Are box traps humane? You may think this is a silly question. After all aren’t all box traps, also known as live traps, automatically humane? After all, box traps don’t clamp down on an animal’s limb like those (so-called) cruel footholds. Well, that perspective is certainly very common as well as understandable. Cage and box traps have been given that moral halo with the designation live trap. But the question still remains, are box traps humane? Recall that box traps are different than cage traps. Box traps have solid walls, while cage traps have mesh walls. How animals respond to these two types of traps could be different. Is there any evidence to suggest that animals respond differently? In short, yes.

About ten years or more ago, I recall hearing a comment by a wildlife control operator that animals trapped in a box trap during summer conditions were suffering from overheating. The WCO said that the problem with the box trap was that the enclosure allowed the animals to essentially cook. Think about it. All that hair during hot conditions with reduced wind could be a recipe for a disaster much in the way that a dog trapped in a car sitting out in the parking lot on a summer day. Granted, the box trap isn’t the same as an automobile, but you get the point.
I was intrigued with this observation, so I decided to see if I could provide some evidence to support this observation. I took three temperature and humidity loggers, and put one in a covered cage trap, another in a box trap and the last one situated outside between the two traps. I left them in my backyard for a year. The loggers recorded temperature and humidity every minute for 365 days. Low and behold, the data showed that box traps are warmer than covered cage traps. On average, the differences were not massive. But a few degrees can be significant when dealing with heat or cold. Just think of yourself when you turn the thermostat up or down a couple of degrees.
Bottom line. Use caution when trapping with box traps during warm conditions. Consider whether the trap will be exposed to sunlight as well as how long could the animal be in the trap before it is checked. If you want details on my research read the article: Temperature and Humidity Variation between Cage and Plastic-walled Traps: Implications for Animal Welfare
For additional information on how to cage and box trap humanely, get a copy of my book, Being Kind to Animal Pests.
