A Wyoming man has issued an apology over a controversial coyote killing video. In the video, the man roughhandled the animal, kicking and stabbing it.
Animal conservationists have called out Aron Snyder for his behavior in the video. Now, Snyder responded with another video. He explained the events that happened nearly six or seven years ago. Snyder said that he killed the coyote with the knife because he didn't have a firearm. Due to backlash from the video, Snyder's employer fired him.
Snyder said that he hunted down the animal to help a friend.
Coyote Killing Video
"The coyotes were wreaking havoc on my buddy's cattle, horses (and) dogs, as they do," he said in the video. But Snyder said he forgot his gun in his truck. "When I got to it (the coyote), um, it wasn't dead, it was still alive. Pulled it out of a brush pile, um, kicked its legs out from under it, stabbed it, you know, it was growling at me, I kicked it again."
The Wyoming man noted that the video was "a very bad optic, I understand that, for the hunting community. That wasn't my intention but even when I watched it, it looked bad." However, he noted that coyotes are harmful to wildlife and livestock in the area.
Meanwhile, Paul Ulrich, president of the Wyoming Sportsmanship group, agreed that it was very bad optics. But he also said that it is more than that.
"He certainly notes that it's 'bad optics,' and it is. But at its heart (what's in the coyote video) is just bad behavior. It's cruel and the antithesis of a clean kill," Ulich said. "Hopefully, he finds that value and respect for all wildlife again someday. I hope this gives us all the opportunity to take a deep breath and realize our responsibility to respect all wildlife, including predators."
