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Post by trappnman on Mar 4, 2008 17:34:17 GMT -6
nepisiguit- I'm convinced, that coon are doing this more with their noses in soft dirt, not their paws. I've gotten enough nose caught coon over the years that one day the bulb wnet off....
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Post by NEPISIGUIT on Mar 4, 2008 21:32:55 GMT -6
Thanks Steve
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Post by Jeffrey on Mar 5, 2008 0:13:14 GMT -6
What about the trap that is still in the bed but sprung, what usually does that? This fall I had a patern miss on a yote and he dug up my bait but never set off the trap, he was less than an inch from the pan, then a second trap forty feet away was sitting in its bed sprung with the bait dug out, that trap was a #3 DL with a paws-I set up. I think I had my pan tensions to high and I'm going back to a liter tension this year. The coyotes I caught were all on a liter tensioned trap and I'm quite sure it cost me some insidentals, but it's hard when setting a field and you have a 100 blasted turkeys in it, you want to have enough tension to keep them out if at all possible.
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Post by foxcatcher1 on Mar 5, 2008 4:18:18 GMT -6
Usually, this is usually, a trap fired but still in its bed is caused by:
A.) Too light of pan tension on an improperly tuned trap B.) Freeze thaw conditions on a trap that is: a.) light tension b.) short notched or night latched C.) Rain or heavy mud on pan.
The one I expierience the most is B.
Don
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Post by trappnman on Mar 5, 2008 7:58:33 GMT -6
I always thought that a trapped snapped, sititng exactly in it's bed, couldn't possibly be a coyote.
Snow showed me I was wrong.....
but I agree, most are from improperly adjusted traps.
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Post by Zagman on Mar 5, 2008 8:26:41 GMT -6
Steve.....could it be the trap snapped off by itself and the coyote came in afterwards, worked the set, and the trap (which means nothing to the coyote, just a piece of junk) was simply ignored?
In other words, trap snaps off on its own at midnight, coyote comes on by at 3AM......it would be pretty hard to tell either way.
I know I have had the same thing happen......usually, though, its deer setting off the trap, then the coyote coming in after.
I always wanted to believe it was a coyote, a smart one, diggin me out!
With experience, and some common sense/realism, I can generally figure out what happened and not simply write them all off as pullouts or super smart diggers!
Still, even this year, had a handful of situations that I could simply not figure out. Trap set off, and some small, miniscule, un-identifiable piece of hair or two, no tracks, nothing.......
I mentioned this before: Ronco or someone needs to invent a little device that plugs into the lighter, you throw in those miniscules, unidentifiable little hairs, and it spits out the type of animal.
They'd sell.........12 of them!
Zagman
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Post by trappnman on Mar 5, 2008 8:53:20 GMT -6
could it be the trap snapped off by itself and the coyote came in afterwards, worked the set, and the trap (which means nothing to the coyote, just a piece of junk) was simply ignored?
I have no doubt thats the case most of the time. I believe I told you about it one day when we were talking. Yes, it could well have snapped on its own (it was no other animal, had 2 day snow on it) althoguh the trap was set a few days (montanas) before this occurred. Most traps that self snap, do it early on I've found.
but you are correct- it sure could have.
Still, even this year, had a handful of situations that I could simply not figure out. Trap set off, and some small, miniscule, un-identifiable piece of hair or two, no tracks, nothing.......
I just knew that there was another coyote trapper out there that had this occur besides me.
puzzles me also- possums are one culprit I beleive, getting tossed out of trap, just catching a few belly hairs. I get this soft black fuzz at some of these, that seems to be possum underfur.
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Post by Jeffrey on Mar 5, 2008 11:38:50 GMT -6
I know I had some green horns on my line this year and they stepped on some sets I think, what do you guys do about all the turkeys? This year I also night latched most of my traps and I think they ended up with too much pan tension, I set them with 3 lbs. on the pan and I think that was too much after they are set because I guess it will only increase from there and not get any lighter, plus back buy the dog it is even worse probably.
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Post by Zagman on Mar 5, 2008 12:23:32 GMT -6
When I rode with PSB1011 this fall, he got an unexpected snow. We'd walk up to a trapped fox and I kept stepping on the other set, that I could not see under the snow.
Heck, I'm a coyote trapper, not a PA fox trapper......my sets are more than two feet apart!
Felt like a little kid....kept getting yelled at!
MZ
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Post by trappnman on Mar 5, 2008 12:26:46 GMT -6
thats how I felt on one KS location where I strung a line of snares in small area- seems like everytime I tunred around, I was knocking something down...
what do you guys do about all the turkeys?
luckily, most turkey catches seem to be one toe for me, and all I get is the toe. Did release 3 this year.
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Post by foxcatcher1 on Mar 6, 2008 3:02:09 GMT -6
We don't have the turkey poputation that you guys do. I have yet to catch a turkey. I've caught cultures and some other big birds, but never turkeys.
Don
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Post by trappnman on Mar 6, 2008 9:28:23 GMT -6
easy to release- like a tied down jet plane most times- reach up and release the trap, and away they go.... this one didn't fly at the trap, but did as soon as released.
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Post by Jeffrey on Mar 6, 2008 10:53:50 GMT -6
Zags, I can under stand stepping on a trap in snow, but when you see a dirt hole and you're a trapper and you walk up to it and step on the trap bed, that's another story. Our biggest problem is we have two weeks of early yote season and then a month of firearms season on deer and then two weeks of mussel loading season after that and by then snow, so if you don't get most of your coyotes in the first two weeks you are out of luck.
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Post by trappnman on Mar 6, 2008 10:57:15 GMT -6
We have deer season from Nov 1st or so, until mid december of some type of gun hunting. bow of course opens 2 months earlier.
here at least, one can work around the actual locations, but we still cannot change the overall disturbances.
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Post by Jeffrey on Mar 6, 2008 11:16:51 GMT -6
After the first week of gun season, yotes are real hard to come by, they are on the run most of the time. The bow season doesn't seem to bother them but gun season is another story. Coyotes are generally shot on sight and left in the woods during gun season.
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