Gin Traps

"These are examples of 6 and 4 inch gin traps that were in general use throughout Ireland up to c1976 when their use was banned. The smaller 4" one was the normal one used to catch rabbits, rats etc while the much rarer 6" was suitable for catching foxes, badgers, otters, etc. I was a keen angler and enjoyed the company of otters on the prowl or playing on a gravel bed at the rivers edge. While fishing in the 1970's I found the enclosed trap set near an otter run and confiscated it as it was on my parents farm. I just could not bear to see one of these otters caught in this way so I removed the trap and it is now stored in my lock up shed along with the smaller one owned by my family. The name gin has uncertain origins and one suggestion is that it derived from being a mechanical tool and therefore classed as an engine and the gin part stuck."