It seemed like a good idea at the time: Buy a house with a two-acre property, let our energetic herding dog have the run of the place and spend blissful summer days digging side by side in the dirt with her. And it was blissful, watching Mattie carve out her napping spots behind the ferns and tall...

As monarch butterflies and hummingbirds headed south this fall, I dreamt of following my favorite snowbirds to Mexico and Central America. But I stayed home instead, where I have a window onto the spectacular world of winter wildlife: northern flickers tossing maple leaves with their beaks in search...

Walk into a roadside restaurant after a long day on the highway, and you can practically taste your meal before sitting down. The familiar smells of fresh-baked pie and salty fries need little introduction en route to your belly. That sensory experience is similar for wildlife coming upon lush...

Wherever you are in the U.S., a coyote may be taking up residence less than a mile away. If you live in the city, you’re more likely than your rural cousins to encounter raccoons. And regardless of geography, you probably share your home with dozens of species of insects and spiders. These facts...

Whether you’re a bison, a Western box turtle, a burrowing owl or any other wild creature of the prairie, a refuge belonging to the Southern Plains Land Trust is an awesome place to be. Why? One of the newest members of the Humane Stewardship Alliance, the Southern Plains Land Trust manages a growing...

Somewhere between childhood and middle age, people’s natural affinity for wildlife often melts away, overtaken by exaggerated fears of marauding armies of deer, insects and raccoons intent on invading our gardens and homes. Scorn for rabbits, the sensitive stars of many a bedtime story, is...

An eco-friendly getaway known as the Hideaway Ranch and Refuge in north Texas became one of the founding members of the Humane Stewardship Alliance. The Hideaway focuses on giving guests a relaxing stay in a natural setting, where they can unplug and unwind with such pastimes as hiking the trails...

Longtime Trust friend Fred Ziegler became the first founding member of the Humane Stewardship Alliance, pledging to follow humane stewardship principles in managing his nearly 2900 acres in Tennessee. With three streams and 1.5 miles of frontage along one of North America’s most biologically rich...

Decaying logs and miniature bogs, hollowed stalks and piled rocks, nutritious pollen and leaves fallen: They’re not the stuff of traditional nursery rhymes and baby showers. But if wild mothers-to-be had gift registries, these natural supplies would top the list. Though the basic elements for...

(WASHINGTON/NEW YORK) - The Humane Society of the United States has released the results of a disturbing undercover investigation into one of New York State’s largest wildlife killing contests, in Sullivan County. Investigators documented contest participants piling up dozens of dead coyotes...

As my neighbors and I stood 10 feet apart and swapped tips for scavenging kitchen staples this spring, the wilder residents of our community shared no such concerns. Squirrels twirled maple seed clusters like bouquets to reach every tidbit. Bumblebees made a mockery of social distancing in their...

WASHINGTON - The Humane Society of the United States released today the results of a disturbing undercover investigation into two wildlife killing contests in Frederick County and in Waldorf, Maryland. Investigators documented the judging portions of the events, with participants lining up rows of...

Today, veterinarians and 18 organizations, led by the Humane Society of the United States, submitted a petition to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources requesting that the agency initiate rulemaking to prohibit cruel, unnecessary wildlife killing contests in the state. At least 20 killing...

Springfield, ILLINOIS─Today, the Humane Society of the United States released the shocking results of a February 2023 undercover investigation at Nuggets Night Vision Coyote Hunt, a wildlife killing contest in Mendon, Illinois. The HSUS investigator attended the weigh-in event that followed the 45...

CARSON CITY, Nevada─Today, the Humane Society of the United States released the disturbing results of two January 2023 undercover investigations of wildlife killing contests in Nevada, demonstrating the need for a state law to ban them. The HSUS investigator attended the contest weigh-ins at which...

It’s a peculiar rite of modern homeownership: Plant a tulip bulb in autumn, cage or spray it to deter nibblers, admire its fleeting blooms a few months later, let it rot in soil ill-suited to its needs and repeat the whole cycle again the following year.

The jogger crossed Francis Scott Key Bridge every day—and every day, she saw the goose underneath it. Worried the bird was stuck, she called the Humane Rescue Alliance in Washington, D.C. The lower bridge was only accessible by boat, but thanks to HRA’s relationship with a local fire department...

Somewhere toward the end of the last ice age, we formed an alliance with wolves: Maybe the ancestors of dogs got food scraps while our own ancestors gained protection from predators and other humans. These social species eventually collaborated on a vast scale, possibly even hunting woolly mammoths...

Today, the New York state legislature passed a bill that ends inhumane wildlife killing contests, in which participants compete to kill the most, the heaviest and the smallest animals for cash and prizes. In 2018 and 2020, the Humane Society of the United States released undercover investigations...

My husband and I were contemplating whether to hike the 3-mile trail in Utah’s Zion National Park that September day. I’d read that this trail was our best chance to spot bighorn sheep, but after a week of exploring the five national parks in the state, our bodies were tired—and it was already late...