Traps

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Today most of the traps used can be easily divided into four types: body gripping traps, snares, foothold traps, and cages.

Body gripping/conibair traps

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The body gripping traps are traps made to kill the animal caught. They are frequently called "Conibear" traps after Frank Conibear from Canada who first came up with this type of trap, but even a simple mousetrap is one. The animal must be lured with a bait or guided into the correct position before the trap is triggered. The trap is usually built to strike at the back of the neck or behind the shoulders of the targeted animal and snap the spine. Humane organizations criticize the trap for causing prolonged death. There has been quite a lot of research to create traps that can be made more humanely. In Canada, Body Gripping traps have been tested and certified to meet requirements set out by the European Union for more humane traps. In fact, many have far surpassed the strict guidelines, making Canada the World leader in Humane Trap Standards. [citation needed] Among the proposed constructions are a box in which taking the bait actually triggers the trap and crushes the animal against the bottom of the box. Most (if not all) of these traps rely on blunt trauma so to not damage the animal's pelt. [citation needed]

Snares

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Non-target animals can be caught in snares.

Snares are anchored wire nooses set to catch wild animals such as foxes, rabbits and coyotes. They are also widely used by subsistence and commercial hunters for bushmeat consumption and trade in African forest regions.[2]

Snares are one of the simplest and are claimed to be one of the most effective traps. Made of wire, they are cheap to produce and easy to set in large numbers. A snare works more or less like the leash for a dog, trapping an animal around the neck or the body, except that as the animal struggles, the snare tightens around the animal, restraining it. They are widely criticised by animal welfare groups for their alleged cruelty.[3] UK users of snares accept that over 40% of animals caught in some environments will be non-target animals.[4] Some scientists believe that in animals which are trapped, pressure necrosis may have caused hidden injury to the animal, and that trapped animals should be taken to a vet rather than released.[5]