Timothy Richards, Stake President, Danville California Stake, (925) 272-8981

A Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse has been committing violence against our wild animals.

The grassy hills of the East Bay are home to wild animals of all kinds: some of the air, some of the ground, and some of the underground. As these animals live in and travel through our shared habitat, they may rearrange parts of it for their needs in their struggle for survival, as we do. When those of the underground build their homes under trees or even our structures, sometimes contrary to our desires, we are to treat them with respect, understanding, patience, and compassion.

A Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in San Ramon, a part of the Danville California Stake, based on Old Orchard Drive, sits at the foot of a grassy hill on Crow Canyon Road. Since at least June of this year, and likely long before, this meetinghouse has had numerous devices of deception deployed mainly along the fence bordering the public open space, targeting ground squirrels visiting from there. These devices, refilled regularly, contain grain intentionally contaminated with a poison deadly to all vertebrate animals, a silent violence.

Many squirrels, voles, and other small creatures have been and are being killed or injured. Because of completely exposed poisoned grain being scattered outside of the devices, turkeys, quail, doves, and other seed-eating birds have been and are being harmed. A dead zone has formed on the hill above. Where the surrounding hills are full of life, this hill is quiet.

Harming any of these animals is contrary to basic ethics, Christian and otherwise. California ground squirrels in particular are a native keystone species. Their burrows, even when superficially undesirable, serve as homes also for threatened California tiger salamanders and California red-legged frogs. These and all wild animals have the same inalienable natural rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in this land as we do. They do as we do.

Even further, we have a duty of care to animals. In Genesis 1, man is given dominion over animals. To have dominion means to tend to or to care for. Specifically, it means to use our superior capabilities to care for those of lesser capabilities, to be good stewards for the benefit of all. It does not mean to treat unjustly, to kill, to kill through deception. After all, in Exodus 20:13, we receive the simple instruction not to kill.

We ask you, then, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, given your capabilities and resources, is there no solution that does not involve violence?

(Photo: Juvenile California Ground Squirrel (Otosperm beecheyi) by Wade Tregaskis on Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0)