A national animal welfare charity has condemned the use of glue trap devices which severely injured a bird trapped in one inside an Inverness pet shop.
The Scottish SPCA was called out to the Pets at Home store in the city’s retail park on Friday after a shopper made the shocking discovery.
Lisa Harvey, 28, of Tain, said she was “horrified” at the sight of the suffering animal as it frantically tried to escape from the glue board – used to prevent rats and mice eating pet food – under a shelf in the store.
A company spokesman said they were “distressed” to learn about the incident and that pest controllers contracted by the firm had used the traps without its authorisation.
Following a Scottish SPCA investigation into the incident the charity issued a further statement yesterday.
Chief Inspector Iain Allan said: “We were called out to a retail store in Inverness after a bird was caught in a trap.
“While the glue trap was legal, and the bird has survived, we would always recommend another method to catch rodents.
“The Scottish SPCA is opposed to the use of glue traps as they cause unacceptable suffering and are totally indiscriminate in what they catch, often ensnaring wild animals like birds and even pets.”
Their condemnation follows animal charity Peta’s call for a ban on the devices.
On Tuesday Mimi Bekhechi, director of International Programmes at Peta, said such “hideously cruel use of glue traps may violate the Animal Welfare Act 2006” which makes it illegal to case unnecessary suffering to any animal.
However the Pets at Home spokesman stressed that glue boards are used only only as a “last resort” under national guidelines which allow pest controllers with advanced training to use them effectively and humanely.
A spokeswoman for contractor Ecolab said that Ecolab Pest Elimination is committed to helping to ensure pest-free facilities for customers, adding that they had “initiated a review” of their recent service at the store and that a local leadership team visited the store yesterday.
However, neither Pets at Home or Ecolab were able to reveal any details of the outcome of this visit.