More Trapper Trouble in BC: A Lost Dog, a Petition and Respect for Trapping
With a 10-day forecast all above zero, trapping is wrapping up for most of us up north. Next for me is ice fishing, then spring beaver.
In January, a husky named Moon was killed in a baited conibear trap near a forest service road in the East Kootenay. That's terrible. I've owned dogs, and my heart goes out to that family. Afterward, the owners started a petition for what they called Moon's Law, asking for stricter rules like visible signage, setbacks from roads and trails, trap IDs, buffers near recreation areas and reporting of non-target catches. It spread fast online and in the news.
From what's been reported, the trap was set legally on a registered trapline, and there was a trapline sign, though the owner said it was partly hidden by branches. I don't know the trapper, but I guarantee he feels awful. Every trapper I know does their very best to avoid non-target catches, and pets are the last thing any of us would ever want to catch. My worry is politicians making knee-jerk changes for votes.
Those 330s are deadly. A buddy of mine had one spring go off on his gloved hand, and I'm surprised it didn't break it. We trap deep in the bush where pets are very unlikely, and if I thought there was a chance of catching someone's dog, I wouldn't trap there, or I'd have proper signage.
Trappers as stewards
Trappers get painted badly by people who never learn what we actually do. Nature has its own balance, like the lynx and snowshoe hare cycle, and trappers can help manage it. Trapping is a renewable resource: take a marten out and in two years there's another one there. Take a forest out and it can be 40 to 80 years before it comes back. For decades, clearcuts wiped out trapping areas, then glyphosate, the pine beetle and fires piled on.
Every trapper I know respects the animal and is grateful for it. I'm not sure showing dispatching online helps us. Shows like Mountain Men have helped people see what this life really is.
What's next
Spring beaver, using the whole animal, a lot of trail cutting with the Argo, and exploring some hard-to-reach lakes I've always wondered about. I'll bring you along on Lyman's Wild Ways.
New episodes drop every Tuesday on the Wild Ways Podcast. Want the story from the trapline every week? The Trapline Report is one email a week from the bush.
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