The Dangers of Feeding Wildlife
We’ve all heard the saying, “A fed bear is a dead bear.” This saying applies to all wild animals. Here are a few reasons why humans should be responsible with food while exploring the outdoors.
● Wildlife that has been fed by humans will slowly become dependent on people for food. As a result, animals might stop hunting for food on their own and their young may not learn how to hunt and find food naturally.
● After a while animals will start to get used to being around people. Then they will start going closer to people in dangerous situations looking for food, and they may end up getting injured or killed. Once when I was on a trip to Yellowstone, there was a fox that was walking on the side of the road. We stopped to give it space. Instead, it ran up to our car and sat there looking at us. It was obvious it was expecting food from us. On the same trip, while we were in Grand Teton National Park, we saw another fox in a restaurant parking lot. It is especially dangerous for animals to be out on roads or in parking lots looking for food because there is a big chance they might get hit by a car. Even feeding animals in your backyard can cause problems as the animals will continue to return to the same spots and predators will learn their routine.
● The food provided by people may have harmful ingredients or lack the nutrients and vitamins that the animals need. One example of this is feeding ducks bread. When you give a duck bread, the bread expands and fills their gut faster. They will miss out on the nutrients they need. The lack of nutrients can make their wings grow at an abnormal angle known as angel wings or airplane wings.
● Feeding animals can also negatively impact people because they can get fined and serve jail time. Some animals also carry diseases that can be passed on to pets and other people. If there is an animal that is used to being fed by someone
and it goes up to other people expecting food, there is a risk of human and animal conflict that could put them both in danger.
Remember when you are out at parks and other wild places, keep your distance and do not feed animals. You can still have a great experience watching the wildlife.