals is to benefit human health, an acceptable trade off. But what if it wasn't benefiting human health – and what if, before the experiments even began, there was a solid chance the research wou...

Anthrozoology is a fascinating field of study – simply put, it examines the interactions between humans and other animals. This is a broad concept, which is why so many fields overlap with it: anthropology, biology, philosophy, psychology and more. To me, the concept of combining these fields is daunting and intimidating; but thanks to many dedicated and passionate anthrozoologists, I've found the...

In a world with a 24-hour news cycle, robot trolls on the internet and unprecedented political changes, knowing where we stand on some core issues can be a bit… difficult. Fortunately, there are tools that can cut through the noise and help us find answers to understand where Canadians and Americans stand on animal-related matters. Mario Canseco, president of Research Co., polled Canadians and Ame...

It's season eight! We've got a lot to catch up on – the pandemic, the outstanding contest, what's going on with The Fur-Bearers and more – and we will catch up on all of that with a special episode soon. This week I want to dive right into our interview because of the timeliness and need for action on this issue. Southern Mountain caribou in British Columbia are on the brink of collapse – and desp...

Shark Week has come and gone for the year, but your chance to learn and celebrate sharks can go thanks to a new book that brings together academic study and the thrill of learning about the ocean's great predators. Shark Biology and Conservation: Essentials for Educators, Students and Enthusiasts is set to publish September 1, 2020 by John Hopkins Press. The title may be dry, but the authors, Drs....

Wildlife corridors are a great idea: they connect habitats and ecosystems, allowing animals of all types to safely get across roads. As over 20,000 animals are killed, 570 motorists injured and $700,000 spent for clean up of animal-vehicle collisions in BC according to WildlifeCollisions.ca , corridors are also a wise investment. They come in many shapes and sizes, but generally are under or above...

Animal advocacy is a huge community. There's folks like us at The Fur-Bearers, who focus on wildlife coexistence, habitat issues and a specific commercial issue; there's groups like Coyote Watch Canada or North Shore Black Bear Society who focus on specific wildlife; then there's groups who focus on farmed animals, domesticated animals, vegan principles, international policy, local policy and more...

British Columbia has ordered the killing of hundreds of wolves as part of their caribou recovery plan in recent years. You can hear more about this plan, the maternal penning and ongoing habitat destruction in episodes past. A 2019 study gave scientific support to killing wolves to protect the caribou – despite widespread opposition, it largely became government policy. But this summer, a new pape...

Media outlets paint wildlife as the perpetrators of actions against people. But in their own recounting of events, they show how humans often started the conflicts. Former journalist and host of Defender Radio Michael Howie explores this issue and asks the questions that went unanswered by media outlets when humans and wildlife come into conflict. This audio essay was first published at https://th...

Nearly five years ago to the day, then-Conservation Officer Bryce Casavant famously refused an order to unnecessarily kill two healthy bear cubs; he was suspended, effectively fired and eventually left government service entirely. But just a few weeks ago, justices in BC's appellant court ruled that the province did not play by their own rules, meaning Bryce has been, in a word, vindicated. Today,...