Please support Vale Wildlife Hospital to ban the use of snares

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by eeyore
there are some unfortunate animals that damage themselves with free running snares but these are very much in the minority and could be eliminated completely if free running was banned but 'stopped' left legal

Originally Posted by Hedgehoggy

@ Mac, are you in agreement with this too?

I am not sure I fully understand eeyors point - as far as I am aware all snares now have to be "stopped" but in order to work they need to be "free running" until they come up against the stop.

Maybe I am just being dense, I am certainly in favour of anything that will ease the humanitarian concerns without unduly degrading efficiency.

I am not in the business of causing needless suffering

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by Hedgehoggy

The traps also indiscriminately snare deer, badgers and otters. Whilst I don't dispute that you operate within a strict code of conduct, you can't guarantee any unintended targeted species will be snared, and subsequently hurt/suffer in the process. There will also be many unsavoury legal trappers who do not abide by the code of conduct (those that persecute BoPs for instance). It will be nigh on impossible to police every snare legitimately set.

They most certainly do not "indiscriminately" catch deer, badgers and otters, the snare setting and location is different for each and it is already illegal to set out to snare any of these species.

There may be a percentage bycatch, which is one reason that there is a legal maximum, inspection interval. I don't see why we should have to guarantee a total lack of bycatch, no problem with taking reasonable precautions to avoid it.

Sorry but people who already break the law are hardly going to be impressed by more law.

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by stevet95

Well, it shows how little I knew about the subject. I thought they were illegal unless set to catch food in a life or death situation :P and I thought they could only be set if it was set so it would kill the animal straight away so it wouldn't cause any suffering.

On the note of domestic pets: If snares were to be placed where dog walkers regularly walk could temporary warning signs be put up advising owners to put their dog on the lead until out of the area?
As for cats, well, they should be allowed to wander out and about anyways.

I have voted.

Snares are generally set to reduce fox populations as part of a programme tp protect young gamebirds and lambs, dog walkers are not encouraged in these circumstances.

Conversely it would be pretty uneasonable to set a line of snares in areas routinely used by dog walkers and even worse horse riders

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by Hedgehoggy

. Out of curiosity, do practitioners check quarry for snare injuries before dispatch?

My apologies, I meant contributors in general, as opposed to those who only post on WAB to defend snare usage.

No, wild animals are stressed by human proximity, the priority is to put the animal down. It can be examined afterwards.

[Hedgehoggy]

Originally Posted by muldonach

They most certainly do not "indiscriminately" catch deer, badgers and otters, the snare setting and location is different for each and it is already illegal to set out to snare any of these species.

There may be a percentage bycatch, which is one reason that there is a legal maximum, inspection interval. I don't see why we should have to guarantee a total lack of bycatch, no problem with taking reasonable precautions to avoid it.

It could just be the way I'm interpreting this, but your two paras above are contradictory. By my calculations, any percentage of bycatch = non-targeted species = indiscriminate trapping

Originally Posted by muldonach

Conversely it would be pretty uneasonable to set a line of snares in areas routinely used by dog walkers and even worse horse riders

How would a set snare affect horse riders? That would be the mother of all indiscriminate trappings!

[Hedgehoggy]

Originally Posted by muldonach

No, wild animals are stressed by human proximity, the priority is to put the animal down. It can be examined afterwards.

Indeed, I should have worded my question 'after dispatch'.

Obviously, practitioners don't have to log or report any ligature injuries the animal may have sustained while awaiting its fate. It is this area which I'm quite interested in, as it would add to the bigger picture.

[muldonach]

Originally Posted by Hedgehoggy

It could just be the way I'm interpreting this, but your two paras above are contradictory. By my calculations, any percentage of bycatch = non-targeted species = indiscriminate trapping



How would a set snare affect horse riders? That would be the mother of all indiscriminate trappings!

I think it is just the way you are interpreting it, "indiscriminate" in my book means total non selection in other words no bias towards or against any particular outcome.

Your interpretation would appear to require absolute selectivity - if for example 1 untargeted species is captured in 100 captures does that really consitute indiscriminate trapping in your view?

Guidance on avoidance of non target species is available here:-
Fox Snaring

But it is based on reducing the probability of bycatch not total elimination - which in my view is a reasonable approach

Horses and riders can be affected if a horse puts a foot in a snare and is tripped - the consequences can be dramatic, and the forward sweeping action of a horses feet at certain gaits make it possible

[wildliferescuer]

All the usual defences of snare use I see, which may convince some people but not those that have to deal with the horrendous results of LEGAL snares i.e. wildlife centres, vets, RSPCA staff, pet owners & many, many more.
Badgers are probably the most common species that we treat with snare injuries. How can anyone argue that a snare with a 'stop' on it will not injure animals as it doesn't tighten enough to cut in. What absolute rubbish! Most snares will easily tighten enough to cause injury and/or death to many species including badgers, foxes, dogs & cats.
Many of the animals we deal with are not caught around the neck, but round the chest (behind the front legs) or in front of the hind legs.
Also many snares are only checked once in 24 hours (if they're lucky) leaving many hours in which an animal can be suffering and it doesn't take long for a powerful badger to struggle enough for a cheesewire to cut into its body. Even if checked twice a day, the injuries can still easily be inflicted.
I don't think your arguments will ever convince those that have seen the results of animals caught in snares & if Jo Public saw what we, and others, have to deal with I doubt there would be many who would say that snares are humane.