Finally, ten days later, Sula returned.
The Bausmans were horrified when they discovered that one of Sula's front legs was maimed beyond possibility of repair, with only some bone and exposed veins remaining.
Sula had been caught in a leg-hold trap, illegal in that area of Manitoba. In pain and desperate to survive and return to her family, Sula chewed her leg off to free herself from the trap.
Sula is back home now with her family, after having the remains of her front leg amputated by a veterinarian. Vets in the fur-trade areas of Canada see these animals often, and have a name for these three-legged survivors: they call them tripods.
Here's Sula:
1 comment:
Bob: Not to sound like a heartless bastard, but I question if any canine chews their foot off in a leg-hold trap. I ran a professional trapline for seven years and was required by law to check each of my 'sets' once every 24 hours. I did.
Raccoons will, in fact, chew their apendages off and will do so rather quickly once their leg becomes numb. A leg-hold trap will numb the captured appendage in much the same a vise-grip pair of pliers clamped tightly onto the meaty part of your hand will 'numb' that part of your arm. Try it. I have and it does.
Canines once the leg becomes numb 'run' the chain securing the trap to the anchor stake. Usually from one opposite end to another. What they accomplish with this maneuver is they first break the leg bones and then they tear the tendons completely free. They can do this because at that moment it doesn't hurt.
As for the trapper who trapped this animal, if he was operating in violation of the law, then he should be apprehended and prosecuted. I always followed the rules and regulations to the letter when I ran my lines.
Trapping is much like gun ownership. In many areas of North America it is THE ONLY effective means of pedator control and without it the consequences can be far worse than the 'cure'. Like many things in life trapping is just like firearms ownership in that its not the tool that is the source of the problem but how it is used and how well laws already on the books are enforced.
All The Best,
Frank W. James
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