Update: This bill failed to pass.
Bill Description: If passed, this bill would expand trapping to allow the recreational trapping of raccoons in Ashe County using leghold traps.
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The arbitrary killing of meso-predators, such as raccoons, is ecologically unsound. Meso-predators play a vital ecological role in healthy ecosystems by reducing bird and rodent populations and keeping other animal populations in check. Keeping these animals around helps to maintain a balance within the environment. Furthermore, expanding the use of cruel leghold traps is taking North Carolina’s wildlife management policies in the wrong direction. Leghold traps are indiscriminate and sometimes catch and kill non-target animals, including family cats and dogs and even threatened or endangered species. There are humane alternatives available to address human/wildlife conflicts and those alternatives should be employed instead of using cruel leghold traps.