Gov't should enforce the law banning animal traps: dog lover
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The government must enforce an existing law banning animal traps as the devices are still continuing to injure animals and people, said a dog lover yesterday.
Faye Angevine, an American animal rights activist, said she and five of her dogs had fallen victim to illegal animal traps. video: http://udn.com/NEWS/SOCIETY/SOC7/5512882.shtml
She said her fifth dog was injured March 7, and she herself was hurt last Friday, both in Taipei's Yangmingshan area.
“I'm really angry,” she told the China Post.
Poachers usually set up illegal animal traps in the mountains, including Yangmingshan, to catch wild boars.
Between July 2008 and July 2009, 141 cases of illegal animal traps were reported in Taipei, of which 98 resulted in trapped animals being amputated, according to figures from Animals Taiwan, a group devoted to caring injured stray dogs and cats.
“This is a dangerous situation since the traps could hurt not only animals but also humans,” said Angevine, who has lived in Taiwan for 35 years and currently keeps 18 stray dogs.
Two of her dogs had to have amputations after being caught in such traps.
Angevine, who held a press conference Thursday to call attention to the issue, suspects the actual number of animal traps is more than the one in the official statistics.
She said she could not understand the current purpose of setting the traps now that boars are rarely spotted.
She urged police to enforce the law by running more patrols to stop violators and remove the traps as soon as they are found.
Violators could be fined NT$15,000 to NT$75,000, according to the amendment to the Animal Protection Act.
As a democracy, the government should pay more attention to animal welfare as part of efforts to become a developed country, as animals are just as important as human beings, Angevine continued
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The government must enforce an existing law banning animal traps as the devices are still continuing to injure animals and people, said a dog lover yesterday.
Faye Angevine, an American animal rights activist, said she and five of her dogs had fallen victim to illegal animal traps. video: http://udn.com/NEWS/SOCIETY/SOC7/5512882.shtml
She said her fifth dog was injured March 7, and she herself was hurt last Friday, both in Taipei's Yangmingshan area.
“I'm really angry,” she told the China Post.
Poachers usually set up illegal animal traps in the mountains, including Yangmingshan, to catch wild boars.
Between July 2008 and July 2009, 141 cases of illegal animal traps were reported in Taipei, of which 98 resulted in trapped animals being amputated, according to figures from Animals Taiwan, a group devoted to caring injured stray dogs and cats.
“This is a dangerous situation since the traps could hurt not only animals but also humans,” said Angevine, who has lived in Taiwan for 35 years and currently keeps 18 stray dogs.
Two of her dogs had to have amputations after being caught in such traps.
Angevine, who held a press conference Thursday to call attention to the issue, suspects the actual number of animal traps is more than the one in the official statistics.
She said she could not understand the current purpose of setting the traps now that boars are rarely spotted.
She urged police to enforce the law by running more patrols to stop violators and remove the traps as soon as they are found.
Violators could be fined NT$15,000 to NT$75,000, according to the amendment to the Animal Protection Act.
As a democracy, the government should pay more attention to animal welfare as part of efforts to become a developed country, as animals are just as important as human beings, Angevine continued
