The sale of controversial traps which catch but do not kill pests such as rats could be banned in the UK.
A humane society is aiming to get 100,000 signatures to a petition that would force the Government to debate the issue.
The traps consist of board or sheet with glue or other adhesive spread across it, and anything that walks across the traps become stuck, but they are not killed outright.
Stephanie Maw, part of Humane Society International and campaign manager for the petition said: “We’ve been campaigning for this for a long time, because glue traps cause unacceptable pain and suffering to the animals they capture.
“As they struggle to escape, they end up tearing off limbs and skin which is agonising for the animal.”
So far, the traps have been banned in a few countries around the world such as New Zealand and the USA, as many believe they are inhumane.
However, according to the British Pest Control Association (BPCA), they still provide a necessary “nuclear option”.
Ian Andrew, CEO of the BPCA said: “If we didn’t have to use them, we wouldn’t but there’s these very rare occasions like a hospital where catching something quickly is the best way of dealing with it.
“You can’t wait a week for it to be caught.”
The petition is currently sitting at over 36,000 signatures and you can sign up to it here.
