Trapping thread

[Roo5]

Thread for the people who trap predators.
Didn’t think one was on here so I made this one so people can show what they have caught and give ideas.
It’ll be my first time trapping.I have a red fox in the area that I desperately need to get rid of and I’m hoping I’ll trap it.I know how uncommon it is but I’ve been researching and have found it’s possible.I personally want to shoot it,HOWEVER,the family wants to relocate it, but I’m afraid it’ll just travel back to its original territory.We planned on taking it about an hour maybe hour and a half away more so to the city.I honestly don’t care what happens to it, as long as it’s outta of our area and gone.Any tips on trapping and relocation of animals?

Even if I don’t catch the fox I still am interested to see what I catch.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

I used to do a lot of trapping. When I was a teenager and halfway into my 20s, back in the 1970s to the mid 80s, prime winter Rocky Mountain coons were $40 - $50 each, Red Fox was about the same, but Coyotes were $80 - $100 each. We didn't have to go through all the skinning, scraping, stretching, and washing back then. You could just throw them in the back of a pickup, and sell the frozen carcasses to various fur buyers, who would be parked in certain places at certain times throughout the week. Most Wyoming and Montana small towns had several buyers a week if you knew when and where to catch them. Kids like me who got pretty good at it, could almost always pick up a grand a week, or more, until it got warm enough for the fur to begin pulling.

We trapped what we could, but also used every other means we could to get even more. Even though coyotes were top dollar, we still made more on the coons. It was easier to get more. Foxes were a nice bonus if you came across one, but there weren't as many. Bobcats were real nice, up to $350 each, but they are extremely smart, hard to trap, and hard to hunt. 2 or 3 a season still made a nice chunk of change to a teen though - $350 would probably compare to $1000 now.

So what were the best ways to get them many ask. Well we trapped as stated above, but spotlighting got us the most coons. We sat our traps out a short walk off of backroads, but spotlighted the drive between areas where the traps were. We also used hounds at night to tree them. For coyotes, we set traps too, and wouldn't fail to shoot one if it turned up in a spotlight, but we got most in the daylight with speed. Speed is Greyhounds and Wolfhounds, dirt bikes and snowmobiles with scabbards, or a combination of the above. If the country was too rough, we called them too. If it was smooth enough, like a wheatfield, we'd just chase them with a pickup.

A lot of people ask what guns worked best. The right answer is a combination. The passenger needs to have 3 in reach at least, a 12ga with one ought for things that pop up close, or for when a chase is closing in. A small caliber .22Mag or .223 with a pretty quick action, pump, lever, or auto. for 100 yards and under, spot light range, or knocking a coon out of a tree (.22lr). And something flat and fast, .243, 250 Savage, .270, etc., something that will reach out to 600 - 800 yards. The driver just needs a reacher outer too, but if he has a second, then a quick repeater with some range, a mini 14, or AR in .223. A good dog in the back, my best was a Pit/Chessie, who if he knows his business will have the first coon or coyote faster than you can get out of the truck. A dog like this in your yard, that is trained to protect chickens, beats all the fences, traps, and firearms combined, hands down. The dog I have now is a 100lb Red Boned Coon Hound. I don't think he's ever seen a coyote or fox, but he trees coons, squirrels, possums, and housecats that get too close to his chicken friends. Friends who'll roost on him when he naps. The only official hunting he has ever done, is he has been on two Mountain Lion hunts as part of a pack, and helped my Son-in-law tree his Pope and Young (archery record) lion.

Let’s be real clear on the spot lighting and shooting from vehicles thing

I understand that you were talking about a different time, firstly...

But let’s remind folks to always check the local regulations... and understand that in many (most ? ) areas, shooting from a roadway is a violation of law....

And then let’s mention too that shooting from a vehicle onto a property that might have people or property that could be at danger can be irresponsible and dangerous, if not deadly...

We’ve had cattle killed and crippled by folks spotlighting and shooting from vehicles, I’ve had knuckleheads shoot toward me when I was in a tree stand near a country road, and I recall a somewhat recent story of a young man being killed when some looser shot from a road into his decoy set while he was goose hunting...

Let’s be clear when we talk about the good old days that we’re not recommending folks go do something irresponsible

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I’ve been researching and have found it’s possible.I personally want to shoot it,HOWEVER,the family wants to relocate it,

Hi there.

Relocating is illegal in most locations... and per your families concern, often an inhumane choice.

Shooting is considered a humane method to dispatch.

Yes, it's possible to catch a fox according to the folks I used to buy eggs from, who were expecting a raccoon one morning. Sorry, no further information other than a standard live catch cage likely baited with a carcass.

Have you lost animals to this pesky fox? Do you know if it's just one or a whole family? I sense your desperation and maybe hurt.

Consider adding an electric wire or two instead of trapping. It's usually an affordable option (maybe cheaper than gas to relocate them). Set at nose height and bait it. Very effective. Watch them tuck tail and run... or do they high tail it out of their?? probably depends on the animal. Most won't try it twice.

Best wishes whatever you need to do.

 

[centrarchid]

Thread for the people who trap predators.
Didn’t think one was on here so I made this one so people can show what they have caught and give ideas.
It’ll be my first time trapping.I have a red fox in the area that I desperately need to get rid of and I’m hoping I’ll trap it.I know how uncommon it is but I’ve been researching and have found it’s possible.I personally want to shoot it,HOWEVER,the family wants to relocate it, but I’m afraid it’ll just travel back to its original territory.We planned on taking it about an hour maybe hour and a half away more so to the city.I honestly don’t care what happens to it, as long as it’s outta of our area and gone.Any tips on trapping and relocation of animals?

Even if I don’t catch the fox I still am interested to see what I catch.

This is the second thread as I placed the other one in the wrong section and would like this thread to become something, and it’ll probably be more noticed in this area!

Check the Missouri wild life code linked below.

https://mdc.mo.gov/wildlife/nuisanc...ce-native-species/wildlife-control-guidelines
Pay particular attention to

DISPOSING OF TRAPPED PROBLEM WILDLIFE HUMANELY
Relocation not recommended

I think you will find that private individuals have very little legal recourse when it comes to moving and releasing wildlife away from point of capture when either point of capture or release is public land. I would catch and dispatch.

 

[Maugwa]

Thread for the people who trap predators.
Didn’t think one was on here so I made this one so people can show what they have caught and give ideas.
It’ll be my first time trapping.I have a red fox in the area that I desperately need to get rid of and I’m hoping I’ll trap it.I know how uncommon it is but I’ve been researching and have found it’s possible.I personally want to shoot it,HOWEVER,the family wants to relocate it, but I’m afraid it’ll just travel back to its original territory.We planned on taking it about an hour maybe hour and a half away more so to the city.I honestly don’t care what happens to it, as long as it’s outta of our area and gone.Any tips on trapping and relocation of animals?

Even if I don’t catch the fox I still am interested to see what I catch.

This is the second thread as I placed the other one in the wrong section and would like this thread to become something, and it’ll probably be more noticed in this area!

I used to do a lot of trapping. When I was a teenager and halfway into my 20s, back in the 1970s to the mid 80s, prime winter Rocky Mountain coons were $40 - $50 each, Red Fox was about the same, but Coyotes were $80 - $100 each. We didn't have to go through all the skinning, scraping, stretching, and washing back then. You could just throw them in the back of a pickup, and sell the frozen carcasses to various fur buyers, who would be parked in certain places at certain times throughout the week. Most Wyoming and Montana small towns had several buyers a week if you knew when and where to catch them. Kids like me who got pretty good at it, could almost always pick up a grand a week, or more, until it got warm enough for the fur to begin pulling.

We trapped what we could, but also used every other means we could to get even more. Even though coyotes were top dollar, we still made more on the coons. It was easier to get more. Foxes were a nice bonus if you came across one, but there weren't as many. Bobcats were real nice, up to $350 each, but they are extremely smart, hard to trap, and hard to hunt. 2 or 3 a season still made a nice chunk of change to a teen though - $350 would probably compare to $1000 now.

So what were the best ways to get them many ask. Well we trapped as stated above, but spotlighting got us the most coons. We sat our traps out a short walk off of backroads, but spotlighted the drive between areas where the traps were. We also used hounds at night to tree them. For coyotes, we set traps too, and wouldn't fail to shoot one if it turned up in a spotlight, but we got most in the daylight with speed. Speed is Greyhounds and Wolfhounds, dirt bikes and snowmobiles with scabbards, or a combination of the above. If the country was too rough, we called them too. If it was smooth enough, like a wheatfield, we'd just chase them with a pickup.

A lot of people ask what guns worked best. The right answer is a combination. The passenger needs to have 3 in reach at least, a 12ga with one ought for things that pop up close, or for when a chase is closing in. A small caliber .22Mag or .223 with a pretty quick action, pump, lever, or auto. for 100 yards and under, spot light range, or knocking a coon out of a tree (.22lr). And something flat and fast, .243, 250 Savage, .270, etc., something that will reach out to 600 - 800 yards. The driver just needs a reacher outer too, but if he has a second, then a quick repeater with some range, a mini 14, or AR in .223. A good dog in the back, my best was a Pit/Chessie, who if he knows his business will have the first coon or coyote faster than you can get out of the truck. A dog like this in your yard, that is trained to protect chickens, beats all the fences, traps, and firearms combined, hands down. The dog I have now is a 100lb Red Boned Coon Hound. I don't think he's ever seen a coyote or fox, but he trees coons, squirrels, possums, and housecats that get too close to his chicken friends. Friends who'll roost on him when he naps. The only official hunting he has ever done, is he has been on two Mountain Lion hunts as part of a pack, and helped my Son-in-law tree his Pope and Young (archery record) lion.

 

[Trish1974]

Aren't foxes nocturnal? Probably should check like early in the morning or late in the evening. Or unless it's rabid and wandering around during the day.

It's a big misconception that fox are strictly nocturnal. I see the most fox activity between daybreak and noon. Nor does it mean they are rabid.

 

[cmom]

It isn't easy to catch a fox.

 

[Roo5]

Were dispatching it, I will not get in trouble over this

 

[Maugwa]

Let’s be real clear on the spot lighting and shooting from vehicles thing

I understand that you were talking about a different time, firstly...

But let’s remind folks to always check the local regulations... and understand that in many (most ? ) areas, shooting from a roadway is a violation of law....

And then let’s mention too that shooting from a vehicle onto a property that might have people or property that could be at danger can be irresponsible and dangerous, if not deadly...

We’ve had cattle killed and crippled by folks spotlighting and shooting from vehicles, I’ve had knuckleheads shoot toward me when I was in a tree stand near a country road, and I recall a somewhat recent story of a young man being killed when some looser shot from a road into his decoy set while he was goose hunting...

Let’s be clear when we talk about the good old days that we’re not recommending folks go do something irresponsible

Nope I wouldn't recommend that people do anything illegal, dangerous, or irresponsible. I haven't done any of this stuff for years either. But also keep in mind that where I grew up was in the least densely populated county in the least densely populated state in the US. My father's ranch was smaller than most of his friend's and neighbor's ranches, where we were welcome and even coaxed to come shoot coyotes. My dad only had 24,000 acres, and about the same in BLM leases. Many of our neighbors had over 100,000 acres, and 3/4s of the roads we used were private ranch roads, not county roads. Also, a good portion of our spot lighting for coons was done with portable spot lights while walking creek bottoms with a dog. And for the few coons we did see from county roads, to shoot them legally, we left the roadway to shoot. The coons you see from a road are usually in a tree, or running to a tree, and the trees are not growing in the right of way, or the barrow pit. If your dog doesn't get them before they get to the tree, the best way to shoot those is walk to the tree with a .22 that has a Mag light mounted under the barrel and knock them down with a short range shot that's hard to miss. My best stop like this was a lone tree that had 14 coons in it, it lit up like a Christmas tree, and my dog got 4 more on the ground. That was $900 in maybe 15 minutes.

This was a part of the world where if you broke down and walked to a hill a few miles down the road, you could consider yourself lucky if you could see a yard light as far as you could see in any direction. We didn't have cell phones back then, but now that we do, they still only work in maybe 25% or less of the state. I'd never recommend or teach anybody how to slide a TT500 Yamaha under barbed wire, scabbard side up, on purpose, even though I was once good at it. And I sure would never want one of my grandkids tying himself to the back of a bull either. I don't know how I got lucky enough to get old, but I learned a few things about trapping along the way, and recommended a guard dog.

Some parts I left out of that first post also were, no matter how good you get at trapping, or how far in the boonies you get, figure on catching more ferrel house cats than anything, and if you are within a few miles of any neighbors add domestic dogs and cats too. Also, territory is a life and death matter to predators, if you catch one and release it anywhere, it will either be killed for invading another's territory, or have to kill to claim it's new territory. Live traps save no lives (other than a house cat you let out, who doesn't get ran over on his way home), they just make your wives feel better about trapping.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Besides, rather help decrease the large population of the stupid things.

I can't help but wonder why you hate them so bad? Are they really stupid? The term sly as a fox suggests otherwise.

I value living in a bio-diverse environment that includes black bear, mountain lion, and all sorts of other predators. Take out all the top predators, watch the smaller varmints run rampant.

I understand we all need to protect what is ours and do what think is right... I don't understand a kill them all attitude.