PETA Commends Gap For Ban On Glue Traps At Napa, All Other Stores

NAPA, CA — Nary a glue mouse trap can be found at the Gap Factory Store in the Napa Premium Outlets nor at any of the 2,500 other Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic stores operated by San Francisco-based Gap Inc., according to People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals, better known as PETA.

"After PETA shared with Gap Inc. how small animals caught on glue traps suffer for days — tearing their flesh, breaking bones, and even trying to chew off limbs in an attempt to escape — the company not only removed but also banned the traps ..." PETA Spokesperson Moira Colley said Tuesday in a news release.

In thanks, PETA sent Gap Inc. a box of mouse-shaped vegan chocolates.

"By banning vile glue traps, Gap proves that it has a big heart for small animals," said Tracy Reiman, PETA's executive vice president. "PETA urges shoppers to speak up if they see a glue trap in any facility and to urge that place to follow Gap's merciful example."

A Gap spokesperson declined to comment about its ban on the traps.

PETA said Gap was not the first retailer to do so. The Home Depot, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Public Storage and U-Haul are among several hundred companies, airports and institutions with bans in place, according to PETA.

Further, dozens of retailers refuse to sell glue traps, PETA said.

According to PETA:

"It can take days for animals caught on glue traps to die from exhaustion, injury, dehydration, asphyxiation, or blood loss. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns against using glue traps, because animals caught on them continue to produce urine and feces, creating a health risk for humans. Glue traps also fail to address the source of the problem: If holes aren’t plugged up and attractants aren’t removed, more animals will simply move in to take the place of those who’ve been killed."

PETA on its website explains how to catch mice using live-bait traps and a dab of peanut butter and Loganberry. PETA then suggests releasing the animals within 100 yards of where they were trapped.