The cub, which was found in the Ceres-Karoo region, is one of the many innocent animals that continue to fall victim to this crude form of culling. The paw that had been ensnared by the gin trap was fractured, all the ligaments torn and the paw itself badly damaged. She was then taken to a veterinary surgeon where it was found that all the ligaments in her paw had been torn and the paw itself badly damaged. Her femur was also broken. The surgeon decided to euthanase the cub.
Gin traps are currently legal only when used to target proclaimed problem animals.
In such cases, CNC conservators would like to stress that, if properly used, gin traps can cause very little or no injury to the animals allowing them to be relocated, unharmed. CNC hosts special workshops for farmers to train them to set their traps sensitively. On discovering that the femur was broken, and taking the other injuries into account it was felt that the only option was to euthanse. I would like to stress that the use of gin traps is illegal when used on protected animals such as the leopard. We appeal to landowners who are experiencing problems with leopards to contact their nearest CNC office.