N.L. pet owners call for trapping signage, regulation near community trails

On pugilism Day, queen victoria Lethbridge and her partner took their domestic dog and infant come out for a morning walk in brand new snowshoes around the corner from their home in Hickman’s Harbour.

Their routine walk was cut short, ending in tragedy when their four–year-old pug Winston was caught and killed in a beaver trap set next to the trail.

“It was really traumatic,” said Lethbridge, unable to get the vivid image out of her mind. “It's, like, a trail that I don't even wanna go on anymore.”

Up in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Jason Bennett’s husky Brody caught his leg in a spring-loaded leg trap set in the area behind the 5 Wing Goose Bay military base where people frequently go on walks. In this case, Bennett was able to free Brody’s leg safely.

“I'm still very frustrated and upset that people can go and do something like this,” he said. “It's not a place for trapping by any means. It's right in town. It's right on the base.”

There are no provincial regulations about setting up small game traps near community trails or being required to display cautionary signage.

But these two dog owners are calling for an update on trapping regulation to avoid future injuries and deaths to pets.

Trapping is a government regulated activity, done as a way of wildlife management and a long standing part of Newfoundland and Labrador culture. The 2025-2026 hunting and trapping guide states trappers must have a licence and beaver trappers in particular are assigned a fixed trapline.

As far as trapping near community areas, trails or parks, there are no restrictions unless indicated otherwise by a municipality.

"Losing a pet is always difficult, and we extend our sympathies to the pet owners," it read.

"We encourage trappers and pet owners to take care during trapping and small game season to help prevent accidental capture of pets and to avoid conflict with other outdoor resource users."

The statement also said pet owners are required to control their animals in accordance with provincial and municipal legislation.

The province’s Animal Health and Protections Act states all pets must be leashed when off an owner’s property throughout the province, excluding Labrador Inuit lands. 

In the two recent incidents, both dogs had been off leash while walking on community trails and close to their owners.

Bennett said his dog is capable of running on average 15 to 20 kilometres an hour, “I can't do that with him on a leash. I need to be able to let him go and let him run and tear through the snow and have fun [...] and get the exercise that he needs.”

For her part, Lethbridge said she didn't let Winston get too far away while on walks.

“It would have been different if it was in the woods… it's a trail that we look at right across the road from us and we lost our family member because of it.”

Lethbridge wants to see more regulation put in place near community areas and clearer signage to warn pet owners and others of traps in the area.

“If there was just a sign like 200 feet up front that just said, ‘Traps in the area’,” Lethbridge said, “We could have said, ‘Oh, there's a trap down there, we gotta put him on a leash.’”

Pet owners call for trapping signage regulations

Bennett said he would like trappers to consider the danger posed to pets in the area.

“It's not something that should be in town and in an area that is common for people to be walking their dogs and their pets, right?” he said.

Lethbridge said she spoke with the trapper who set the beaver trap, who told her he had set it only hours earlier to target beavers damaging homes in the area. He expected no one to be in the area after a heavy snowfall that Boxing Day morning.

“He's taking this really hard as well, just as hard as us,” Lethbridge said. “It's never happened to him before.”

Lethbridge said she understands trapping is a key part of Newfoundland and Labrador culture and places no blame on the practice, but says a flag or a sign could go a long way in saving pets in the future.

Messages of support have been pouring in on Lethbridge’s social media from people in the community who sympathize with her loss.

“Winston touched a lot of people's hearts,” she said. “This affected the whole community, really.”

Journalist

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