Spring Trapping!!!!!

[The Spruce]

Well the day has come...Otter, Beaver, Muskrat and Bear beware.
More to come.

Feel free to fill a tread with pictures for a change, enough words.
I'll post a few, likely commencing tomorrow some time.

Spruce

[HunterDave]

Well, now that you have everyone worked up into a frenzy, lets have it!

I got a call from a landowner around suppertime who was looking for some help with a beaver problem so I drove over to have a look. It turns out that he has a nice sized creek running along one whole quarter of his land with multiple lodges on it. The good news......it's infested and in an hour of sitting I shot three but one sank. The bad news......They're already rubbed and the ice only came off a few days ago! What's up with that? The rucksack was heavy climbing out of that ravine tonight!

[jeffreys 21234]

Now that the creeks are opened up in central sask once water level goes down with be hitting the creeks hard with 330

[Marty S]

Dave, the secret is deep water beaver. Stay away from shallow water and you will take a much better quality beaver.

Shallow water beaver fur takes a beating every time they'd leave the hole, they push out and hit the bottom with their bellies, hit the sides of their shallow water runs, etc. A deep water beaver launches out of his hole and his fur simply pushes water.

[Bushmaster]

No sign of rubbing yet.

[nube]

Dave %85 of the time if you go back the next day the ones that have sunk will be floating and just fine to retreive. I usually get them the next day easily

[The Spruce]

Originally Posted by Marty S

Dave, the secret is deep water beaver. Stay away from shallow water and you will take a much better quality beaver.

Shallow water beaver fur takes a beating every time they'd leave the hole, they push out and hit the bottom with their bellies, hit the sides of their shallow water runs, etc. A deep water beaver launches out of his hole and his fur simply pushes water.

This. I find small creeks/rivers the worst, as throughout the winter the water level goes down. At some point they start sticking to the ice everywhere and ripping the guard hairs out.

The colony you are talking about sounds like they may have been starving as well, or lost all water in the winter.

Spruce

[HunterDave]

Originally Posted by Marty S

Dave, the secret is deep water beaver. Stay away from shallow water and you will take a much better quality beaver.

Shallow water beaver fur takes a beating every time they'd leave the hole, they push out and hit the bottom with their bellies, hit the sides of their shallow water runs, etc. A deep water beaver launches out of his hole and his fur simply pushes water.

That makes sense unless they chewed a hole and spent time above the ice. I had one spot this Spring where that was happening but the fur was fine. This location isn’t much different than other spots that I trap so I’m thinking that there was a log or something else that they had to rub against going in and out of their lodge. Everywhere else is mud or fine gravel. Anyway, traps are going out tomorrow and I’ll see what the others look like.

Nube, I know about them floating back up but thanks. I might get lucky but I think that one’s gone. The water is moving pretty fast and the dams have breaks in them now. I’ll look again tomorrow anyway though.

[nube]

Beavers were out in full force last night. Got 9 with the 22 in a few hrs. Castors were full and leaking when I was carrying them out so that was a good sign. Got to love hunting Beavs!