zak123

It is amazing that I can't even ask a question without being put down. I don't care if you trap, heck I would even like to start. No hard feelings.

trapperDave

None taken. As stated above most animals are caught in water sets set on drowning wires which results in a quick humane death. Many animals caught on land are asleep when the trapper arrives. Properly set and sized traps cause extremely little to no discomfort. Same for properly set snares with relaxing locks, have caught a hounddog or two over the years(even my own) and they were sitting there calmly as if on a leash, the exception being if snares are set in a fence the fox or coyote often hangs themselves jumping over the fence. NEVER set fence snares where a domestic dog might find it.

trapperDave

Forgot to mention that wildlife agencies nationwide use foothold traps to catch critters such as otter (for one example) to be transplanted to areas where there are few or none for the purpose of restocking and/or expanding there range.

justhuntitall

Iam not a trapper I have played around with a few sets when I was young. But a trapper Iam not but to all you hunters that think trapping isnt sporting your dead wrong .
Its as much of as a chess game as hunting buck deer
And if you want to know where that big buck deer lives ask a trapper he more then likely knows he spends more time in the brush then most hunters

zak123

I thought the trap broke the leg. I did find one in the woods.

trapperDave

Nope. A proper sized and set trap does no damage other than occasional slight swelling as long as traps are checked regularly. I know a professional coyote trapper in my area that traps across the country for yotes to sell to the live market and they will not take them if their is ANY damage to the animal.

DelcoJim

why Trap? same reason you do most things because it is fun, other reasons might be you like the outdoors and would like to spend more time there , then there is outwitting your quarry,getting rid of pests, making a few dollars, although making money is not all that easy and requires a certain level of expertise
we used to get up early in the am. to get all the traps checked before school, its great being out on a cold day before any lights are on, you know the same feeling when your hunting and and no other hunters have made it to the woods yet and you fell like you have the whole place to your self? well while trapping you most likely will have the whole place to yourself as there are not near as many trappers as hunters, nothing but the stars and the animals stirring , or your down by the water with the brook gurgling looking to see if your set is disturbed, smelling the earth thru nose hairs with frost on them, even the farmers aren't up yet
i remeber the smells more than anything , the smell of my Dad smoking during a break with the smell of swamp mud wafting from the holes my feet just punched in to the mud just a short break the tide was on the way in lots of traps to still check. Dad loved it , he never hunted,that i knew, just trapped . and he was good at it. But you are almost always good at what you like to do
I just helped check the line and skina few Muskrats, he did all the real work , Like lugging burlap bags full of traps to the swamp , and lugging burlap bags ful of rats back out, and sometimes lugging me out too. Ahhh the smell of bulap bags with swamp mud on them . brings a tear to my eye thinking about those days , I miss him but i'm sure there are liberal bag limits and long seasons in heaven

hunter9022

The only trapping i do is pest control. My aunt had some racoons living in their attic, so when they would catch one in the trap i would go get it and take care of it for them, other than that though i dont trap, not as fun to me.

Hiawatha

I am a die hard beaver trapper and i work dang hard for my game. Scout areas just as you would for hunting, study where they are sliding, chewing etc. Set the trap up in such a way that you are able to outwitt the animal into it. Its not just as easy as drop a trap off and thats it. The trap has to be angled, and have just the right amount of water flowing through it otherwise they won't co operate. I get a big satisfaction out of trapping in fact just as much as hunting. There is nothin like checking the line in the morning and walking up to that trap and seeing a beaver in it. A beaver with you have outwitted, and ethically taken. If your not into it shuler thats fine but ya don't need to piss and moan on here about how its not ethical.

PAhunter86

You go turkey hunting, how do you think that gobbler feels when that hen that he wants ends up being a decoy? Lights out for him, but you worked hard for it most likely.

Just like trapping, its hard work and you earn what you trap.