Friday, May 4, 2012

Glue Traps: were glue traps created for efficiency or for our twisted entertainment?

Original Sources:

I never knew that glue could be so dangerous, look at the poor cat's expression. Glue traps are usually placed indoors for rodent control and pests caught on these boards are thrown away with the traps, leaving the trapped animal to suffer for days, subjected to starvation and dehydration.

Now I know how people don't like rodents and pests, but that is for sure a really inhuman way to get rid of them by letting them suffer for days. It just goes to show that human nature at its core is not very human at all.

According to the SPCA the cat was found in Blk 527 Jurong West Street 52, by people who had been feeding the cat on a regular basis. The cat was found to be caught in a glue-trap board about 4 by 5 feet in size which contained an excessive amount of glue. Imagine the distress the cat was in. 

The name of the company and amount fined was not revealed.  But AVA said that its investigation revealed that the firm was “not wholly responsible for the state of respiratory distress” that eventually led to the cat being put down by a vet from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). It went on to state on its Facebook page that: 
AVA has reviewed the use of glue traps with the National Environment Agency (NEA) which licenses pest control companies, and concluded that a ban on the use of glue traps could adversely impact the effective handling of rodent situations in Singapore. This could potentially result in hygiene and disease problems. Nonetheless, to ensure that non-target animals are not caught in glue traps, AVA and NEA have reviewed the existing guidelines on the use of such traps, and will be issuing a revised set of guidelines.

In its response on AVA’s Facebook page, SPCA added that its staff “did their best with what was available”. They had removed the cat from the glue board, placed it on a plastic bag and onto a pet carrier before transporting it to the clinic. 

There are a few issues I have with this scenario:
  1. Glue traps are inhuman period, for its intended targets or non-intended unfortunates. Imagine having to suffer for days before you actually die, of pain, stress, dehydration and agony. We, as humans are really creative, but I wonder were glue traps created for efficiency or for our twisted entertainment?
  2. Who in the world with enough common sense would put a cat covered in glue in a plastic bag? It obviously would aggravate the situation for the poor critter. And how was the plastic place on the cat for it to be totally covered in glue when it was only partially covered in glue from its legs, enough for it to have that expression. 
  3. Although the company involved did not kill the cat, it definitely caused the misfortune and SPCA just made it happen. Both parties are at fault.
  4. Is anyone bothered by the size of the glue trap used? I mean, for a cat to get caught in it when it is meant for rodents tells alot.
It's just sad that such things happen. And even sadder that no action is being taken to ban glue traps. Like I mentioned earlier were glue traps created for efficiency or for our own twisted entertainment?

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