Canadian Association for Humane Trapping
Our Mission: "To promote the humane treatment of wildlife and to minimize avoidable pain and suffering of animals trapped for any reason."
CAHT funds Fur Institute of Canada Pilot Study on Raccoon Cage Traps
Background
In 1983, the FIC established the most advanced trap research and testing program in the world. The FIC’s Trap Research and Development Committee establishes annual work plans and a team of scientists and technicians carry out the bulk of the work at the FIC’s facility at the Alberta Research Council in Vegreville, Alberta. Funding for the trap research program has come from the federal government, the International Fur Trade Federation and other fur trade contributors.
Since the 1997 signing of the Agreement on International Humane Trapping Standards (AIHTS) by Canada, the European Union and Russia, 68 species-specific traps have been found to meet its requirements through the FIC’s trap testing program and are now certified. The AIHTS is an historic breakthrough that is leading to improvements in animal welfare related to trapping and Canada is moving steadily toward implementing major elements of the Standards in 2007. The AIHTS is mandatory and applies to trapping systems used to capture 19 furbearer species, 12 of which are found in Canada.
The AIHTS applies to these trapping systems regardless of the reason animals are trapped – to obtain fur, skin or meat, for pest control, for wildlife management and conservation, or to control diseases such as raccoon rabies. The traps used by humane societies and animal control agencies for nuisance control and by wildlife departments in disease control programs are almost exclusively cage or box traps and there are many designs available on the market.
Cage Trap Project
With a grant from the Canadian Association for Humane Trapping (CAHT), the Fur Institute of Canada (FIC) conducted a pilot field study related to cage/box traps used to capture raccoon. The grant enabled the FIC to undertake this new project while maintaining its priority of evaluating killing and restraining traps.
CAHT is often asked to recommend which of the many cage or box traps available should be used for live capturinganiumals that are creating conflicts with humans. To address this matter, CAHT conducted a special workshop in 2002 where 30 representatives of organizations involved with the use of traps to live capture raccoon and other animals that have been identified as creating a nuisances visually examined 36 cage and box trap models. Using criteria to evaluate the humaneness and other qualities of the traps, the workshop developed subjective opinions on the overall effectiveness of each device, but the scientific basis for evaluating the traps was missing.
At the request of CAHT, the FIC proposed a pilot study to determine scientifically whether it was possible to develop generic characteristics related to the geometric components of the traps.
Using such criteria for evaluating the performance of cage/box traps against the AIHTS requirements may result in significant savings from the estimated $35,000 cost for testing each trap through extensive field trials and data analysis.
CAHT agreed that such a study would further its objective for recommending use of specific cage/box traps, and FIC considered new funds would permit testing of such traps to go forward sooner.
The pilot field study was completed in 2004, and the results are now under review by FIC’s and CAHT’s Trap Research and Development Committees and scientists at Alberta Research Council. The review will determine whether further field testing will be conducted or a different approach to evaluating the effectiveness of cage/box traps will be undertaken.
