Unfiltered Commentary
Trapping Season Opens in Montana
By Kathleen Stachowski, Unfiltered 11-12-07
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You’d have to live under a rock to miss the hoopla surrounding the build-up to hunting season in Montana. This yearly autumn ritual, as visible as the blazing larches, is a seasonal marker for hunters and nonhunters alike. You just can’t miss its bold entrance.
Another season opened in Montana on November 1st, but this one flies under the public radar stealthily, secretly. Furbearer trapping commences on public lands and waterways without fanfare, attracting virtually no notice. How many wildlife-enthusiasts realize that, beginning this day, beaver, otter, muskrat, and mink fall prey to choking snares, crippling foothold traps, and body-crushing Conibear traps? That for some, like beaver, the brutality of the trap ends in subsequent, panicked drowning?
For a few other species—the elusive bobcat, marten, and fisher, the rare wolverine—opening day is December 1st. They, too, will know terror, pain, blood loss, dehydration, and hypothermia as they suffer in traps that frequently don’t kill instantly, whether designed to or not. Some won’t die for days, until the trapper arrives to dispatch them, perhaps by bludgeoning, perhaps by standing on their chests, crushing heart and lungs. Still wonder why trapping prefers to arrive unannounced? Out of sight means out of mind.
But that was then. A new, nonprofit organization has emerged to educate Montanans about the dangers of recreational and commercial trapping on our citizen-owned landscape. Footloose Montana, dedicated to promoting trap-free public lands for people, pets, and wildlife, formed in response to numerous trapped companion dog incidents, some with horrific results. We soon realized, however, that these highly-publicized tragedies were representative of tens of thousands more—tragedies in which Montana’s wildlife suffer hideous fates for the money their fur brings, as little as $3.00 for a weasel’s silky coat.
Footloose Montana is thriving thanks to the diverse member/supporter base we’ve attracted. Although we are a mixed bag of hikers, hunters, canoeists, anglers, skiers, photographers and more, we share the same appreciation for the beauty, wildlife, and recreational bounty of Montana’s taxpayer-funded lands—currently mined with thousands of concealed weapons. Indiscriminate in dealing injury and death, traps intended for fox or beaver also find “non-target” victims like eagles—or your dog.
Furbearer trapping, only loosely regulated by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, is just part of the trapping travesty, however, and simply avoiding your public land during furbearer season is no guarantee of safety. Trapping for nongame species (red fox, for example) and predators (coyote and weasel are two) occurs year-round, unregulated, anywhere, anytime. To address the growing conflicts, Footloose Montana offers Trapped Pet Release Workshops as a public service, teaching citizens how to rescue dogs from traps. While this might bring some peace of mind where our own canine companions are concerned, don’t we owe something to wild animals simply attempting to live their lives on our periphery?
Inflicting intentional pain on sentient beings with callous disregard for suffering has no place in modern Montana, certainly not on land held in common. “Heritage and tradition” are often invoked to defend trapping’s torture—flimsy justification for unvarnished cruelty. Likewise, claims that trapping is necessary for wildlife management stretch credibility; a society professing to value innovation, adaptability, and compassion can surely develop methods to manage and accommodate wildlife that don’t rely on this 19th century anachronism.
Trappers’ associations typically attempt to paint groups like Footloose Montana with a broad brush, insinuating that hunting will come under the same criticism. When you catch a whiff of this red herring, remember that trappers walk away from the thousands of concealed, loaded weapons they scatter across our commons, something no ethical hunter would ever do. Where is the idea of “fair chase” in a baited, hidden trap? Where is the principle of the quick, clean kill, the elimination of suffering? Trapping is not hunting, not by a long shot, and Footloose Montana has no complaint with hunters.
Whether you shoot with a rifle or a camera as you venture out on Montana’s public terrain, whether you tote a fishing, hiking, or ski pole, and especially if accompanied by your best four-legged friend, remember to arm yourself with awareness. And now that the acute anguish of the wild ones suffering in traps is no longer “out of mind,” it’s likely your conscience will tag along, too. We at Footloose Montana see that as a good thing, and invite you to join us in sending an unequivocal message: It’s time for public land trapping to take a hike.
Kathleen Stachowski serves on the Board of Directors for Footloose Montana, www.footloosemontana.org
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Comments
Talk about wandering far from the truth...just check out the MTA's website.
a good trapper does not leave their trap lines set for days on end. it would be senseless because first of all the pelt would be ruined and secondly, contrary to Kathleen's idea, trappers are not actually out to cause as much pain and suffering as possible. that is silly.
i agree that hiking trails in heavy-use areas should looked at more closely to mitigate the danger to pets. it would be a great place to start a dialogue, not a name-calling match. as for the trapping that occurs "year-round, unregulated, anywhere, anytime"; unless you are getting permission to take your dog for a hike on a large private cattle ranch you surely do not have to be afraid of this.
i am not a trapper, but i do know trappers and until then it was easy to listen to propaganda like this column and get fired up. i learned that it is a skill, as much or more than hunting and takes respect and knowledge of your prey.
i do hunt, and fish, and am not worried about those things being taken away. that is not why i am writing this. as a hunter and fisherman i do like being pandered to and used as credibility to futher this cause.
you are a polarizer, Kathleen, reread this paragraph and tell me otherwise:
Inflicting intentional pain on sentient beings with callous disregard for suffering has no place in modern Montana, certainly not on land held in common. “Heritage and tradition” are often invoked to defend trapping’s torture—flimsy justification for unvarnished cruelty. Likewise, claims that trapping is necessary for wildlife management stretch credibility; a society professing to value innovation, adaptability, and compassion can surely develop methods to manage and accommodate wildlife that don’t rely on this 19th century anachronism.
before you jump on this bandwagon, read these comments closely and think about what they are saying. think about where you live. and where you came from if not here. what brought you here, why did you stay? the "truth" is always subjective, Jen and orca, make your decisions informed ones.
And if "a 'good' trapper doesn't leave [his or her] trap lines set for days on end," then why have trappers consistently opposed mandatory check limits? As a hunter, how long would you say is acceptable to leave a wounded animal before killing it?
The dialogue you have called for has been attempted for years,and has been met with stonewalling at every turn -- just ask Gail Gutsche. And if you think unregulated, year-round hunting can occur only on large private cattle ranches, you obviously haven't read the FWP trapping regulations. You should.
John says, “I learned that it is a skill, as much or more than hunting and takes respect and knowledge of your prey.”
Respect? Trapping is a hideously cruel form of killing animals. Anyone that can stomach seeing animals chewing off their own limbs trying to escape traps that did not kill them is missing an important gene, like conscience and shame.
Trappers have fought mandatory trap checks for years. Why? Because they check traps when they feel like it. John is not the only person who knows trappers.
I have a suggestion for those knuckle draggers who oppose Kathleen’s message; EVOLVE!
I must have missed all the projects they're involved in, that include enhancing riparian areas, restoring streams, replanting rangelands etc. They claim to be conservationists, however seem to do nothing bur "ride the coattails" of hunting and fishing organizations that actually give something back to the land.
see, contrary to what you may think about me based on a couple comments here, i am not absolutley opposed to Footloose Montana and its ideas. i am opposed to disrespectful vitriol towards other people and groups because you do not have the same vision of the world we live in. though it may be hard for you to believe, tradition and heritage is a meaningful reason to a lot of people. when you attack that with very a simplistic understanding of the very thing you so vehemently oppose you lose any credibility you may have had. then it is just a fight. and one side "wins" while the other loses, then the two groups become nemeses and enemies. i just isn't productive.
so, orca, here is just one link to a some info about trapping, and yes it includes some stuff about conservation. it was at the top of the Google list. surely you are savvy enough to do your own research about trapping. if you really wanted to learn more and make informed decisions.
http://www.nationaltrappers.com/video/DestoryingtheMyth.wmv
as a hunter and not a trapper (or so you claim), you should know that there are a lot of differences etween hunters and trappers. Hunters are actually out there WITH the animals they intend to kill, they expose themselves to the same kind of environmental conditions as the animals while trappers do their business knowing that the animals they catch in leghold traps may linger there for days and nights, while they lie in the warm bed... The animals that get caught experience pain, sometimes chewing off their limb that is caught in the trap (something that trappers coldly refer to as "wring off"), they are exposed to other predators and sometimes freezing to death... Rare and endagered species are injured and killed in traps... Not too long ago, a wolf was caught in a trap and died as a result of exhaustion after having been lingering in a leghold trap for up to FIVE days! How come? Because the trapper who was out there to catch coyotes, did not check his traps for FIVE days! Trappers are NOT required to check their traps in any specific period of time... So, you still think trappers are as ethical as hunters?
let's get a couple things straight. i do hunt. sometimes "hunters" get bored after long days of nothing to shoot at kill animals for "fun", some hunters take poor shots and mame animals, sometimes they track and find them dead or kill them, sometime the do not. some "trappers" set traps and leave them for days. some "trappers" set lines in areas where people recreate.
i fish - as much as i can. i am a catch release trout fisherman, so maybe i am a "trapper". i foul hook fish. i hook fish in places that surely inflict pain, fish swallow hooks and bleed.
my point? stop glorifying (pandering to) one outdoor sporting group - hunting - because you think you can gain credibilty with other groups. it is lame.
if your problem is with FWP regulations, which it sometimes sounds like, then lobby them to change. and orca - i am not, and never have been arguing that trappers / trapping contribute in some great way to a some sort of conservational motive. you mention a lot of great organizations that have worked in tandem with and brought feuding factions together for a common good. all i have been arguing here is that Footloose Montana is not following those effective models. name calling and black and white misinformation is polarizing. it does not help your cause.
Just what kind of mature, well-directed, psychologically healthy, adult human has the time or would choose to devote the time to slinking through the woods to trap small animals for, let's be honest, the sole purpose of ripping their skins off as souvenirs? I mean really... with all the work to be done in the world and all the ways to make yourself and your family and your community better, what kind of creep spends their time indulging in this kind of maladjusted sadistic fantasy? Moreover, isn't it a pretty clear danger that guys who get their kicks from this kind of activity are really only one small psychiatric step away from becoming violent pedophiles or some other form of perverted predator? To me, it just seems like the lowest form of human behavior imaginable.
You guessed wrong about me on every count, from sexual preference to outdoor experience, including my hunting record, to where I was born, raised, and live; but, a guy like me can't actually get angry with a guy like you. In the first place, it just seems so silly and undignified to place that much importance on your kind. In the second place, you have done me too big a favor by verifying just about everything that I was saying about the kind of maladjusted and emotionally twisted people who would stoop to spend their time and energy trapping little varmints, simply for the thrill of skinning them (take a minute to reread the postings above if you can't remember the full range of what I was saying). Have a nice day.
but i must say, and i'm not condoning that b.s., but can't you all see what becomes of the constant attacks, the name calling, all the bullshit about being deranged and pshycotic and sick to want to something so basic and, yes still legal and acceptable.
hope you all feel real good about yourselves, have fun bickering like teen agers - albeit self-righteous ones. and good luck winning advocates with this kind vitriolic crull.
i can't believe i even checked back on this post. i certainly will not again.
The purpose of allowing comments here is to allow for discussion and we hope we can all respect others' opinions and debate in a civil way here. Thanks to all of you who have approached this thread in that way and do alert someone at NewWest.Net if you see something here again that might violate our terms of service.
Courtney
These impassioned attacks on trappers are representative of the non-Montana value system that seems to be pervading our fine state these days. We used to give people the benefit of the doubt. We used to live and let live. We used to think things through before we attacked others (in this case, rational thought invariably leads to a similarity among trappers and lab-rat scientists, livestock producers, hunters, leather producers, and all the others who exploit animal products for their own uses). If evolving entails abandoning an accommodating and open-minded nature, I guess I'm happy to keep my brow ridge.
Like PETA, Footloose Montana sounds like a good idea, but will more than likely be staffed by people like Kathleen who have no desire to understand others or be rational, only to indulge blind emotion. I think it's no coincidence that all the anti-trappers are women (prone to emotional outburts) and those either in support or at least neutral are men (geared toward logical analysis).
And here's the crux, folks: trapping provides a nice buffer, as it gives the animal-rights folks a bigger, nastier target. As long as there are trappers out there for people like Kathleen and Barbara to demonize, we hunters should be okay to do as we please.
"...it's no coincidence that all the anti-trappers are women (prone to emotional outburts) and those either in support or at least neutral are men (geared toward logical analysis)."
What century is this?
No wonder you think trapping is "indelible." Damn skippy. Them wimmen folk oughtn't be sticken they pretty lil heads whar they don't belong!
In the first place, your statement maligns women with such a broad brush that it leaves me amazed that you are allowed to roam around without an ankle bracelet. It is so skewed, immature, and prejudicial that it really can't be defended (I'm not sure that such a statement could have been defended a couple of hundred years ago).
In the second place, it isn't even correct on the basics. I am a male hunter from Montana with advanced degrees in engineering (I have a good reputation for and have made what most would consider multiple fortunes by being "geared toward logical analysis.") and I think trapping is ridiculous, grotesque, and gives every other form of outdoor activity a bad name. Weren't you paying any attention at all to what was being posted above?
In the third place and at the risk of repeating myself, you have, through your boorishly sexist and silly comments, just joined EJ in verifying just about everything that I have been saying about the kind of people who would stoop to spend their time and energy trapping little varmints, simply for the thrill of skinning them. Where is your head?
On the other hand, I would be remiss if I didn't also point out that it seems you may be painting trappers with a very similar brush.
The one thing I actually have a strong opinion to write about after reading this thread is: insinuating that all trappers are one step away from being violent pedophiles or that all women are "prone to emotional outbursts" are just different forms of stereotyping and baiting. And, either in any form is never a good way to look at an issue or be part of a conversation.
Short of a spewing any "can't we all just get along" crap, I guess I I would ask -- again -- in this thread -- and really all threads here that you all take your own advice: Be more open minded and instead of just the standard play of: stereotype, attack, react -- try something else.
You're both asking each other, in a sense, to be more open-minded. Yet in the same post, you're assuming a lot about one another without listening or really saying anything about the issue at hand. Mike England, you ask for open-mindedness and then dismiss anti-trappers as overly emotional women with no ability for logic. Not very open minded of you ...
And, I think in this thread, we have proof that it's not just women who are prone to emotional outbursts and not just men who have a knack for thinking logically. See, the thing about stereotypes is that they're usually not very right.
My $.02. Carry on.
would you please contact me at ?
I would like to talk with you about your trap experiences... Thanks!
Trappers contribute to wildlife management and habitat through the purchase of their mandatory Conservation License (MT) and through their purchase of the General Trapping License. These funds are used by FWP and other wildlife agencies to acquire critical wildlife habitat and fund furbearer track surveys and radio tracking. Trappers also promote furbearer management by providing their harvest numbers to FWP so mangement decisions and population trends can be made. Additionally, most trappers are involved in conservation and sporting groups. I am a trapper, and I am a member of the local Montana Wildlife Federation chapter (works on habitat acquisition and conservation of wildlife), Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Obviously I, as a trapper, contribute greatly to wildlife management and conservation through these organizations.
Most legal and responsible trapping does not cause undue suffering or pain to the target animal. The conibear traps I use for pine marten kill in minutes. A beaver in a drowning set will die in minutes. In most forms of trapping, there is minimal suffering of the animal. Also, the trapper’s objective is to insure a quick, clean kill because this keeps the pelt undamaged and the trap set reusable.
Trapping is ARGUABLY a form of hunting. Hunting is defined in Hunter Education courses as “the pursuit or search for game”. The trapper is most definitely “pursuing game” with his traps. Therefore, it makes no sense when hunters claim they are opposed to trapping. Trapping, fishing, and hunting are one and the same. Is trying to bring in a fox to a set with lure any different than trying to entice a whitetail buck to you by rattling? The only difference is the means of kill.
Trappers are no different than loggers or miners bcause these avtivities utilize public RENEWABLE resources to make a profit. How is selling an animal pelt any different than cutting some trees for lumber? Harvest of these resources is and should be permitted as long as the harvest is sustainable.
A 24 hour trap check would be unfair to many trappers. As a marten trapper I run 20+ mile long ski lines a fair distance from home. It would be impossible for me and other longliners to check traps every day. The marten I catch die almost instantly in conibears, and are well-preserved and undamaged when I retrieve them. There is no reason for a 24 hour trap check for many forms of trapping. Given that foothold trappers, large body-gripping trappers, and snarers probably should check their sets every other day because of the exposure and nature of their traps.
There is a mandatory trap setback from trails, roads, and dwellings in MT. I am surprised Idaho Fish and Game doesn't have similar regs. These traps yopu found on the trail shouldn't have been there and weren't the products of a responsible trapper. If Idaho doesn't have setback laws, you should push for them because they minimize conflict, and punish rogue trappers.