An animal rights organization is pressuring the city of Port Coquitlam to ban leg-hold traps after a skunk that got caught in one of the devices died in a residential area.
The Association for the Protection of Fur Bearing Animals said leg-hold traps should not be used, particularly in urban environments where domestic pets and children are put in danger. Lesley Fox, a spokesperson for the organization, said PoCo should take steps to ban the devices.
"People have a high intolerance for these types of traps, especially in urban areas," she said. "They just don't belong."
Two weeks ago, a wounded skunk wandered into PoCo resident Robert Belyk's backyard with a trap still attached to its leg. Langley's Critter Care Wildlife Society took the animal away but its injuries were severe and the animal was euthanized.
Fox said it is becoming an increasingly common occurrence to see leg-hold traps in neighbourhoods and municipalities need to do more to stop trappers. Surrey is currently considering a ban and Sechelt recently implemented a bylaw prohibiting the use of the devices.
"We have to move to a more sustainable and non-lethal model," she said. "We are campaigning to prohibit the use of body gripping traps."
Her organization is also offering a $1,200 reward for anyone with information that could identify the person who set the trap that caught the skunk in PoCo.
Dan Scoones, the city's manager of bylaw services, said he was surprised to hear about a leg-hold trap being used within the municipality. He has received several emails from concerned residents and said staff are researching what a potential ban would entail.
But there are several issues that the city needs to consider before a bylaw can be passed. Enforcement and investigation are a concern and Scoones said that it would be difficult to locate the traps once they are set, particularly on private property.
Likely, the city would have to use a fine or some type of deterrence to punish trappers after an incident occurred, he added.
There is also some jurisdictional overlap with the provincial government, which oversees hunting and trapping, but Scoones said the city has the ability to prohibit leg-hold devices.
"There is enough authority in the animal control welfare sphere that we could deal with this," he said. "It poses a risk to domestic animals."
It is not just residents who would be affected by a potential trapping ban. The city uses traps to catch beavers in order to prevent flooding or property damage the animals can cause. Scoones said the city's own trapping needs would have to be considered before a ban is implemented.
(When trapping becomes necessary, the work is contracted out. Traps are submerged under water and, according to the city website, do not pose any risk to children or pets.)
"Any bylaw the city passes is binding to the city unless we exempt ourselves," he said. "I can't really comment on those matters... Somebody in engineering will have to give some thought to that."
Scoones said he will be preparing a report for the city's community safety committee, which will hold its next meeting in September.
