Ban Snares, please sign petition

[The Woodman]

That's a valid point about Scottish access, valleyforge and yes, your comments are quite right.

My thoughts about general dog control still stand though.

[Dogs]

To me this is a prime example of organisations focussing peoples attention on the bad points only, the worst cases they can find etc etc and anyone who sees this is duely horrified and is suddenly anti-snare. However there are two sides to the coin and as mac and eeore have pointed out very well, snaring within the law, adhereing to the codes of good practice is a humane way of holding a target animal until its release or dispatch.

Please make the effort of doing a bit of research before asuming the worst.

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by valleyforge

Woodman, whilst I agree with you in principle, the laws of access in Scotland are quite different from those in England & Wales.

Trespass has never been an act of criminality under Scots Law (unless whilst bearing a firearm) and now both citizens and visitors to Scotland can enjoy 'responsible access' to all of our open countryside.

That doesn't mean you can let your dog bother sheep, cattle or wildlife, but it does permit you (as it should) to allow your dog to romp through our forests without expecting it to get caught up in a snare (whether legally set or not).

Legally set snares should therefore be accompanied by visible signs warning members of the public of their presence.

The 'ban snares' site was set up by Advocates for Animals and the 'Victims' link highlights only snaring incidents that have occurred within Scotland.

The Scottish Outdoor Access Code requires that you keep your dog under control at all times. Whilst the degree of control required may vary I would suggest that any definition of "control" would require the dog to be in sight of its owner.

A dog "romping" through woodland is in many instances a pest and an absolute nuisance if not an active danger to any wildlife in the area.

Regards
Mac

[valleyforge]

Originally Posted by muldonach

The Scottish Outdoor Access Code requires that you keep your dog under control at all times. Whilst the degree of control required may vary I would suggest that any definition of "control" would require the dog to be in sight of its owner.

A dog "romping" through woodland is in many instances a pest and an absolute nuisance if not an active danger to any wildlife in the area.

I wouldn't disagree with you on either of those points Mac, but the code doesn't specify that members of the public, or their dogs, are restricted to footpaths.

The wording of the code is non-specific enough to allow some 'freedom' in its interpretation ... in the intended spirit of free access. For me though, a dog off the leash remains under control only if comes immediately when called, and chases around only after scents and not the wildlife itself.

There will of course always be some who, through ignorance generally, will not follow the code responsibly as it is intended to be applied.

Notwithstanding that however, with the public freely roaming the countryside, those who set snares, or shoot, have an even greater duty of care towards them and their pets.

[The Woodman]

valleyforge, I'm a little concerned about your personal interpretation of dog freedom and allowing a dog to "chases around only after scents and not the wildlife itself."

It takes a pretty astute dog handler to determine the critical time to call a dog of a scent. From my experience, the return to handler call comes when the animal or bird has been disturbed and by that time it's too late.

A dogs instinct is to hunt and dog owners who walk their pets usually enjoy seeing their dogs "enjoying" themselves when released from the lead. Quite how many of the owners have the capability of interpreting what exactly the dog is doing at any given time I don't know, but from what I observe on a regular basis, not many.

Working a dog for whatever purpose takes a certain amount of concentration and not what is usually seen done on a casual dog walking exercise.

Deer management in the area in which I live is inadvertantly assisted by the annual cull of Roe fawns by pet dogs!

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by valleyforge

Notwithstanding that however, with the public freely roaming the countryside, those who set snares, or shoot, have an even greater duty of care towards them and their pets.

We are not all that far apart in our views, certainly anyone who discharges a firearm has a duty of care to ensure that nobody is put at risk by doing so.

A snare however is a passive trap, and while accepting that it would be unwise to set them in footpaths used by the public I tend to the view (not necessarily shared by the courts) that those who wander around on ground that does not belong to them should keep their eyes open and their wits about them.

Cheers
mac