Should the state allow licensed trappers to use body-grip traps during the regulated trapping season?

Wakefield resident, longtime licensed trapper

I have been trapping since the age of 14. Now 66, I have been a professional hunter and trapper for more than 30 years. I have also been an instructor for 25 years — working with the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the Northeast Section of the Wildlife Society — in training trappers, biologists, and game wardens.

Looking back through all my years of fur trapping, it’s hard to believe that beaver, once thought a beautiful natural renewable resource, would now be considered one of the most unwanted, damage-causing rodents in the state.

Before the ban on body-grip traps was adopted in 1996, trappers had the necessary tools to control the beaver population during regulated trapping season, so it was manageable. Even though select areas had some overpopulation, after the ban, the problem became statewide. The restrictions placed on our tools did nothing to help wildlife, but only caused it to become a wasted valuable natural resource.

What was once a “free” service, through a regulated trapping season, has now become a year-round expensive and time-consuming battle for homeowners, towns, and businesses trying to contain the damage and overpopulation.

No plan, regulation, or tool is 100 percent foolproof. We would not ban pedestrians from crossing busy intersections because a person might be struck by a vehicle. Instead, we learn and implement regulations and methods to make crossings safer.

The same analogy goes for modern day trapping. Studies have shown that in the hands of a properly trained trapper following best management practices, body-grip traps are very safe and efficient. We need to use this science and modify the existing law to allow for controlled use of body-gripping traps during the regulated trapping season.

I believe that the Division of Fisheries & Wildlife should have full control of any wildlife issues. They are the ones that have been educated in this field. Their decisions are made on documented facts and not emotional feelings. When you have the combined knowledge of our wildlife biologists and trained hunters and trappers, it is a hard team to beat.

NO

Michael Keiley

Newbury resident, director of the Noble Family Animal Care & Adoption Center at the MSPCA’s Nevins Farm, Methuen

Allowing these cruel and indiscriminate traps to be used for recreational trapping is inhumane and unnecessary.

Animals mutilate themselves; suffer from lacerations, severed tendons, ligaments, and limbs; and can die after suffering in these traps. This happens not just to the wild animals these cruel devices are intended for, but also to non-target wildlife and pets.

Just this month, a cat in Westport was found ensnared in an illegal leghold trap; Holly, a dog, lost a leg to an illegally set “padded” leghold trap after she spent weeks running loose in Barre with the trap on her leg. There are many similar incidents. If animals are caught when traps are set illegally, I fear what will happen if body-gripping traps become legal for recreational trapping.

The current law strikes the right balance by restricting body-gripping traps, but allowing them in certain circumstances, such as for public health and safety threats. The state already allows a recreational trapping season for beaver (during which box and cage traps can be used).

Our wildlife populations aren’t “managed” by trapping. According to the state’s own estimates, beaver populations were growing before traps were restricted. With around 100 trappers in our state, reliance on trapping is flawed and impractical. In fact, data suggests trapped populations respond to lethal management with higher birth rates.

Fortunately, alternatives exist. It is possible to out-smart damming beavers by using water flow devices, which maintain enough water to allow territorial beavers to remain but keep the water level low. Unlike trapping, these devices are cost-effective, long-lasting, and humane. Steps to prevent conflicts with coyotes and other animals are also widely available and simple, making any push for leghold traps unreasonable and dangerous.

Body-gripping traps are cruel, have not been made any less cruel over the years, and have no place being used in Massachusetts for sport. When the law restricting these traps passed with 64 percent of the vote, the public spoke clearly: these traps should only be used in limited circumstances. Since then, our society has become more aware of the suffering of animals and I believe that today, even more people don’t want animals suffering unnecessarily.

Globe correspondent John Laidler solicited opinions for this exchange. He can be reached at laidler@globe.com.