WARNING: Distressing content
As the world wakens up to the importance of animal rights, previously unprotected species are finally getting the protection they deserve.
But this protection isn't necessarily enough for all commentators, who have been left outraged at the lenient sentence given to a woman who killed and skinned a husky.
Advert
Amber Rose Barnes, from Montana, received a six-month deferred sentence after she pled no contest to misdemeanour animal cruelty.
She killed and skinned the dog after mistaking it for a wolf.
After the act, Barnes posted pictures of herself posing with the dead animal on social media, bragging about the kill.
Advert
The six-month suspended sentence means that Barnes will need to give up her hunting rifles for six months and take an online hunter safety class.
Should she meet these terms, the incident will be wiped from her criminal record.
To put the leniency of the sentence into context, the hunting season does not take place until the autumn so Barnes will not be missing out this year.
The incident in question took place in September of last year, but she was not reprimanded for her actions until October when the images surfaced online.
Advert
When posting the photographs, Barnes claimed that she had shot and skinned a wild wolf, but in reality, it was a domesticated husky.
Following the backlash against her actions, Barnes claimed that she only shot and killed the animal, whose hide she kept, because it was acting aggressively in the woods where she was hunting.
Recounting the incident on Facebook, she wrote: "This animal was growling howling and coming at me like it was going to eat me.
Advert
"Yes I made a mistake because I thought it was a hybrid wolf pup.
"Either way I would have still shot it because it was aggressive and coming directly for me!"
Reacting to Barnes' lenient sentence on social media, one Twitter user slammed: "Amber Rose Barnes is the type of idiot who should never be allowed to hunt again.
Advert
"Too dumb to tell a husky from a wolf, so stupid she thinks it’s great fun to shoot and skin a wolf pup.
"She is a repulsive caricature of a human being."
"[Barnes] is an a**hole," added a second commentator. "I had Huskies for years. They are not wolves. But even wolves have the right to life in their own territory.
"She is a crazy woman who collects pelts!"
Topics: Animal Cruelty, US News
Emma Guinness