Stop the sales of foot hold/leg hold traps and snares in the United States

Stop the sales of foot hold/leg hold traps and snares in the United States

Started
January 1, 2020
Petition to
Signatures: 264,916Next Goal: 300,000
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Why this petition matters

Started by Carol Morgan

Amazon, Federal Officials, and State Officials: Stop the sales of steel-jaw leg hold/foothold traps and snare traps.  Please sign & share this petition.

This is a request to Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, to immediately cease the sales of steel-jaw leg hold/foot hold traps, snare traps, and attractants on Amazon.com, as these are used in poaching and the maiming of bears and other wildlife. Amazon’s outreach and large selection of such traps put wildlife in danger everywhere. The enormous amount of leg hold/ foot hold traps for sale on Amazon makes it incredibly easy for a person, anytime and anywhere, to begin trapping wildlife, resulting in the maiming and killing of the animals.  The easy obtainability of these traps has already resulted in this, based on the number of traps Amazon sells online along with attractants for bears.

The use of leg hold/ foot hold traps for bears is illegal in the United States.  Bear traps are illegal to use but are not illegal to sell.  Many types of steel jaw traps are legal for use on other wildlife such as foxes, wolves, and coyotes. Selling items illegal for bears is propagating illegal acts and causes horrific impacts on bears along with all wildlife and Amazon should not want to be part of this. These leg hold/ foot hold traps maim wildlife, as has been seen in the historic tragedy in the Asheville, NC area where there are 12+ bears missing limbs. These bears with missing limbs might have suffered this fate because of products sold by Amazon.  In addition, our pets and children are at risk-as they could easily step into a trap. With Amazon’s customer outreach, anyone can be trapping within days near you and hurting the things you love. Please sign and share this petition to persuade Amazon to urgently stop the sales of these traps.  

The listing of prohibited items on Amazon includes, “Products intended to be used to produce an illegal product or undertake an illegal activity.” Therefore, per Amazon’s OWN policy, the sales of such traps should be banned on Amazon.com and the signers of this petition are asking for that.

This is also a request to state and federal officials to ban the use and sale of steel-jaw leg hold/ foot hold traps and snare traps in the United States. According to the Library of Congress, steel-jaw leg hold traps are banned in over 100 countries including China. Tragically however, they are not banned in the US and are for sale on large sites such as Amazon.com.

Asheville, NC has 12+ bears missing limbs from trap escapes. This could be your city or town next! These maimed bears and their struggles are shown on this video, along with traps sold easily in stores and on Amazon.  We hope the video will help convince you to both sign this petition and convince others to sign as well. With your efforts, we can stop this cruel trapping and prevent the horrific death and maiming of wildlife that occurs with steel-jaw traps and snare traps.

The questions to ask yourself when deciding if to sign this petition are simple:  

  • Should kids, pets, bears, and other wildlife be safe living their lives in nature without the threat of stepping into traps like these?    
  • Do I want these traps around my home and family or in places of nature we might visit?

All signatures and comments will be sent weekly to the Amazon head office and to Federal and State officials. Your comments will mean a lot!

“Steel-jaw traps work by slamming shut on the paw or leg of an animal and holding it until a trapper arrives. The devices are outlawed in more than 100 nations, but not in the U.S....Iraq bans them. So do China, Somalia and Sudan....But in the United States, steel-jaw traps are not only legal, they are the go-to tool for trappers who capture and kill millions of wild animals a year for the global fur market.”        Credit: Tom Knudson/Revealnews.org

www.facebook.com/helpashevillebears

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Signatures: 264,916Next Goal: 300,000
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