CASPER, Wyo. (AP) - The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is holding a series of meetings on possibly changing the state’s rules for trapping animals.
Potential changes include requiring traps to be located away from trails and that signs be posted to tell people where traps are located.
The public will get a chance to weigh in on the proposals at meetings in Jackson on Wednesday, Sheridan on Thursday, Laramie on Sept. 9 and Lander on Sept. 10. All meetings will be at 6 p.m.
The meetings will help department officials gauge public support for changing the rules, said Lander regional wildlife supervisor Jason Hunter.
The ideas follow the death of a Fremont County dog, Mac, in a snare in January. Mac’s owner, Karen Zoller, and other pet owners formed a group, WY TRAP FREE-mont County, to call for stricter rules for trapping.
Another group, Wyoming Untrapped, has recorded over 70 instances since 2000 of traps, primarily snares, catching dogs unintentionally.
Some trappers have voiced support for changing the rules though trappers and reform advocates haven’t agreed on details, the Casper Star-Tribune reported.
The current rules haven’t been scheduled for revisions until 2022. The state Game and Fish Commission decided in April not to take up changes before then.
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