[Trapper91]

made my first beaver sets today. heres a picture of the first one. in between the sticks sticking straight out is about 14-16 inches. after the picture I bedded the trap a little better.

 

[Lackawanna Fox]

im not a beaver trapper but i did use a 330 here and there
looks very good

 

[dietsch]

looks like you are trying for a front foot with that water depth . ipoke sticks in front of the jaw ,not on the bank .when the beaver gets poked by those sticks and drops his feet he will already be over the trap and you will get him by belly fur .

 

[trapperrick]

Nice looking set, keep us updated on the progress.
BTW, it looks like spring has made it to your neck of the woods. Today was the first day it didn't snow here in the mountains in the past 5 days. Now were supposed to get another foot of snow on top of the 8 or 9 inches we have.

 

[Trapper91]

dietsch- i only have duke #3's and 1 bridger #3 thats why I thought it would be best to go for a front foot. the other castor mound sets i made today were in a little bit deeper water so i think they should be okay as far as not having the belly set it off. I assume thats what you mean by catching it in the belly since the water is only a couple inches deep in the picture?

trapperick- thank you, were supposed to get a couple inches tonight i guess. but thursday-saturday is supposed to be above freezing.

 

[dietsch]

dietsch- i only have duke #3's and 1 bridger #3 thats why I thought it would be best to go for a front foot. the other castor mound sets i made today were in a little bit deeper water so i think they should be okay as far as not having the belly set it off. I assume thats what you mean by catching it in the belly since the water is only a couple inches deep in the picture?

trapperick- thank you, were supposed to get a couple inches tonight i guess. but thursday-saturday is supposed to be above freezing.

i always go for front feet . you should place those poke sticks on the other side of the trap .those size traps will work fine , front or rear foot .

 

[ERH]

IMO move the trap back to deeper water try for the back foot #3 r fine for a back foot catch . and make sure trap is beded good so if they step on jaw dont move around . only reasone i try for front foot is if water is not deep enough to drowned them by the back foot. and dont be scared to make the mound visable so if he is swimming around he can see it . the castor mound is a teritoral thing and make the males mad . this is just my oppinon take it for what it is worth . good luck beaver trapping is one of my favorite

 

[Trapper91]

heres a little better view of the picture. the water around this creek is 3 feet deep straight off the bank, so i used my feet to stomp down a shelf to place my trap on. the shelf i made for the trap is 3-4 inches under water. how much further back do you want the trap for a back foot catch? the trap is probably two feet away from the castor mound now.

 

[Adam]

You want a front foot catch, imo. That way you can drown in less water as their head will be pointed down with their front foot being in the trap and at the end of the drowning cable. Plus the front foot is easier to get completely in the trap. Their hind feet are huge and if you're not using a big trap and they're not completely in it, they can get out.

Yes, if caught by a front foot they have the use of their hind legs to power out. I still prefer to catch them by the front foot.

 

[dietsch]

i would delete the picture now .rats are out of season and we can't keep incidentals ,which ,is STUPID

 

[Forestman3]

And thats another good reason to set for a backfoot this time of year.Nice catch though.

 

[Adam]

Forestman, good point.

 

[dietsch]

And thats another good reason to set for a backfoot this time of year.Nice catch though.

that is the only reason to set for a hind foot . however , takes less water and trap to drown one by a front foot . plus ,with the poke sticks you can get them lots easier by a front foot . i've drowned many in two feet of water that were caught by the front foot . as far as rats , mink , and coons go , just don't take a picture and run your mouth , dead animals tell no stories !