Snaring order 2010

As Alex refers to in his blog, the Scottish Government has brought out the Snares (Scotland) Order. This forms part of the requirements spelled out by Mike Russell to the Scottish Parliament in 2008, which established the conditions under which snaring would be allowed to continue. Support for snaring, in line with these requirements, was made clear by Roseanna Cunningham, the current Environment Minister, during the Public Petitions hearing on 12th January. However, if, snaring is to be retained in the longer term, practitioners must maintain the highest standards in setting and management. The Snares Order comes into effect on 11th March 2010. It sets out the following:

Snares must be free-running
Any person who sets a snare in position must check that it is free-running every day at intervals of no more than 24 hours. If the snare is not free-running, it must be removed or restored to free-running. This clarifies that the snare cannot be self-locking in any way.

Safety stops
Anyone using a snare must ensure that it is fitted with a stop which prevents the noose of the snare closing beyond the stop. Where the snare is used to catch foxes, the stop must be fitted no less than 23 centimetres (9 inches) from the running end / eye of the snare. If intended to catch Rabbit or Hare, the stop must be no less than 13 centimetres (5 inches) from the running end / eye of the snare. Although manufactured snares now include safety stops, this now makes it a requirement.
 
Anchors
You must stake a snare to the ground, or attach it to an object to prevent the snare from being dragged by an animal caught by it.

Location of snares
Snares must be set so that an animal caught by the snare does not become fully or partially suspended, or drowns. This means that a snare cannot be set in a way that an animal might hang itself up, for instance on a fence-line, or so that it might be unable to escape from water and drown.

Further legislation
Legislation to introduce snare identity tags (similar to those used for Larsen and Cage traps) and mandatory accreditation before being allowed to use snares is likely to come into force when the Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill is passed. We expect this to happen later this year but will advise members when a specific date becomes clear.

Training courses
Irrespective of when the Bill becomes law, we encourage all members who currently set snares to sign up for a training course and testing now so that they are fully qualified to continue once it becomes law.

We aim to hold courses on a regional basis throughout 2010. Please contact the office to register. We will update the website to show when and where courses are being held.