NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES: Sanctuaries or Killing Fields?

• Author: FOX, CAMILLA H.

On Nov. 13, 1995, a golden retriever named Bandit went with his owner for a walk along a road in Wisconsin's Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge. Among the smells in the air was a mouthwatering scent Bandit could not resist. The aroma came from bait set in a Conibear kill-trap to catch a raccoon. Instead, it got Bandit, whose head was completely caught in the trap. Despite all his efforts, Bandit's master could not remove the trap before the dog suffocated to death in his arms.

The device was perfectly legal, placed under a permit obtained by a trapper from the refuge, which annually sells exclusive rights to trap muskrat, beaver, and raccoon in certain areas. Bandit's owner had not known of the device, and the dog paid the price. This horror story is hardly an isolated incident. Across the U.S.'s system of National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs), tragedies such as this are all too frequent.

More than half of national refuges allow trapping and hunting of wildlife. These are public lands, so, technically, they and their wildlife belong to all Americans. Yet, refuge regulations permitted the Trempealeau trapper to set his Conibear trap for "recreational or commercial" purposes. Legally, he may have been after muskrat, beaver, raccoon, skunk, or mink, all animals primarily targeted for their fur. Nevertheless, traps do not discriminate, and many unintended victims--such as Bandit and other family pets, and even humans, as well as endangered species--fall victim to body-gripping traps.

Whenever the Animal Protection Institute receives calls, articles, and letters about stories such as Bandit's, we contact various government agencies and public officials to try to learn why this killing of wildlife continues to be condoned. Almost invariably, the blame is placed on the companion animal's guardian, never the trapper, and the trappers know it. Indeed, reporters quoted the Trempealeau trapper as saying, "Dog owners [must] be vigilant around their animals during trapping seasons no matter where they are." Less than 0.01% of the U.S. population traps. Why, then, must the other 99.9% "be vigilant" about unseen and unknown traps when visiting refuges, originally set up by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt to "preserve wildlife and habitat for people today, and for generations to come"?

It could get worse before it gets better. On Oct. 9, 1997, Pres. Clinton signed into law the 1997 National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act (also known as the NWR Organic Act), which designates hunting and fishing as "priority uses" and stipulates that they "shall receive enhanced consideration" by the refuge manager. In consequence...