Conservationist calls for a ban on snares in Wales

A dedicated conservationist who runs an animal rescue centre in West Wales has described the “horrific” cruelty inflicted on animals by people laying snares in the Welsh countryside.

Snares are thin wire nooses laid by gamekeepers and farmers to trap animals they want to kill.

These could be predators like foxes, but often they are other animals such as badgers, deer, or even pet cats and dogs.

The conservationist, who wishes to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the subject, said: “Many people are very surprised that such a brutal way of trapping animals is still allowed, but it is.

“How on earth can the barbaric act of snaring continue to take place in a civilised society?”

He described a recent incident when a female badger was brought to his rescue centre with a snare snare wrapped tightly around its waist – so tight it could hardly be seen.

He said: “It’s so awful when yet another snared animal is brought into us with the snare buried in the skin. Sometimes they must have been thrashing around for days trying to escape.

It’s horrific.”

Staff at the centre cut the badger free and took her to a vet for treatment. The snare had cut into the flesh of the chest, but there was hope that with antibiotics and pain killers she would survive.

The badger was taken back to the animal rescue centre and monitored via a night camera.

Initially she appeared to be recovering but after a few days it was apparent all was not right and the animal was deteriorating. Sadly, the only option was the for the vet to put her down.

The conservationist continued: “Snares are banned in most countries in Europe. This incident, which is one of many we’ve sadly dealt with, shows the brutality of snaring and why it should be banned.”

He has joined calls from leading animal welfare charity the League Against Cruel Sports for snares to be banned in Wales.

According to figures released by Defra, in Wales there are up to 51,000 snares lying hidden in the countryside at any one time.

They are used extensively on ‘game’ bird shoots to trap any animal that gamekeepers say threaten their pheasants and partridges, which are solely bred to be shot for ‘sport’.

Many of its victims will suffocate or endure horrific injuries in their struggle to escape.

A UK Government survey in 2012 found that three quarters of animals caught, killed, or wounded in snares included animals such as badgers, hares, deer, otters and family cats and dogs – so not the intended targets.

Polling commissioned by the League and undertaken by YouGov in January this year found 78 per cent of the Welsh public want snares to be made illegal.

Bethan Collins, senior public affairs officer for Wales, at the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “The indiscriminate nature of snares and the suffering they cause to animals is horrendous.

“Wales has an opportunity to lead the way in the UK by introducing laws that eliminate rather than regulate animal cruelty. We need a comprehensive ban on snares in Wales; one that prohibits their manufacture, possession, sale, and use. This is the only way to truly tackle the suffering they cause.”