More Humane Kills

Thanks to Tyler Hayden for highlighting the humane victory achieved by the California State Legislature when it passed the Trapping Act, and thanks to Governor Brown for signing the bill into law.

This legislation will greatly curtail cruel killing methods used by trappers. It will ban the most inhumane practices, which include drowning, chest-crushing, and injection with chemical solvents such as nail polish remover. These are inexcusable killing practices that would be considered a felony offense in some states if inflicted intentionally upon domestic cats or dogs.

The bill also reduces the allowable size of Conibear traps (or “kill traps”) from 10 inches to 6 inches on land and requires the use of warning signs where these traps are used on lands open to the public to reduce the danger to family pets. Traps are indiscriminate and kill many nontargeted animals as “collateral damage,” so these new regulations aim to decrease this senseless suffering.

This triumph could not have been achieved without the compassion of California citizens who advocated for AB 789, and I hope everyone will join Born Free USA in celebrating this victory for animals!