Photo of the leg-hold trap provided by Jack Miner Migratory Bird Foundation. Photo of the Canada Goose provided by Erie Wildlife Rescue.
A Canada Goose is looking at a long road to recovery after being injured by a leg-hold trap in the Kingsville, Ontario area.
On March 31, 2025, Erie Wildlife Rescue (EWR), a registered charity dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of injured, orphaned, or ill wildlife in southwestern Ontario, received an urgent call from the Jack Miner Migratory Bird Foundation: the Canada Goose was found struggling in a leg-hold trap. The goose was found within town limits, by a creek running through a wooded area in a residential neighbourhood. This device is illegal to use on waterfowl in Canada and is notorious for causing immense suffering to both wild and domestic animals.
After a tip from a member of the public, Jack Miner Migratory Bird Foundation’s team were the first to respond to the scene, freeing the injured goose and then transporting the bird to EWR for immediate care. The goose was lucky—there were no fractures to the leg; however, there was exposed bone, tissue damage, bruising to their wings, and significant blood loss. After a night of stabilization at the EWR Centre, the goose was transferred for a full veterinary assessment. The goose now faces a long road to recovery, and EWR is doing everything possible to give this goose the best chance at healing. The bird is receiving daily dressing changes, antibiotics, and pain medications, and will be under care for an extended period.
Calling for Accountability
Each year in Canada, hundreds of thousands of fur-bearing animals are still legally trapped and killed for their fur or because they are considered a so-called nuisance. Even more troubling is that it’s well documented that non-target animals, like birds and even pets, also suffer or are killed in the process. While toothed leg-hold traps are no longer legal, other types of leg-hold traps are still widely used across the country on various fur-bearing species, causing unnecessary harm to animals like this Canada Goose.
Trapping remains a provincially regulated activity, and in most jurisdictions, commercial trapping is still legal. Unfortunately, there are often no requirements for warning signs, and public awareness is limited. This lack of regulation, combined with outdated belief systems and a lack of education about non-lethal alternatives, leaves animals, both target and non-target species, vulnerable to suffering.
This recent trapping case is being taken very seriously. A report has been filed with the appropriate authorities, and The Fur-Bearers will be advocating for a thorough investigation. We are determined to uncover whether an offense was committed and will work to hold those individual(s) accountable.
For more information or to make a donation to support this Canada Goose, please visit our friends at Erie Wildlife Rescue at www.eriewildliferescue.ca.
