Search Trapping Incidents Database

FARMINGTON, NM – The owners of a female husky named Twilight had walked the Glade recreation area for fifteen years before the trapping incident occurred. A new trail was created the summer before, in 2020. Twilight was caught in a trap placed underneath a tree and baited with a cat carcass and dead bird. This trap was less than 20 yards from a heavily used road. Another husky named Ivy was caught in a trap close to this location in November 2020. Luckily, Twilight’s owners were able to be free her with minimal injuries.

GUNSIGHT MOUNTAIN, AK – A 13-year-old was returning from a hunting trip on skis with his dog, Lola, near Gunsight Mountain off the Glenn Highway in Alaska. Just 50 yards from the parking lot, Lola, a 4-year-old husky mix, started acting anxious and darted off the trail. Shortly after, Lola began yelping. The 13-year-old and his mother attempted to free Lola from the body-crushing Conibear trap, but knew their time was limited. Despite years of experience trapping and hunting themselves, they weren’t able to release Lola’s neck from the heavy trap. A person passing by on a snowmobile eventually helped them release the trap from Lola’s neck, but at that point, she was already dead. Following the experience, the owner stated: “Had we been able to release her from the trap, I’m not sure that she would have survived. I believe her neck was broken by the time we got there.” The owners said that they were surprised to learn trapping so close to trailheads — with a trap designed to kill its targets — is 100% legal.

SAN ANTONIO (WOAI) – A dog found by a good Samaritan who had gnawed off her leg after getting caught in a coyote trap has recovered and is now looking for her forever home. Shelby, a sweet 1-year-old Shepherd mix girl was brought to the San Antonio Humane Society (SAHS) on March 22 in very bad shape. The good Samaritan first saw her on March 19 with her leg stuck in the trap but she ran off before he could help her. He saw her again three days later, but by this time, she had gnawed off her leg in order to free herself from the trap. Shelby’s entire body was covered in lacerations, including a few deep cuts in her armpit and inside her ears, possibly from fighting with either another dog or coyote. Her legs were swollen and her wounds were becoming infected.

BERKS COUNTY, PA – A cat was caught in a leghold trap and lost two toes as a result. The cat was found dragging the trap around before he/she was released.

FAIRHAVEN, Mass. (WWLP) – The Massachusetts Environmental Police had to put down a coyote in a neighborhood in Fairhaven Sunday after they found it with a leghold trap attached to its leg. According to Environmental Police, the trapping of coyotes is legal during the open trapping season in Massachusetts but the use of leghold traps is strictly prohibited. Officers tracked the animal and located it several miles from where it was originally reported. Due to the animal’s significant injuries sustained from the leghold trap, the coyote was put down.

MEKINOCK, N.D. (Valley News Live) -North Dakota Game and Fish is investigating tonight after a family’s hunting dog was killed in a snare trap. The dog went missing over the weekend and was found late yesterday afternoon near the family’s home in Mekinock. A smiling yellow lab, a great hunter and a family member–that’s the way loved ones remember Lucy. A family friend states that he got a call Saturday night saying Lucy left the house and never came back. After searching the family’s 16 acres, they found Lucy a day later less than 200 yards from their home. A trapper had recently set a snare on the Turtle River, which runs through the family’s property. Lucy was found caught in it and did not survive.

CLALLAM COUNTY, WA — A Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) officer rescued an illegally trapped bald eagle in Clallam County and set them free. WDFW says they received a call in November of a person’s dog that became trapped in a steel-jawed leghold trap. The owners were able to rescue their dog, but called to report that a bald eagle was stuck in another trap nearby. An officer arrived shortly after and found the eagle, immobilized them, and released them from the trap. According to WDFW, the eagle had no injuries. WDFW officers seized additional illegal traps from the area, and an investigation led them to a suspect living in the area, who admitted to setting up the traps, which included steel-jawed traps and wire snares to capture and kill two coyotes.

TETONIA, ID – Sugar was trapped and killed by an illegally set Conibear type trap in Tetonia, Idaho. She was a beautiful 10-month-old King Shepherd. The owner’s husband took Sugar out for a walk at the Tetonia Rodeo Grounds, a popular area for walking dogs and cross country skiing. The Conibear trap was set on public land near walking areas. The owner’s husband desperately tried to free Sugar, but could not release the trap from around her neck. The owners’ neighbor, who teaches hunting safety courses, went back with the owners to recover Sugar’s body. Together, these two men could not free her, so they had to cut the red nylon rope tie-down and carried her body to his garage where he had to use two vises to finally remove the trap. There were no ID tags on the traps and no trapping permits issued in the area. Fish and Game found an empty can of Spam used to bait the three illegal traps. The incident is currently under investigation by Idaho Fish and Game Department.

BUFORD, WY – A couple’s dog was trapped by a snare at the Medicine Bow National Forest, Wyoming, near a popular campground and climbing area. They parked along the Middle Crow Creek in Vedauvoo to ice skate in the area. They had pulled off the road at Middle Crow Creek, east of the road, right at a well-traveled parking spot to skate around on the ice. Their dog was caught right in the bushes on the north edge of the creek almost as soon as they arrived. It may have been 30-40 feet from the road. The snare caught his two front paws. They were able to release him without injury. A warden investigated the traps after the incident; apparently, there were still snares in the area when the couple left, but the snares were all set legally. This was the third trapping incident in Vedauwoo Recreational area this winter season.