Update: Thankfully, this bill did not receive the support of the committee to which it was assigned for review.
Bill Description: This bill would weaken existing law by allowing the use of padded leghold traps to capture coyotes in certain circumstances.
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Leghold traps — including “padded” leghold traps — are cruel and antiquated devices that cause enormous suffering as the animals they capture may die of dehydration, starvation, or predation from other animals if the trapper fails to check the device soon after the animal stumbles into it. They are an indiscriminate killing method that sometimes catches and kills non-target animals. There are humane alternatives available to address human-coyote conflicts and those alternatives should be employed instead of using cruel leghold traps. The use of these devices should continue to be prohibited.