Snares set for bushmeat hunting injure and kill millions of wild animals globally, including monkeys and other primates. Snare removal programs and wildlife rehabilitation address the welfare consequences.
Snare-injured wild monkeys experience acute and chronic welfare harms. Wire snares cause cutting injuries as animals struggle, leading to deep lacerations, bone exposure, and traumatic amputation. Surviving animals with amputated limbs face reduced foraging capacity and social disadvantage within troop hierarchies. Infection from snare wounds causes sepsis and death in many survivors who initially escape. Rehabilitation of snared primates requires surgical intervention, intensive nursing care, and eventually resocialization before release. The welfare case for snare removal programs is powerful — each snare removed prevents potential future suffering of multiple animals. Community protein alternative programs addressing the root cause of snaring have sustainability advantages over removal alone.