We don’t enjoy ‘killing animals,’ says former B.C. conservation officer
When you work as a conservation officer, taking on the role of the grim reaper comes with the territory.
“What’s particularly disturbing is the number of people who think conservation officers enjoy killing animals,” he said.He added in his 30 years on the job. He’s never met a conservation officer who enjoyed that part of the job. Pauwels said he would like to see more officers hired when asked what improvements he would recommend moving forward.“There are many places in the province that are short-handed, and officers are getting burnt out,” he said.”We’re simply responsible for too many things. The mandate as COs has become so broad that it’s increasingly challenging to meet the public’s expectations without more officers.
Dana Livingstone, the founder of the volunteer group Wildlife Advocates Collective in East Sooke, was effusive in her praise for Pauwels as well.