Campaigners highlight cases of pets caught in snares amid calls for outright ban

Household pets have been caught in “cruel” snaring traps, an animal welfare charity has suggested amid calls for Scottish ministers to ban the devices.

Snares can be used in Scotland to protect crops, livestock and wildlife from animals like foxes and rabbits.

However, a raft of restrictions are in place, including ensuring devices are free running in Scotland and checked at least once within a 24-hour period.

But campaigners from Scotland-based charity OneKind have released a new UK-wide SnareWatch report for 2022 which outlines the “physical and mental suffering” the traps can cause animals.

The SnareWatch report has noted examples of the traps impacting “non-target” pets in 2022, including a 15-month-old Border terrier discovered trapped by the neck in a snare. The dog, found in Oxfordshire, recovered, according to the charity.

In Scotland, a badger was left hanging by its neck in November after being caught by a snare, though it fully recovered after being rescued. An otter pup was killed in January 2022 in the Carron Valley Forest area in Kilsyth, Lanarkshire.

The Scottish SPCA has recorded 41 snaring jobs since 2019, with 14 involving pets, while there are 1,906 registered snare operators in Scotland.

Campaigner Eve Massie said the latest report “highlights the suffering inflicted upon animals by snares and why a ban on these outdated and cruel traps is crucial”.

She added: “Snares can cause the animals trapped in them considerable physical and mental suffering, and yet unbelievably these cruel devices are still legal in Scotland.

“Animals may suffer from deep wounds, internal organ damage or even death due to being trapped in snares. Death may be slow, as snares frequently become twisted or frayed as the animal struggles, leading to strangulation, or the animal succumbing to their injuries.

“They may also suffer from hunger, thirst, exposure and attacks from other animals.

“Snares also inflict emotional suffering, with trapped animals likely to become fearful and distressed.”

It is a requirement for anyone setting a snare must have an identification number.

The Scottish Government’s Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill proposes new rules around how people can capture and kill wildlife.

Ms Massie said the charity believes the only acceptable rule is a complete ban on snaring practices in Scotland.

“OneKind believes that there should be a complete ban on the use and sale of snares in Scotland,” she said.

“Thousands of our supporters wrote to the former minister for environment and land reform, Mairi McAllan, in favour of a ban and are responding to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee’s call to views on the Bill, urging for a snaring ban.”