Snares: Indiscriminate and terribly cruel
Animal Aid is campaigning for a ban on the manufacture, sale, possession and use of snares. The governments of Wales and Scotland have both banned them and we are campaigning to have them banned in England as well.
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What is a snare and what are they for?
A snare is a thin, wire noose, which is ‘set’ in order to catch certain animals – by the leg or the neck – because they are accused of killing pheasants and partridges (who are destined to be shot for ‘sport’), or damaging crops.
There are two types – one is illegal. The other is legal, but can easily fail to work properly.
Snares should be checked once a day. Snared animals should be released if they are not the ‘target’ species and the animal is unharmed. If the animal is a target species, they will be killed.
Defra’s own figures stated that almost 70% of animals caught in snares were non-target. This could, and has, included badgers, pet dogs, pet cats, sheep and lambs.
Do snares cause injury to animals?
Trapped animals will panic and will struggle to get free. Being trapped in a wire noose, the wire can cut into the animal’s flesh, and depending on how long they are trapped and how much they struggle, the snare can cut into, and damage, muscle, deeper tissues and bone. Animals have even been known to try to chew off their own limbs to escape. Their pain and distress is unimaginable.
Even if an animal ‘freezes’ immobile and does not move once caught, this is not necessarily good. There is a condition called ‘tonic immobility’ which occurs when animals are extremely stressed. This condition has been described in humans who have been attacked.
If the animal is found quickly and released straight away, surely that is OK?
Sadly, evidence shows that snares can be set and then not checked for days, if ever. Snares are supposed to be checked at least once a day. Â Animals have been found, dead or dying, in snares and the evidence is that they have been there for more than 24 hours. This can lead animals to die of thirst, starvation, be eaten by predators, unable to escape or die of exposure. All of these are unacceptably prolonged, inhumane and terrible ways to die. It is also possible that lactating mothers can be caught, which means their babies would die of starvation, without her.
In addition to the fact that snares can be overlooked, forgotten, and a myriad of other reasons why they might not be regularly checked, it is extremely difficult to assess the health and welfare of an extremely stressed and frightened wild animal. It is possible that the animal could have internal injuries, may have broken their teeth trying to escape – making feeding or catching prey difficult, if not impossible. This is really only an assessment that can be made by a veterinary surgeon. It is therefore possible that fatally injured animals can be released to die a slow death.
There is also a condition called ‘exertional myopathy’ whereby animals can become so panicked and exert themselves so much that they can die days or even weeks after being released. This is an unacceptable way to treat animals.
What does the Code of Practice state?
The Code of Practice states that snares should never be set:
- Under or near fences or other obstructions, like saplings, hedges, walls or gates that could cause entanglement.
- Where livestock could be caught.
- On or near to an active badger sett, or on the runs radiating from it.
- In such a way that the restrained animal could become fully or partially suspended, entangled, drowned or strangled.
- If forecasted weather conditions are likely to cause poor welfare or prevent daily inspection. Excess heat as well as cold/wind/rain/snow, etc. must be considered.
As our video shows, the Code of Practice is a failure. Animals are dying terribly protracted and gruesome deaths.
Why haven’t snares been banned in England?
A very good question, especially because the Government of Wales banned them in 2023, and the Government of Scotland banned them in 2024!
Animal Aid, along with many other groups and organisations, is campaigning to get them banned in England. The Labour Government has promised to ban snares, so we are working hard to ensure this happens as soon as possible – for the sake of all animals who are at risk of getting caught in these cruel and archaic devices.
Where can I find out more?
Read the 2022 report by Professor Stephen Harris on snares
Find out more about different types of snares with the NASC
Hunt Investigation Team provide more examples of breaches of the Code of Practice
Read OneKind’s Snarewatch 2022 Annual Report