SNARES
Snares have been used for thousands of years to trap animals. A fairly simple but inherently cruel design, snares are essentially a loop set along a trail or suspended from a branch or small tree which catches an animal by the neck or leg as they walk into it. As the animal continues to move forward or struggles to get free, the loop pulls tight. If the snare is strong enough (so doesn’t snap) or can’t be dragged away, the animal will suffocate, their neck will dislocate, or they will be held where they were caught and then beaten to death or shot.
Snares are banned in most European countries, but free-running snares are still legal in England and Northern Ireland. Wales passed a ban in summer 2023, and in March 2024 the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill was passed into law in March 2024 making it “an offence to use a snare to trap a wild animal, or in any way that is likely to injure a wild animal”.
Foxes, rabbits, and Brown Hares are allowed to be caught as so-called ‘target animals’ (note that Scotland already had a closed season for killing Brown Hare from 1st Feb – 30th Sept).
The use of snares is covered by a Code of Practice, but otherwise snaring is subject to lawful restrictions under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 which makes it an offence to set in position any trap or snare which is intended to cause bodily injury to any wild animal or to use a trap or snare for the purpose of killing such a wild animal included in Schedule 6 of the 1981 Act – ie so-called ‘non-target’ protected species like Badger, Otter, Red Squirrel, Hedgehog, Pine Marten and Polecat. The snaring of any protected species is not permitted unless that person has been issued a specific licence under section 16 of the 1981 Act.
This also means that snares must NOT be set near rivers used by Otters or near Badger setts (or along runs used by Badgers near setts).
In 2014 a poll found that 77% of the British public thought that snares should be illegal (Ipsos MORI, 2014), and in 2015 68% of MPs also supported a ban.
In 2016 a Care2 petition, ‘Tell Scottish Government to Ban Fox Snares‘, attracted nearly 270,000 signatures.
In late 2019, Revive – the coalition for grouse moor reform – published a damning report called ‘Untold Suffering’ which documented ‘the extent to which animals are being killed and subjected to negative welfare impacts to ensure grouse stocks are kept artificially high to be shot for entertainment’.
In 2022 Animal Aid secured a government debate after its petition to ban the manufacture, use, and sale of snares secured over 100,000 signatures. Protect the Wild attended and described it as a “debate in name only” as Westminster's shooting supporters appeared to have little interest in following their devolved counterparts, but a shift in momentum towards a ban was still clear.
In January 2023 the Welsh Senned announced it was carrying forwards a plan to prohibit the use of snares (they had previously come close to banning snares in 2017 but caved into shooting industry pressure and opted instead for further reviews and assurances that snares would be used 'legally from now on').
In April 2023 OneKind released SnareWatch Annual Report 2022: Case studies of snare use in the UK, which highlighted some of the worst snaring, or suspected snaring, incidents in the UK during 2022.
In June 2023 the Welsh Senned voted overwhelmingly to ban snare use, making it the first country in the UK to fully ban snares.
In August 2023 the Scottish Government began a six week online consultation on banning snares, saying that "Snares can cause significant injury, prolonged suffering and death to wildlife".
In mid-November 2023 Scotland's Environment Minister confirmed that a FULL BAN on the use of snares would be included in the upcoming Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill.
Scotland announces a ban on snares as part of the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act, with a date for the legislation to come into force still to be announced.
Scotland's ban on snare use in finally came into force on 25 November. Bob Elliot of Scottish charity OneKind said “Today is a historic day for Scotland. After decades of campaigning for a ban, we are thrilled that from today the use of snares is now illegal."
England bans snares at long last...
Stink pits
Snares and the Law
Snares Petition
Protect the Wild wants a full ban on snares
Now that we know about snares, we need to talk to family and friends about them.
- Explain that snares are banned across most of Europe but are still allowed in parts of the UK because the shooting industry wants them
- Explain that the shooting industry is partly responsible for creating ‘the problem’ they claim needs ‘managing’ with snares. The industry actually supports predator populations by releasing millions of birds in to the countryside every year.
- That the so-called ‘welfare considerations’ put in place by the shooting industry don’t reflect real-life scenarios and certainly not how wild animals behave when they’re caught in traps.
