Red Collar, taken by a leg-hold trap, has lost a leg. One Voice is filing a complaint
Despite all the evidence presented, the court decided not to prosecute the trapper, who will be subject to an alternative procedure. There will therefore be no trial and the defendant will not face any prison sentence or even a fine, even though his illegal actions seriously maimed the cat Collier Rouge, causing her to lose a leg. He will be heard on September 3, 2024, at the Maison de la Justice et du Droit in Vierzon. He faces measures that are derisory compared to the seriousness of his actions, namely: awareness training, a reminder of the law, compensation for damages, etc. This also means that we cannot bring a civil action and will therefore be unable to defend the injured cat. We will continue to fight to ban the use of all types of traps, which maim and kill thousands of animals every year.
Red Collar was found badly injured by a leg-hold trap set up illegally. Suffering from a double fracture, the young cat had to have her front right leg amputated up to her shoulder. For this new collateral victim of a device that targets thousands of animals every year, who are unjustly perceived as being bothersome, One Voice is filing a complaint.
The list of our companions who are victims of traps keeps getting longer. After Cooper and Mani in 2023, then Snooky just a few weeks ago, it is now Red Collar who has paid the price for hunter-trapper-poachers.
On the morning of 7 March, the young cat had not come back from her walk the day before in a small town in Centre-Val de Loire. Worried, her family started looking for her. A few hundred metres from their home, having been in agony for hours, their bloodied pet was imprisoned by a leg-hold trap. The mother and her daughter had to be helped by a neighbour, a local worker, and the deputy mayor to free her. She was immediately taken to a veterinary clinic where they found that she had a double fracture and extremely significant tears to her flesh. With the injuries being so severe, she had to sacrifice her whole limb to be saved.
Hunters who trap animals indiscriminately and completely illegally
If Red Collar had been able to return home and regain her strength, she would never have had to have her leg removed. The trap in question, by definition already cruel and non-selective, was not even linked to a number allowing it to be identified. Nor had it been declared to the town council.
Not content with completely legally trapping thousands of foxes, stone martens, martens, and weasels every year, hunters and other enemies of nature do not hesitate to illegally install these deadly devices, indifferent to the risks that they can run for all other animals. Sometimes some people even attack cats in particular! Until when will these practices be tolerated? For all of their victims, whether they be wild or protected, as well as for our pets, impunity must stop.
We are joining Red Collar’s family and filing a complaint ourselves too. Demand a reform of hunting along with us by signing our petition.
Despite all the evidence presented, the court decided not to prosecute the trapper, who will be subject to an alternative procedure. There will therefore be no trial and the defendant will not face any prison sentence or even a fine, even though his illegal actions seriously maimed the cat Collier Rouge, causing her to lose a leg. He will be heard on September 3, 2024, at the Maison de la Justice et du Droit in Vierzon. He faces measures that are derisory compared to the seriousness of his actions, namely: awareness training, a reminder of the law, compensation for damages, etc. This also means that we cannot bring a civil action and will therefore be unable to defend the injured cat. We will continue to fight to ban the use of all types of traps, which maim and kill thousands of animals every year.