By: Siri Kanter ’19
An amendment to make the trapping of coyotes and coyote-wolf hybrids legal in Westport was denied on Sept. 6 at a Representative Town Meeting.
After four hours of debate, the ordinance to allow coyote trapping was defeated in a 29-2 vote, making Westport the only town in Connecticut’s 169 towns that does not permit the trapping and releasing of coyotes.
Supporters of the petition are worried for the well-being of their children and pets. Objectors disagree with the brutality of the traps.
Representatives who voted against the amendment opposed leg-hold traps, which they argued were cruel. Proponents of the traps argued that they would be checked regularly and padded with rubber to avoid inflicting unnecessary pain.
The amendment was introduced by Westporter Peter Mackey, who claimed his dog was killed by a coyote in early January of this year. Mackey never “anticipated the degree of acrimony” from adversaries, who Mackey said called him a liar and irresponsible pet owner.
A vast majority of the Westport public opposed the traps. While defenders of the amendment based their argument on the danger coyotes pose to their children and pets, opposers saw just as much danger in the traps. Opponents said that the leg hold traps do not discriminate against other animals, pets or children. These traps also leave captured animals exposed to predators.
Sam Liles ’20 shares this view. “I would no longer feel comfortable walking my dog around town knowing traps are scattered throughout it, and I would be horrified to see a coyote suffering and trapped. It seems inhumane,” Liles said.
Westporter Amy Buckman saw things differently. “The coyotes are out during the day, stalking,” Buckman said. “My children are now afraid to play outside in the backyard.”
Melissa Shapiro, a veterinarian and CT State Representative for the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association, whose daughter graduated Staples last year, is strongly against the trapping of coyotes. “I am terrified to think that the pet ‘owners’ pushing this trapping bill actually think that setting a trap in their back woods will allow them to ignore the recommendations of wildlife experts and their veterinarians,” Shapiro said.
Shapiro believes there are alternative ways to fix the coyote problem, her first suggestion being to follow the guidelines from the Humane Society of the United States. Shapiro also recommends doing things such as removing birdfeeders and garbage, which are coyote attractors, as well as watching over cats and small dogs while they’re outside to limit the number of coyote related incidents. Scaring coyotes with whistles, bells or rocks, Shapiro said, is “the best way to teach the very intelligent animals to stay away.”
