To get to the trail, they had to pass a large interpretive sign with big block letters that proclaimed this spot to be “A Haven for Wildlife.”

They hadn’t gone a quarter-mile when Panusz heard a loud snap followed by a gurgling, strangled kind of noise. His dog, Cupcake, had disappeared over the creek’s bank just a few feet away. He covered the distance in seconds.

Panusz wasn’t prepared for the sight that met him there.

His dog was caught in a Conibear trap. Its steel jaws were wrapped around the dog’s neck. Cupcake was choking.

Panusz jumped into the ice-cold creek and frantically tried to pry the trap off his dog’s neck while screaming for help.

Help never came.

His dog died in his arms.

“I remember a lot of the scenes very vividly in my mind,” Panusz said, while sitting on a log near the spot his dog died. “It’s not necessarily an easy thing. We don’t have children. To us, these two dogs are like our children. And now one is gone.”

It turns out the trap was set illegally. On public lands, trappers are required to set Conibear traps either inside an enclosure with a hole small enough to protect most dogs or in the water.

The 80-year-old trapper was cited for his failure to do that.

Those regulations were established to help trappers avoid conflicts with pet owners.

We think trappers need to do more than just follow the letter of the law.

In this day and age, when most folks using the outdoors find the notion of trapping repugnant, those who still want to participate in the venture need to be ever more careful to avoid killing people’s pets.

One way to do that is to steer clear of areas where pet lovers congregate to walk their dogs.

This last winter, a trapper apparently decided to set his string in the popular Larry Creek area in the Bitterroot Valley. To his or her credit, the trapper set signs up letting people know there were traps in the area.

The Forest Service attempted to track the trapper down to find out more about the operation. We’re not sure if that ever happened.

The warning signs created their own bit of hysteria for dog owners looking for a place to exercise their pets.

Trapping furbearing animals has been part of Montana’s heritage for longer than anyone alive can remember. It wasn’t that long ago men scratched out a living trapping the sparsely settled landscape.

It was a different world back then.

There are a lot more people now and they show up in the most surprising places.

We’re not advocating an end to trapping. In Montana, there are close to 3,000 people who buy licenses to trap every year. Trapping is close to a $3 million-a-year industry.

But we do think a little bit of common sense could go a long way in alleviating some of the heartache that occurs when someone loses their pet to a trap.

Trappers need to search for those out of the way places where people don’t often go. Or they should find private land where the general public isn’t allowed to venture. And at all costs, they should avoid setting traps near popular public trailheads or other places where there’s sure to be people and their pets.

If trappers don’t do at least that, then the days of trapping in this state are certainly numbered.

---

Reader's Comments >>

Name:

Email: (optional)

Comments:

Image Verification: (Case sensitive)   

boberto wrote on Aug 27, 2008 11:44 PM:

" As soon as you relinquish the reigns of your pet, all bets are off. You people talk about your pets being like your children. Treat them as such. Protect them as such. Would you let your child wander off unprotected? "

ToEachHisOwn wrote on May 15, 2008 9:54 AM:

" First off, I will say that the dog's death was sad, that much is true.

Second, those of you that wish to see trapping banned altogether, how would you like to have your lifestyle, pasttime, or hobby made illegal?

Would it be alright to do so because the opinions of a few somehow seem to encompass the moral majority? Such a thing has happened here in the past, if in doubt, look at the timber industry.

Trapping has been a part of this state for a long time. If you must frown upon it, fine, just don't try and a change tradition simply because it isn't one of your own. Land development seems to be a tradition here now, how many try to slow it down or stop it? "

Animal Lover wrote on May 13, 2008 4:10 PM:

" Thanks for mentioning the website. I am now a member at FootlooseMontana.Org

To others who wish to make a difference or just become more informed, please take a look at this site. There is a wealth of information on all sides of this issue And Maps.

Until the laws can be changed, the life you save may be a treasured member of your own family! And you can report what you see or experience in the woods because of Trappers. Thanks! "

Dogs Best Friend wrote on May 13, 2008 3:50 PM:

" Yes, a leash is essential if you own a dog. However, everyone knows there is great enjoyment in letting them run free for a time out in the open away from other people and pets. And that should not pose a fatal threat on public lands. THERE IS NO DEFENSE FOR TRAPPING TO EXIST ANYMORE PERIOD DONE, Private or Public Land. Please support the efforts in Montana to eliminate all trapping, here and in other States.

And "Mans best friend" keep the profanity out of this forum. You are just displaying the Redneck Character of Trappers! "

HalfaMadman wrote on May 13, 2008 1:28 PM:

" We accept that human beings, for the first 7 yrs or so,(Catholic Church says 7, Mormon's 8, I believe), are not capable of making moral decisions. Accepting that fact, you can accept that some humans just quit evolving and are not capable of moral reasoning, which makes them incapable of worrying about their prey's suffering. Hence, these "despicable people" continue to trap. "

Anja Heister wrote on May 13, 2008 12:33 PM:

" Thank you Ravalli Republic for your article on trapping and the tragedies involved in this tradition of brutally killing wild animals. Scientific trap research has shown that the level of pain and suffering experienced by animals in traps, whether these are domestic animals, companion animals, endangered animals or the targeted furbearing wild animals, is significant. If trappers did to our companion animals what they do to wild animals they would be charged with animal cruelty. Does a bobcat just going about her business in the woods deserve to be bludgeoned to death, or strangulate in a snare or getting killed by standing on the chest to crush inner organs? I dont think so. Footloose Montana is determined to end trapping on our public lands. Other states have banned trapping and we can do it too! Please support Footloose Montana! "

Sugarbear wrote on May 13, 2008 11:36 AM:

" Trapping must stop, it is man showing the worst in him/her of cruelty. The new west will not continue to be silent or tolerant of this egregious behavior towards animals. "

Mans best friend wrote on May 13, 2008 10:48 AM:

" Friends don't let friends run loose. Buy a damn leash and use it! "

Madman wrote on May 12, 2008 11:17 PM:

" Indeed, the days of trapping are numbered. There are many of us, organized and just as steeled as these animal abusers ready to take the fight to the courts, get the laws changed and then these despicable people can just shut their traps for good! Go make an honorable living for God's Sake! "

---