BOISE COUNTY -- A dog owner wants to warn others of a danger she found out about the hard way, when her own dog was injured. Her dog's foot got caught in a trapper's trap during a walk just off Bogus Basin Road.
"I think people think that when they're in the foothills, they're in the city, they're safe. But they're not. Not from this," Carin, a dog owner, said.
Idaho is no stranger to hunting, but Carin didn't realize just where people can legally hunt. She wanted to share her story to let other pet owners and parents know where traps can be found.
'It was just awful'
On New Years Eve, Carin and her friend took their four dogs for a hike off Bogus Basin. Her dog Mickey was the one who was injured.
"Him and the other dogs kind of ran around, they went around the tree, and it was just like noises coming out of my dog's mouth I never knew existed. It was just awful," Carin said. "When I came around the corner, I saw the wire portion of that trap, so I kind of thought he was just caught in barbed wire. I wasn't sure."
Mickey's foot was halfway in the trap, and he was bleeding. Carin couldn't remove the trap by herself, and she ended up needing to carry Mickey up a steep hill. Her friend flagged down a car for help.
"It took two grown men on each side and a third one to pry it open to get his foot out of it," Carin said.
Once freed, Mickey went to the vet. He had a deep cut, needing bandaging and antibiotics.
"You kind of just don't think about something like this until it happens," Carin said.
Trapping is legal on most public land
Since the accident, Carin has made a lot of calls to find out where trapping is legally allowed. KTVB also made calls to find out that information.
Idaho Fish and Game officials said traps can be set almost anywhere on public land, unless a city or county ordinance specifically says no. They also point out while some trappers may label their traps with markers, they don't have to.
Carin says her phone calls make her believe the trap her dog was caught in was legally placed. Knowing traps can be placed on land she likes to hike, Carin says she'll be more careful about where she lets her dog walk.
"He got lucky," she said. "For as awful as this situation as this was, it could not have had a better outcome. Really. Everything went as good as I could have, I guess, hoped for."
On Friday afternoon, Carin planned to take the trap to Fish and Game so they can let the hunter know what happened. KTVB has been unable to contact the hunter.
To view Fish and Game's trapping rules and regulations, click here.
Trapping illegal in Boise parks, near river
Again, some cities have ordinances restricting trapping. In Boise, for example, traps cannot be in public parks and must be at least 70 feet from the Boise River.
To see the park ordinance, click here.
To see the Boise River ordinance, click here.
