Post by FWS on Mar 8, 2009 16:18:00 GMT -6
Worlds of trappers, pet owners collide
Reports to the Idaho Statesman of injured dogs are three times higher this year
BY PETE ZIMOWSKY
Idaho Statesman.com
03/08/09
Bob Shaw was walking his cocker spaniel, Amos, along an out-of-the-way area near the Boise River in Eagle in December.
Suddenly, the Eagle resident heard a cry of distress from his dog.
"The dog yelled once more, obviously stressed, and I feared the worst (because) he didn't cry out the third time," Shaw said.
At least seven dog owners in the Treasure Valley had similar experiences this winter when their pets stepped in leg-hold traps.
Shaw's story should be a wake-up call to recreationists who hike, bike, or run with their dogs in places - such as along the Boise River or in the Boise Foothills - that overlap with traditional trapping areas.
"We are trying to avoid a head-on collision with (trapping) and sprawling urban growth," said Jeff Wolfe, a conservation officer with the southwest region of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
Fish and Game doesn't keep records of trapped-dog incidents, Wolfe said, but officers do take complaints each winter, which can be the busiest part of the trapping season.
The Idaho Statesman hears an average of about two reports of dogs caught in traps each winter. This winter, the Statesman heard of three times that many.
WHY THE INCREASE?
Wolfe speculated there might be more trapping activity this winter because of the bad economy. People want to make extra cash from the sale of furs.
He also thinks more trappers might be setting traps in urban areas to avoid traveling and spending money on gasoline.
Then there's the increase in other recreational activities, like hiking, walking and bicycling in trapping areas. In the 1970s, before subdivisions lined the Boise River, trappers ran lines behind Barger-Mattson Auto Salvage and Plantation Country Club off State Street. Today, it is illegal to trap in that area.
Some cities are taking action. Boise and Star banned trapping within city limits, said Jeff Rosenthal, the director of the Idaho Humane Society, which helped write the law for Star.
Rosenthal said he wasn't aware of laws that prohibit trapping in other cities like Eagle and Garden City.
Fish and Game rules do prohibit trapping along the Boise River in parts of Garden City, and trapping devices are prohibited in city parks.
There are more than 1,100 licensed trappers in Idaho, and Hance Clayton, president of the Idaho Trappers Association, agrees there is a growing conflict between his pastime and urban recreation.
Clayton said trappers have to use common sense about where to set traps.
He thinks trappers in his organization are responsible and wouldn't set traps in recreation areas.
A DOG OWNER'S WORST FEAR
It wasn't easy for Shaw to find his dog and get it out of the trap because of the dense underbrush. What Shaw feared during the ordeal was the 18-degree temperature. "He would have frozen to death during the night if I had not found him," Shaw said.
The Idaho Fish and Game Web site has directions for freeing a dog from a trap, but Shaw found the process difficult.
"The trap was very rusty, and I could not free his foot," Shaw said. "I was able to unwire the trap from the sapling that it was attached to and carry him some 2,000 feet to the car with the trap still dangling from his foot."
It is illegal to disturb traps, but when Shaw couldn't open the trap, he took the dog and the trap to the veterinarian. In cases like that, the person removing the trap probably wouldn't be prosecuted, according to Fish and Game.
A veterinarian had to step on the trap to wrench it open, Shaw said. Immediately, blood spurted from the dog's rear foot.
"Luckily, I didn't get the trap off of his foot at the scene or he might have bled to death," Shaw said.
The injury ended up costing Shaw $130 in vet bills.
Two other dog owners told the Statesman that they had bills for hundreds of dollars from trap injuries.
TRAPPING AS WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
Despite the conflicts, trappers believe they help with wildlife management.
"Trapping plays an important role in maintaining the balance of nature," said Clayton, who has been a trapper for more than 50 years. "It keeps animals from overpopulating."
Clayton defends the tradition as a way to control wildlife populations and pests, such as raccoons, skunks and beavers, in urban areas.
He said that if trappers don't thin out populations for free, taxpayers will have to pay professional animal control officers to get rid of nuisance animals, such as beavers that cut down trees along the Greenbelt or in riverside neighborhoods.
As cruel as some people think traps are, nature is much more cruel, Clayton said. Nature thins animal populations by starvation and disease.
Dogs do get caught in traps, he said, and that's why the Idaho Trappers Association has worked with Fish and Game to offer tips on freeing dogs.
Clayton designed a sign that can be downloaded from the Fish and Game Web site and posted so that recreationists know traps are near.
Although it isn't mandatory, Clayton put up signs when he was trapping in the Owyhee Mountains because he knew chukar hunters would be in the area with their bird dogs.
He said some trappers don't like to use the signs because sometimes traps are damaged or stolen when people know where they are.
One thing trappers and recreationists can agree on: The best way to keep a dog out of a trap is to keep it on a leash.
Clayton said his organization is offering a class for first-time trappers on proper techniques and ethics. It isn't required, but he wants the class to be mandatory for trappers.
"It's not a free-for-all," Clayton said. "Trapping is strictly regulated."
Amos, Bob Shaw's cocker spaniel, had a run-in with a leg-hold trap this winter. In general, it's illegal in Boise city limits and state parks.
Bob Shaw shows the trap that his cocker spaniel stepped in along the Boise River.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Where trapping IS allowed
• On most public lands in the deserts, mountains and forests. For example, the Boise Foothills, small wild areas on the edge of town, in gullies, near the trails around Lucky Peak Reservoir and along the Boise River outside of Boise city limits.
• Upland bird hunters may encounter traps during the fall hunting seasons in places like the Owyhees.
• Trapping is conducted in wilderness areas, too. Michael Koeppen, a hiker from Florence, Mont., who spends a lot of time in the Salmon River Trail wilderness area, said he's seen a dog caught in a leg-hold trap and snares placed across the trail.
Where trapping ISN'T allowed
• In Idaho state parks.
• In Veterans Memorial Park in Boise.
• Within a quarter-mile of the Boise River from the New York Canal Diversion Dam downstream to the Glenwood Bridge.
• Between Idaho 21 and the New York Canal from the New York Canal Diversion Dam downstream to Boise city limits.
• The Stanley Creek Wildlife Interpretive Area in Custer County.
• Yellowstone National Park.
• On any of the portions of state game preserves, state wildlife management areas, bird preserves, bird refuges and bird sanctuaries for which trapping closures have been declared.
• All or portions of national wildlife refuges, except as specified in federal regulations for individual refuges.
More information on trapping
• Idaho Trappers Association, www.idahotrappers.org.
• Idaho Department of Fish and Game, fishandgame.idaho.gov.
How lucrative is trapping?
Fur prices vary with supply and demand, but here are some examples from the Idaho Trappers Association:
• Bobcat: $280, but can range from $465 to $1,100, depending on the quality.
• Coyote: $19 this year; $27 last year.
• Beaver: $23, but can be as high as $65.
• Otter, $50: a drop from $100.
• Muskrat: $4, but can be as high as $7.
• Mink: from $11 to $12.
• Marten: $40, down from $60.
• Fox: $15 to $20.
• Badger: $60.
Where do furs go?
The association says they are mainly shipped to Canada and Russia.
When is trapping season?
Trapping is conducted year-round in Idaho, depending on the animal that trappers are seeking. For example, coyote trapping is allowed all year. The height of the trapping season is from fall through March.
How can you avoid traps?
• Look for posted signs that a trapper might be setting traps in the area.
• Assume that trapping may be occurring in areas where you will find beaver, fox, coyotes and other fur-bearing animals.
• Keep your dog on a leash in areas where you suspect trapping.
What if your dog is caught?
• A dog can be released from a foothold by compressing the trap's spring levers on each side of the closed jaws.
• Your first objective should be to calm the dog. If the dog is overreacting, remove your coat or jacket and place it over the dog. This should help you to calm down the dog so you can remove the trap.
• To remove a snare, pinch the lock that closes it and reverse the lock. Then, slip the lock back up the snare cable. This will open the snare loop.
• Take safety gear: It's a good idea to carry a small first-aid kit, gloves and a multi-tool while hiking or biking to use on yourself or your dog.
Reports to the Idaho Statesman of injured dogs are three times higher this year
BY PETE ZIMOWSKY
Idaho Statesman.com
03/08/09
Bob Shaw was walking his cocker spaniel, Amos, along an out-of-the-way area near the Boise River in Eagle in December.
Suddenly, the Eagle resident heard a cry of distress from his dog.
"The dog yelled once more, obviously stressed, and I feared the worst (because) he didn't cry out the third time," Shaw said.
At least seven dog owners in the Treasure Valley had similar experiences this winter when their pets stepped in leg-hold traps.
Shaw's story should be a wake-up call to recreationists who hike, bike, or run with their dogs in places - such as along the Boise River or in the Boise Foothills - that overlap with traditional trapping areas.
"We are trying to avoid a head-on collision with (trapping) and sprawling urban growth," said Jeff Wolfe, a conservation officer with the southwest region of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
Fish and Game doesn't keep records of trapped-dog incidents, Wolfe said, but officers do take complaints each winter, which can be the busiest part of the trapping season.
The Idaho Statesman hears an average of about two reports of dogs caught in traps each winter. This winter, the Statesman heard of three times that many.
WHY THE INCREASE?
Wolfe speculated there might be more trapping activity this winter because of the bad economy. People want to make extra cash from the sale of furs.
He also thinks more trappers might be setting traps in urban areas to avoid traveling and spending money on gasoline.
Then there's the increase in other recreational activities, like hiking, walking and bicycling in trapping areas. In the 1970s, before subdivisions lined the Boise River, trappers ran lines behind Barger-Mattson Auto Salvage and Plantation Country Club off State Street. Today, it is illegal to trap in that area.
Some cities are taking action. Boise and Star banned trapping within city limits, said Jeff Rosenthal, the director of the Idaho Humane Society, which helped write the law for Star.
Rosenthal said he wasn't aware of laws that prohibit trapping in other cities like Eagle and Garden City.
Fish and Game rules do prohibit trapping along the Boise River in parts of Garden City, and trapping devices are prohibited in city parks.
There are more than 1,100 licensed trappers in Idaho, and Hance Clayton, president of the Idaho Trappers Association, agrees there is a growing conflict between his pastime and urban recreation.
Clayton said trappers have to use common sense about where to set traps.
He thinks trappers in his organization are responsible and wouldn't set traps in recreation areas.
A DOG OWNER'S WORST FEAR
It wasn't easy for Shaw to find his dog and get it out of the trap because of the dense underbrush. What Shaw feared during the ordeal was the 18-degree temperature. "He would have frozen to death during the night if I had not found him," Shaw said.
The Idaho Fish and Game Web site has directions for freeing a dog from a trap, but Shaw found the process difficult.
"The trap was very rusty, and I could not free his foot," Shaw said. "I was able to unwire the trap from the sapling that it was attached to and carry him some 2,000 feet to the car with the trap still dangling from his foot."
It is illegal to disturb traps, but when Shaw couldn't open the trap, he took the dog and the trap to the veterinarian. In cases like that, the person removing the trap probably wouldn't be prosecuted, according to Fish and Game.
A veterinarian had to step on the trap to wrench it open, Shaw said. Immediately, blood spurted from the dog's rear foot.
"Luckily, I didn't get the trap off of his foot at the scene or he might have bled to death," Shaw said.
The injury ended up costing Shaw $130 in vet bills.
Two other dog owners told the Statesman that they had bills for hundreds of dollars from trap injuries.
TRAPPING AS WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
Despite the conflicts, trappers believe they help with wildlife management.
"Trapping plays an important role in maintaining the balance of nature," said Clayton, who has been a trapper for more than 50 years. "It keeps animals from overpopulating."
Clayton defends the tradition as a way to control wildlife populations and pests, such as raccoons, skunks and beavers, in urban areas.
He said that if trappers don't thin out populations for free, taxpayers will have to pay professional animal control officers to get rid of nuisance animals, such as beavers that cut down trees along the Greenbelt or in riverside neighborhoods.
As cruel as some people think traps are, nature is much more cruel, Clayton said. Nature thins animal populations by starvation and disease.
Dogs do get caught in traps, he said, and that's why the Idaho Trappers Association has worked with Fish and Game to offer tips on freeing dogs.
Clayton designed a sign that can be downloaded from the Fish and Game Web site and posted so that recreationists know traps are near.
Although it isn't mandatory, Clayton put up signs when he was trapping in the Owyhee Mountains because he knew chukar hunters would be in the area with their bird dogs.
He said some trappers don't like to use the signs because sometimes traps are damaged or stolen when people know where they are.
One thing trappers and recreationists can agree on: The best way to keep a dog out of a trap is to keep it on a leash.
Clayton said his organization is offering a class for first-time trappers on proper techniques and ethics. It isn't required, but he wants the class to be mandatory for trappers.
"It's not a free-for-all," Clayton said. "Trapping is strictly regulated."
Amos, Bob Shaw's cocker spaniel, had a run-in with a leg-hold trap this winter. In general, it's illegal in Boise city limits and state parks.
Bob Shaw shows the trap that his cocker spaniel stepped in along the Boise River.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Where trapping IS allowed
• On most public lands in the deserts, mountains and forests. For example, the Boise Foothills, small wild areas on the edge of town, in gullies, near the trails around Lucky Peak Reservoir and along the Boise River outside of Boise city limits.
• Upland bird hunters may encounter traps during the fall hunting seasons in places like the Owyhees.
• Trapping is conducted in wilderness areas, too. Michael Koeppen, a hiker from Florence, Mont., who spends a lot of time in the Salmon River Trail wilderness area, said he's seen a dog caught in a leg-hold trap and snares placed across the trail.
Where trapping ISN'T allowed
• In Idaho state parks.
• In Veterans Memorial Park in Boise.
• Within a quarter-mile of the Boise River from the New York Canal Diversion Dam downstream to the Glenwood Bridge.
• Between Idaho 21 and the New York Canal from the New York Canal Diversion Dam downstream to Boise city limits.
• The Stanley Creek Wildlife Interpretive Area in Custer County.
• Yellowstone National Park.
• On any of the portions of state game preserves, state wildlife management areas, bird preserves, bird refuges and bird sanctuaries for which trapping closures have been declared.
• All or portions of national wildlife refuges, except as specified in federal regulations for individual refuges.
More information on trapping
• Idaho Trappers Association, www.idahotrappers.org.
• Idaho Department of Fish and Game, fishandgame.idaho.gov.
How lucrative is trapping?
Fur prices vary with supply and demand, but here are some examples from the Idaho Trappers Association:
• Bobcat: $280, but can range from $465 to $1,100, depending on the quality.
• Coyote: $19 this year; $27 last year.
• Beaver: $23, but can be as high as $65.
• Otter, $50: a drop from $100.
• Muskrat: $4, but can be as high as $7.
• Mink: from $11 to $12.
• Marten: $40, down from $60.
• Fox: $15 to $20.
• Badger: $60.
Where do furs go?
The association says they are mainly shipped to Canada and Russia.
When is trapping season?
Trapping is conducted year-round in Idaho, depending on the animal that trappers are seeking. For example, coyote trapping is allowed all year. The height of the trapping season is from fall through March.
How can you avoid traps?
• Look for posted signs that a trapper might be setting traps in the area.
• Assume that trapping may be occurring in areas where you will find beaver, fox, coyotes and other fur-bearing animals.
• Keep your dog on a leash in areas where you suspect trapping.
What if your dog is caught?
• A dog can be released from a foothold by compressing the trap's spring levers on each side of the closed jaws.
• Your first objective should be to calm the dog. If the dog is overreacting, remove your coat or jacket and place it over the dog. This should help you to calm down the dog so you can remove the trap.
• To remove a snare, pinch the lock that closes it and reverse the lock. Then, slip the lock back up the snare cable. This will open the snare loop.
• Take safety gear: It's a good idea to carry a small first-aid kit, gloves and a multi-tool while hiking or biking to use on yourself or your dog.
