PA Woman and Dog Hurt from Trap in State Park

Summary:

Hookstown, PA – Valerie Plummer and her dog Shiloh were both seriously injured while walking in Raccoon Creek State Park. The incident occurred around noon on January 6 at Raccoon Creek State Park, along Nichol Road, about 1.5 miles from the parking area off State Route 168. Plummer said she was walking her dogs on a multi-use trail in the park on-leash, something she had done many times before.

“I was just walking, and they decided to stop and sniff. The one of them just pawed the ground. Her paw got caught in a trap, and she freaks out,” Plummer said. “I went in to grab the trap to try to figure it out, and she just latched on to me and just tore my arm apart.” Shiloh suffered broken teeth and a ruptured blood vessel in her eye, while Plummer’s arm was severely injured.

Plummer had to hike out to park rangers to get help. Once she reached them, she asked about the legality of the traps in a nonhunting area. “And they didn’t have an answer. You don’t have to report where you put your traps here in the state park,” she said. Determined to prevent future incidents, Plummer wrote to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

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