Jessica Shelton, with Animal Protection New Mexico (APNM) says the court decision is critical. For years, Shelton says APNM has worked to ban traps, snares and wildlife poisons on New Mexico’s public lands. Shelton says they were even reports of pet dogs getting caught in the traps.

“These are indiscriminate, unmanned devices that were being put on public lands, and they were capturing wildlife that should not have been caught, they were threatening endangered species,” Shelton said.

In 2018, the problem hit a breaking point when a senior heeler mix named Roxy was caught in a neck snare while walking on public lands in northern New Mexico. “Her person tried to release her and save her, but couldn’t loosen the device around her neck, and so she died in his arms,” Shelton said.

In 2021, the state legislature passed Roxy’s Law, which put restrictions on these types of devices and methods on public lands. In 2023, the National Trappers Association and Fur Takers of America sued the state, claiming the law unfairly favors Native Americans. They pointed to a provision in the law, allowing people to trap for religious or ceremonial reasons. Last September, their case was dismissed, and after filing an appeal the 10th court of appeals upheld that decision in June. The court stated the claims have no standing and are premature.

Read this article on KRQE

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SANTA FE, N.M. — Animal Protection New Mexico (APNM) and its legislative arm Animal Protection Voters (APV) are celebrating a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, issued last month, affirming the dismissal of a lawsuit challenging New Mexico’s Wildlife Conservation and Public Safety Act, also known as “Roxy’s Law.”  

Roxy’s Law prohibits the use of traps, snares, and wildlife poisons on New Mexico public lands while preserving limited exceptions for public safety, scientific research, wildlife management, and other narrowly defined circumstances established by law. 

The lawsuit, brought by state and national trapping organizations, challenged a narrow provision of the law that allows for religious and ceremonial trapping by members of federally recognized Tribes and Pueblos. On September 8, 2025, a federal District Court dismissed the lawsuit, ruling that the plaintiffs lacked standing to pursue their claims—because eliminating the tribal religious exemption would not remedy their alleged injury, their claims were not ripe for judicial review, and their asserted psychological injuries were legally inadequate. In a written opinion filed on June 8, 2026, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal. 

“This is a tremendous victory for New Mexico’s wildlife, public lands, and the overwhelming majority of New Mexicans who supported the ban on body-crushing and leg-hold traps, snares, and poisons on our public lands,” said Jessica Shelton, Senior Program & Policy Strategist for APNM and APV.  

“The Court recognized that the legal theories put forward in this lawsuit were too weak to accomplish what the plaintiffs ultimately wanted—to overturn a law that was justly enacted through the legislative process after years of debate.” 

Read this article on Animal Protection Voters

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They were father and son, roaming Catron County as part of the Sawtooth pack. Within a month of each other, both collared Mexican gray wolves were trapped on private property near Datil.

The father was left to die of thirst before his body was placed beside a highway, according to authorities. The son was shot in the spine and beaten over the head, his body moved onto public lands where cattle graze.

A monthslong investigation into the deaths of the protected species led U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents to search two properties April 9, according to a search warrant return filed in U.S. District Court in Las Cruces. Agents seized a shovel, more than a dozen traps — two with “fur present” — and rifles similar to the caliber used to shoot one wolf.

One property is owned by Wacey and Kaci Walraven and the other is owned by Russell and Melynda Walraven. The Walravens have not been charged with a crime, and authorities said the investigation is ongoing.

No suspects are identified in court records. The Walravens did not respond to multiple calls and messages for comment.

The search warrant detailing the case centered on a possible violation of the Endangered Species Act and the Lacey Act, which can lead to fines of up to $50,000 or imprisonment for up to one year, or both.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the agency “does not comment on active investigations.”

The wolves that were killed, Wolf 2704 and Wolf 2994, were among 20 that died in New Mexico in 2025. So far this year, 11 wolves have died in the state, including M1966, who fathered a litter with wandering canid Asha.

While a cause of death for many of the wolves killed in recent years has not been released, roughly half of the 314 wolf deaths recorded between 1998 and 2024 were attributed to poaching, while about 15% were caused by vehicle collisions. So far, seven wolves have survived being caught in a trap this year.

Read this article in the Albuquerque Journal

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A Valdez couple were devastated to find their beloved husky, whom some in the area referred to as “the Mayor of Valdez,” dead in a wire trap off Broken Arrow Road in early June.

The dog, named Zuni, went missing June 3 at about 3:30 a.m. during a routine bathroom trip outside.

This time, however, she didn’t come back inside right away. The dog’s owners figured she’d been spooked by an early morning thunderstorm.

On June 5, a neighbor, Tom Garcia, found the dog dead, tangled in an unmarked wire trap and fencing, as he was driving to work.

The incident is a reminder that in rural New Mexico unleashed pets can run afoul of traps legally set on private land to protect livestock from predators. Like many parts of Taos County, Valdez is a checkerboard of non-agricultural residential properties and land that families have ranched or farmed for generations.

Conservation officers with the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish investigated the incident the same day it was reported and determined the property owner who set the trap was within his rights, according to Game and Fish regulations.

“The incident occurred on private land not owned by the owner of the dog,” said Darren Vaughan, communications director for Game and Fish. “Officers found no violations.”

Tony Valdez, co-owner of the property, said he set the traps as a deterrent, hoping dogs would learn not to come on his property, where he keeps livestock. Ranchers are wary of conflict, for example, between livestock and dogs — as well as wild predators like mountain lions and bear. In 2023, a bear killed dozens of sheep belonging to several ranchers in Arroyo Seco and El Salto.

According to the Game and Fish investigation report, the department “contacted Tony Valdez over the phone and learned that Mr. Valdez set the snares on the property for feral dogs in the area that have been attacking the cattle. This has been an ongoing issue with the feral dogs.”

“My motive is just a deterrent,” Valdez told the Taos News. “Those traps won’t kill a dog; they aren’t a true snare or a true trap. It’s a homemade bending wire deterrent. It’s possible but it’s not likely.” After learning of Zuni’s death, Valdez said he would set different traps.

The corner of Isaac Gonzalez’s property is about 10 feet from the fence line where the traps were left. Like many neighbors, he knew Zuni well.

“Unfortunately, I heard her last dying breaths,” Gonzalez said. “I didn’t know what it was, because the people at the bottom have so many animals. It sounded like a tropical bird or something. I’ve never heard anything like that. I walked towards the back, and I didn’t hear it anymore.”

When she was found, Zuni was caught so tightly in two snare traps and wire fencing that she had likely lost the ability to make any noise. One snare wrapped so fast around her hind leg it nearly reached the bone, and another around her neck appears to have strangled her. As she struggled, the wire tightened around her to a degree that her owners, Matt Gresham and Amy Zalta-Gresham, buried the dog with it.

“This feels as if we lost our baby — not to mention this could have happened to anyone’s beloved fur baby or even an unassuming child roaming in the neighborhood, as they’ve done freely in Valdez for generations,” Zalta-Gresham said.

“There are much safer traps that do not intend to kill, and we as a community would be grateful and help sponsor such traps, before it comes to the death of another member of our family,” she added. “This was cruel and inhumane.”

Neighbors who asked to remain anonymous said they removed at least seven other wire traps along the fence line. According to them, at least two other domestic dogs have been caught in snares in that spot along the pond. Both survived.

“It’s disheartening to think that it’s so close to my house,” Gonzalez said. “My dog, or another dog — or a child, or anyone — could potentially be a victim. The fact that it’s in a residential area blows my mind.”

Proper use of traps

New Mexico’s trapping regulations are intended to limit animal cruelty; such as checking the trap every 24 hours, leaving identification on the trap, and not setting them too close to water sources. However, these rules do not apply when the trapper intends to protect livestock on private property.

To keep companion animals safe, Animal Protection New Mexico recommends working with local animal control or law enforcement officers to trap targeted species, and “utilizing a non-lethal cage trap instead, to address damage being caused by loose dogs in a humane manner.”

“Animals don’t know when they are crossing from public land to private property, and traps and snares don’t discriminate between targeted and non-targeted animals,” said Stacy Sutton Kerby, APNM chief government affairs officer. “While New Mexico has taken the correct step in banning traps, poisons, and snares on public land, APNM believes strong regulations and restrictions should apply across any piece of land where people and animals traverse. Furthermore, lethal traps and snares should never be used to capture or kill dogs.”

Game and Fish recommends residents follow the animal control ordinance regarding dogs at large (including unleashed animals) and for livestock owners to follow the laws regarding livestock protection.

‘The Mayor of Valdez’

Like many dogs in the Valdez area, Zuni was known and loved by many; neighbors called her the Mayor of Valdez. She rode on the mayordomo’s truck on ditch cleaning day and visited Sheila Rey often for a 5 p.m. bone with other dogs. Other neighbors spoke about her chatty nature.

“Zuni had been coming to my house for years,” Rey said. “She was a sweetheart, extremely vocal. She was a people person, very friendly. Loved to be hugged, loved to be petted; and she loved her little treats I would give her.

“She was just a beautiful soul,” Rey added. “She didn’t deserve to die like that.”

Zalta-Gresham hopes Zuni’s death will create change, making residential areas and the many neighborhoods with a mix of agricultural and residential  properties safer for everyone.

“She was a beautiful soul in the valley of Valdez, as well as Taos Ski Valley, as her journeys brought joy to so many on a daily basis,” Zalta-Gresham said. “Her life was robbed, cut too short, but her memory has made her a martyr for change. We will do what it takes to remember her, and not let a savage act like this happen again.”

“Ordinances can and should be changed to stop poaching to kill in residential areas, for the sake of humanity and the so so many of us grieving for our Zuni girl,” Zalta-Gresham added. “She can’t be brought back but hopefully she can save lives. No unknowing pet or child deserves that fate.”

Read this article in the Taos News

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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Game and Fish typically only see a couple cases a year involving illegal traps, but we’re a week into the new year, and they’re already seeing it.

Read this article on KOB4

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Dog (later named “Rodi”) hanging out across from the mail boxes in Rodarte with a severly injured front left leg: bones are sticking out. Front left leg dangling, hanging by a thread. Rodi wouldn’t let anyone near. Rodi was trapped by Conrad Mahafee of CMM Lost Pet Reovery and Humane Trapping by Nov. 5 and by that time the dog lost the lower part of his leg. Anaruth saw the dog before Conrad did. Rodi was sent to vet, had major surgery, lost his left shoulder too. Suspected illegal snare trap. The trap that may have caused the injury was not recovered and nobody would be able to say definitively if it was placed on public land illegally. Dog was fostered by Anaruth and named Rodi. Rodi was later adopted by a person from Santa Fe.

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“Roxy’s Law is doing exactly what New Mexicans hoped it would,” said Chris Smith, southwest wildlife advocate for WildEarth Guardians. “Fewer native wildlife are being brutally killed for private profit and public lands are now safer for New Mexicans and visitors to recreate on with their pets.”

Recently released data from the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish shows a clear decrease in wildlife killed by trappers since the implementation of Roxy’s Law, which bans commercial and recreational trapping across New Mexico public lands.

TrapFree New Mexico has worked diligently to track when New Mexicans and their pets encounter traps on public lands. We collect stories of trap encounters, track media articles, and even have an interactive map of all trapping incidents known to us. Since Roxy’s Law went into effect, negative trapping experiences have dropped to near zero.

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As of April 2022, the Wildlife Conservation and Public Safety Act also known as Roxy’s Law has banned the use of traps, snares and poison for the purposes of capturing wildlife on public land. The law, named after a dog killed by a trap in Northern New Mexico.

“This has been so important for New Mexico to enact for a number of reasons we know that traps, snares, and poisons when used to mass eradicate a wild species or to kill animals for fur to make a profit is cruel and unnecessary,” said Animal Protection Voters of New Mexico Chief Government Affairs Officer, Jessica Johnson.

The National Trappers Association and its New Mexico chapter, along with a group called the Fur Takers of America claim the law unfairly favors Native Americans, allowing them to trap for religious or ceremonial reasons, and that the law violates equal protection clauses of the state U.S. constitutions, but the state disputes all that. “There is a long-standing recognition of respecting Native American religious practices in this country and in the state of New Mexico so that part of the bill is not reinventing the wheel and it’s one of several exceptions that were well vetted,” Johnson said.

The Trappers and their attorneys did not comment on the lawsuit. The lawsuit names the state’s Attorney General and the Department of Game and Fish, both agencies say they are reviewing the lawsuit.

Read and watch on KRQE.com

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“Almost unrecognizable as a dog,” said Mattie Allen, director of communications for Española Humane. “It’s pretty shocking to see a dog come in that is clearly strangulated.”

Rio Arriba County Animal Control officers brought in a seven-month-old puppy with a severely swollen head and an undeniable snare around his neck. The puppy was having a hard time breathing.

A good Samaritan called officers when they saw the dog running just north of Española.

“Fortunately, for this dog, he was able to actually pull the cable from whatever it was attached to and break himself free,” said Allen.

A vet team was able to sedate the dog and cut off the snare.

Two days later, the little guy, temporarily known as Muffin, is looking good as new.

But the incident raises questions about New Mexico’s trapping laws.

“The problem with these snares is that they’re indiscriminate. When you set a snare like that you can trap anything it does not discriminate what type of living being is getting strangled by this thing,” said Allen.

Roxy’s law went into effect last April in New Mexico, making it illegal to use traps, snares, or poisons to capture, hurt, or kill an animal on public lands. It doesn’t apply to private land.

Officers don’t know where exactly Muffin got caught, but advocates say they hope all property owners think twice about snares.

“I do hope that people are not setting these snares to trap dogs,” said Allen.  “It could be any type of wildlife, it could be a cat, it could be your family’s dog, it could be a kid. And it will go around a head and a neck, a foot, a hand, a paw, it doesn’t discriminate.”

Española Humane is taking suggestions for Muffin’s permanent name on its social media pages.

He’s getting neutered and up-to-date on shots and will be up for adoption soon.

Read this article on KOB.com

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“Che was having a walk as always at my chalet, and he got trapped,” said the constitutional lawyer. “I would say he was very close to dying because those are instruments to kill an animal, obviously.”

When Berard posted the account of his dog’s injury on Facebook, other pet owners began sharing their equally troubling stories.

“I received so many testimonies mentioning the same story again and again and again, and I realized it’s not an anecdote, it’s a phenomenon and we need to regulate that to stop that,” said Berard. “In 2023, we’re better than that in Quebec.”

The damage done to animals caught in traps is often severe.

“We’ve seen animals come in with muscle tears through their legs, and we’ve had to try to suture them back together,” said animal health technician Alexandra Yaksich. “We’ve seen animals come in that have been in these traps for days at a time, so they start to get very serious bacterial infections in their paws and going up their arms, and sometimes the only thing you can do in that case is amputate the arm.”

Yaksich said the physical damage to the pet is written all over the face of the pet’s owners.

“Often, the witnessing of such horrific images, especially when it’s your own animal, to see muscle exposed, lots of blood, that’s very traumatizing,” she said. “Often we hear from clients that they have dreams about it, and they’re still thinking about it years after it happened.”

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