Tréa, a young black Lab stray dog from Princeton, MN, is the latest recipient of financial support from Born Free USA, the leader in animal welfare and wildlife conservation.
The dog was rescued by local rescue groups, Heading Home Rescue and Pets in Crisis, from a snare trap in the Princeton area on Nov. 24 and transported to the Roseville veterinarian office of Dr. Lori Ballinger. Tréa was reportedly in horrific condition, partially mutilated by the snare trap.
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According to Monica Engebretson, senior program associate for Born Free USA: “This is one of the most horrific cases we’ve documented this year. Snares are simple in design but vicious in action. The more the animal struggles to free themselves, the tighter the snare becomes and the more damage it inflicts. Poor Tréa suffered for days in the snare as the wire cut into her nose, through the roof of her mouth and embedded into her tongue. She also broke some of her teeth off trying chew through the wire. Treatment and recovering from such severe injuries can be lengthy and costly and we wanted to help give Tréa a chance.”
Born Free USA is providing financial relief via its Trapping Victims Fund in the amount of $320 for the initial vet care required for the dog, who is currently with a foster family through Second Hound Rescue. Tréa is the fourth animal to receive money from the fund, which was established last year.
Born Free USA established the Trapping Victims Fund to help defray emergency veterinary care costs for companion animals or wildlife impacted by traps and for specific costs associated with rehabilitating and releasing a wildlife trapping victim back into the wild.
Born Free USA estimates that more than 300,000 non-targeted animals are the unintended victims of body-crushing wildlife traps and snares set each year. Cats and dogs often are severely injured or killed as a result of the remorseless jaws of traps set for wild animals by trappers who plan to capture them and strip their fur. Born Free USA says that for every targeted animal trapped, an estimated two non-targeted animals are brutally captured.
According to Adam Roberts, executive vice president of Born Free USA: “This stray dog is one of thousands of unintended victims of the horrifying trapping industry, captured each year in brutal traps and snares set to capture animals for the fur trade. Traps and snares don’t discriminate and can put family pets — and humans — in serious danger. We plan to help Tréa with vet costs, and continue our hard work to reform trapping laws and regulations nationwide to eliminate or at least reduce the suffering and damage these devices cause.”
Born Free USA receives hundreds of heartbreaking reports from victims who have seen their cat or dog severely injured or killed in these traps, and keeps an online database of incidents at www.bornfreeusa.org/database to help bring attention to this public safety issue. Threatened and endangered species also have been found caught in these deadly traps.
Born Free USA is a nationally recognized leader in animal welfare and wildlife conservation. Through litigation, legislation and public education, Born Free USA leads vital campaigns against animals in entertainment, exotic “pets,” trapping and fur, and the destructive international wildlife trade. Born Free USA brings to the United States the message of “compassionate conservation” — the vision of the United Kingdom-based Born Free Foundation, established in 1984 by Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna, stars of the iconic film “Born Free,” along with their son Will Travers, now chief executive officer of both organizations. Born Free’s mission is to end suffering of wild animals in captivity, conserve threatened and endangered species, and encourage compassionate conservation globally.
More at www.bornfreeusa.org; on Twitter at http://twitter.com/bornfreeusa; and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/BornFreeUSA.
Media Contact: Rodi Rosensweig, publicrelations@bornfreeusa.org, (203) 270-8929.