Spring Beaver Fever Thread

[coonboy]

Do you set every place that has water or just if it has sign? I've neever done the spring beaver thing and was going to try it this year. thanks

[4fur]

Best to set sign, coonboy. But unless you're on an established colony, beaver often leave little sign this time of year as compared to early fall when they are working on their winter caches. I'll set any water flowage with water deep enough for beaver to swim. Wish I would have taken a "before" picture of this set I made yesterday. Steep, featureless dike with virtually no food source and absolutely no sign of beaver life around. Put in a trench type castor set and added an imported 2 foot long peeled stick and a 5 foot willow that I roughed up with my knife for eye appeal to draw them close enough to the set to smell the castor. This river is a mile from my house and I figured if a 2 year old migrated by I would see the catch from the bridge while driving by daily. Didn't have to wait long because I had this guy waiting for me today.

[coonboy]

Thanks. Any damage from the snares?

[~ADC~]

Nice looking catches there guys!

Coonboy, there will be a line on the leather side of the pelt from the snare, but it may not be anything that will dock you at the fur buyers. There are ways to lessen the marks as well by using the proper cable, lock, swivels, loop sizes, loop heights, ect... I've been experimenting with snares for many years and they are not all made equally. It really depends on the situation you're in and if you want to dispatch with the snare, drown with the snare, or hold the animals alive in the snares. There are many set ups that would catch the beaver but some are better than others at reducing the mark the snare may leave on the pelt. It's a matter of personal preference (sometimes based on the area where you are trapping) as to which method you'd choose. For example if the water is too shallow to drown them then you couldn't use a drowning set up, obviously. If there are several potential beavers in the area you may not want to hold them on a short snare on the bank or they can/do get bit up....

A good rule of thumb though is to use the smallest loops you can to target neck catches this keeps the snare off the more valuable areas of the pelt. I prefer a 8-10" wide loop with a fast loaded snare for beaver but I'm not a big time beaver trapper. I just base this on my limited experiance and my more vast knowlege of how snares work.

Also, a larger cable (3/32") won't leave as bad of a mark generally speaking as say smaller 1/16" cable in live catch situations because the cable ride atop the fur more and doesn't cut through the fur and cinch so tightly against the leather. However in drowning and entanglement situations the smaller cable will often work faster to dispatch the beavers thus less struggle means less bruising.

Relaxing locks on live caught beavers would be better to lessen bruising as well but be careful they don't relax too much according to a very good beaver trapper the beavers can and will use their back foot to push that loop right off their heads....

Most of this stuff will apply to snaring most animals.

~ADC~

[Scott W.]

Also, Newt Sterling recommends massaging the snare line area right after you dispatch the animal to move the blood away from the "bruise" Scott

[4fur]

I pulled about everything yesterday and today ahead of the rain we have forecasted. Some action from this week:


























Here is a pretty ideal spot for a castor mound set using a submerged 330. Had to dig a little to completely submerge the trap but the water beyond the trap is deep enough that the beaver has to swim into the set so there is less chance of them trying to climb over the trap as frequently happens with some of the larger, smarter ones.





I've taken 3 from this particular set so far.







A closer shot of the set shows the secret luring method, notice the oil slick? "Come and get it!"







I know coonboy is snaring some beaver, anyone else still after them?

[Eric Rector]

I got 9 so far, mix of snaring and 330's. My question is, I purchased some tall H-supports for 330's this year and I am not at all impressed with their strength. The are getting all bent to crap when a big one gets in there. Do they do this all the time or did I just get some cheap ones???

[nailbender]

Catching a few on the short-line. Mostly footholds, threw in a few snares today for a wise one that needs to go. One more check and then take the week off. Ten in the shed so far.

[Scott W.]

Still getting a few. Footholds doing their work on the rivers, 330's in the dammed up areas.

[4fur]

Mar 22, 2009 13:17:06 GMT -6 Eric Rector said:

I got 9 so far, mix of snaring and 330's. My question is, I purchased some tall H-supports for 330's this year and I am not at all impressed with their strength. The are getting all bent to crap when a big one gets in there. Do they do this all the time or did I just get some cheap ones???

Don't know what the problem is except quit catching such big beaver, ou812! Are the 330's stout or old weaker ones? Also, I just set my tall stabilizers in deep water and use stakilizers and the regular "H" supports for castor mounds and shallower blind sets. The deeper the water, the quicker they expire. Also, I don't use any sticks to help stabilize the set since it's usually solid enough especially if I push the springs down into the mud or sides of the run. I have two different types of tall ones, one with short legs and one with longer legs. I've never had either bend. The only problem I've had with them is from the floods the last two springs.

[jim blakley aka Gadget]

Started setting my line out today set 16 traps at 14 stops will set tomarrow and tues. then check on wed. Its nice to be out "on the line" again. All sets are 330's at scent mounds.

[coyoteboy]

I have never set a trap or anything for beavers. I was wondering when you said the oil is the trick. What is the oil don't mean to sound stupid but I don't know jack about trapping beavers.

[coonboy]

Snared 3 today. I'll be by myself tomorrow, the big guy has kinderganden.

[jdrogge]

A couple pics from this weekend, threw a few snares out






had the whole crew with this morning

[jim blakley aka Gadget]

Trapline Pic's with kids are the best !!! thanks...

[jdrogge]

a couple from today, some before and after

[jdrogge]

happy kids

[~ADC~]

Nice pictures!!!

JD them center swivels you made look like they are working flawlessly!

~ADC~

[bobafett]

Spring seems to be hear nice and early in NE Iowa. Even caught a couple dozen suckers on the Upper iowa yesterday.
How do you guys decide when its time to stop spring beaver trapping?

[jdrogge]

I've got a freezer most of the way full of them right now, so for me its time to stop when I decide I'm not gonna want to skin any more than that. The fur is still looking good and I've only had one 2yr old that had a couple bites.

[4fur]

I like the before and after pictures, JD. And your son's boots! Here is a before that I set yesterday and the catch today.









This was a wise old beaver with about 2000 acres and a network of drainage ditches he used to avoid me. Made my day catching that SOB!

[jdrogge]

It's always a good feeling to bag a smart one, there are few critters tougher to catch than a beaver who has had a few close calls. That Hancock is a cool piece of gear!

[4fur]

Mar 22, 2009 18:43:34 GMT -6 coyoteboy said:

I have never set a trap or anything for beavers. I was wondering when you said the oil is the trick. What is the oil don't mean to sound stupid but I don't know jack about trapping beavers.

You'll have to wait for the ITT book, CB. It really shines on the coon line!

Hey JD, is that your basic snare set? Do you always set the snare that far from the water or has the water level dropped after setting the snare?

The Hancocks are pushing $400 now but I've taken 8 $75 beaver in them so far this spring. All 8 had seen bodygrips, snares, lured and blind, the last one since last October. I really feel like most of the 8 would still be swimming without utilizing the Hancock. As they say, good equipment doesn't cost, it pays!

[jdrogge]

Thats pretty much my standard setup, I do like to set my snare a few inches up from the waters edge generally. Those pics are a little deceiving, thats along the Little Sioux river, those banks behind the pics are nearly vertical and in the second pic its about 8ft down. I could get down there but I'm not sure how I'd get back up ;D the bank conditions are horrible this year, the top 4 or 5in of the bank wall are thawed and muddy and under that its still frozen solid, I've taken some pretty good rides down some of those banks already this year. In the fall the few spots that I coon trap on the river I'll slide down the bank and then take my tile spade and cut footholds to climb back up, thats not a option this spring the way the banks are. I'm mostly trapping roaming beaver this spring, and have only set on sign in a few spots, mostly what I've been doing is going below the bridges and making crawlouts with my tile spade and slapping a castor mound or some peeled sticks above it and guarding the crawlout with a snare. The river beaver don't get messed with a whole lot around here so they stay pretty dumb, just the way I like them , but when I get into the smaller creek colonies the farmers have generally had people after them in the past and they are no dummies.

[cooner]

might try snaring a smart beaver that well not go in a 330 castor mound,i pulled 330 and caught one a few days earlier,that because of guide sticks did not make it away more than a foot from set,it was a brute size and bit up from another beaver who is educated probly by his dead buddy and lure,has a couple kinda trails close by and was thinking of putting a few guide sticks and a snare and some lure,does anyone know how to easily rig a snare on a drowner?

[cp]

Spring break was good to me. 1 week. 14 beaver. All Snared.
Hope the pic's work
Best Day 5

50 lber

[braveheart]

This time of year I set every big creek for roaming beaver.Don't even look for sign.Dig out a v and slap a drowning bar and a snare a shot of lure. And go to the next spot.Wish they were worth something.

[jdrogge]

Went out and put a few snares out this morning, took some before pics hopefully tomorrow I'll have some after pics.

[4fur]

When I do before I usually jinx myself for the after!

I set a few blind 330's on a good dispersal creek where
it's so shallow I usually have to work the bottom with a
tile spade to get the 330 submerged. Here is some action from today.










And one in a snare...




And the tailgate shot...

[4fur]

I'm finding out a guy can get a little too cute trying to
neck snare beaver. This one worked out great this
morning.





But had two snares knocked down and another
laying empty in the middle of a catch circle up on
the bank where apparently he worked it off it's
head. Still got a couple but someday I'll learn
that experimenting on bounty beaver usually costs
me time and money!