I am starting this petition because TWO of my dad's dogs got caught and killed in snare traps. My goal is to ban these inhumane traps in Richmond County, and hopefully the state of VA so it doesn't happen to anyone else's pet.

A snare is a simple anchored noose which is positioned on an animal track where an animal will walk into it and become trapped by the neck, abdomen, or leg. Snares are generally made of steel cable and have a locking device, which prevents the snare from loosening after the animal is captured. As a result, the harder the animal fights the snare, the tighter the locking device closes. If caught around the neck, it takes anywhere from 30 seconds to minutes for a dog to go unconscious resulting in a painful death. Snare traps are extremely hard to get off an animal and often require cable cutters to free them. If the animal is lucky enough to not get caught around the neck the trap still severally injures/wounds them resulting in a trip to the vet leading to surgery and amputation of limbs. Snares do not discriminate between the individuals within a target species so often they will capture foxes, deer, rabbits, dogs, and cats.

Read these three facts, confirmed by academics Centre for Animal Welfare and Anthrozoology at Cambridge University:

1 - Snare traps are not humane, nor do they operate as such. This applies for both traps designed to kill, and traps designed to immobilize.
2 - Snare traps are basic, primitive traps that can and do go wrong, and often catch animals that you don’t want to catch. The result is suffering, pain, and almost certain death to household pets and wild animals alike.
3 - Although not marketed as a kill-trap, snare traps have a much higher morbidity rate than other traps designed to capture and not kill, including live cage traps.

With enough signatures I hope to have snare traps banned within Richmond County and the surrounding areas. Please sign and share this petition, let's put an end to this animal abuse. Thank you for your time.