USPCA ‘horrified and appalled’ after young badger was caught in Tyrone snare

The petrified young badger was discovered by a member of the public, who immediately contacted the animal welfare charity.

Free running snares are legal in Northern Ireland and are primarily used for ‘wildlife management’, targeting the likes of rabbits and foxes.

The charity says while it is unable to determine how long the animal was entrapped, the depth of the hole the badger had dug in an attempt to free itself indicates that it was over a lengthy period.

Wildlife Rescue Officer Phil McCartney, the badger was examined by the USPCA veterinary team who determined that the wounds were superficial and apart from being dehydrated, the animal would make a full recovery.

The badger was kept overnight for treatment and then safely released back into its habitat.

Colleen Tinnelly, USPCA Chief Operating Officer, said: “This is a very distressing case, snares are indiscriminative in nature and over the years we have seen cases of family pets being caught in them.

"They can cause a great deal of pain and injury to an animal. In this instance the PSNI have been informed as badgers are protected by law in Northern Ireland under the Wildlife Order (Northern Ireland) 1985 as amended by the Wildlife and Natural Environment Act (Northern Ireland) 2011. It is a criminal offence to cause harm to these animals.”

“Our team did a fantastic job in safely retrieving this poor badger and providing it with treatment and comfort.

"Thankfully following the removal of the snare and the provision of pain relief, it showed great signs of improvement and was able to be released back into its own habitat.”

She added: “The USPCA recognises the necessity of capturing animals on a limited scale for a variety of reasons, however the only acceptable means of doing so is using live traps, and only when the trap is capable of restraining an animal without causing pain or injury and is visited at least every 12 hours. In our view, there is no body-grip trap which does not cause unacceptable suffering.”