The following article came out of the Australasian Post, February 20^th, 1986

I have been a Post reader for a number of years and enjoy reading many of the good articles that are published from time to time. But I feel the story about the new dingo trap called the treadle snare or “frying pan” (POST, November 21^st, 1985) was wrong in part.

For many years I was a professional dingo trapper in the far west of New South Wales. The dingoes were very trap wise and to catch them you had to know your subject or you would not make much headway as a “dogger” or trapper as we were called. The article on the so called more “humane” trap went awry when it stated the trap was not as severe on animals as the conventional steel jaw trap referred to in the story as the “jaws of death”.

A wild dog or Dingo, or any other aggressive animal will attack any instrument which restrains them. The writer of the article on the new trap was correct in stating that the trapped animal suffers broken teeth, and a badly lacerated legs and so forth. But then the article goes wrong. Professional dingo trappers always poisoned their trap each time. A strip of rag is bound around on the trap’s jaws and then a liberal dose of strychnine is applied to the rag. More wrap is then applied to imprison the strychnine. I personally bound the rag tightly with three ties of thin copper wire to stop it from coming undone. When the dingo or wild dog is trapped it immediately attacks the trap. But before any of the horrific injuries described can occur the trapped dog fastens onto the trap with his jaws, in doing so, he breaks the rag holding the strychnine and inevitably the animal is dead within a few minutes. By far the greater portion I have caught have not even had the skin broken on their legs much less their teeth

The only time a conventional trap is cruel is when it is set without poison and then anchored to some immovable object. No matter what device is used to restrict animals from serious injuries will not result unless the trapped animal is immediately dispatched. I must add that the professional dingo trapper does not anchor his trap. He leaves it free to be pulled away by the trapped animal. But very seldom is the animal more than 15 to 20 feet from where it was trapped owing to the lethal does of strychnine. If the dingo trap is used correctly it is much more humane than 1080 poison or other methods of controlling the wild dog.  ... Arthur ...  Longreach (Qld)

N.B. For overseas readers a “dogger” is a professional Dingo trapper.