Four more rats and a beaver

May 2, 2013 - Headed out Thursday night to make a check of our sets and to see if the muskrat Conibear sticks worked. This time I made it without incidence - no break and enters and no RCMP. At our first sets on the ranch, the first thing I noticed was the water level was down; in fact, quite a bit down as the first Conibear stick was well above the water without anything in it. However, the carrot was still attached to the trigger. I pulled the trap, intending to move it. My next Conibear stick held a muskrat but the third one I had set here was also empty, albeit sprung. I reset the traps and now had three set along the beaver dam.

Looking around, I found what appeared to be two runs where the muskrats were entering a bank den. I returned to my truck and came back with two funnel traps and placed one in each of the runs. The lone beaver trap I'd left set here was empty, confirming my thoughts that we'd caught the only beaver left here. My suspicion is the rancher had shot the rest; in fact, I'd bet on it.

The first muskrat in a Conibear stick trap.

The next property I checked had three Conibear sticks set beside the road near the culvert where I had previously caught the four rats in the funnel trap. The water was still going through the culvert too fast to get the funnel trap back in. Of my three Conibear sticks, two were snapped but one held a big adult muskrat.

A big adult male muskrat caught perfectly. I had to pry the carrot out of his mouth.

Notice the trigger on one of the empty traps. How did it get caught between the bar of the trap like that?

While I was re-setting the Conibear sticks, the female beaver still left in the house was challenging me with tail slaps as I worked. It was early evening and she was out doing her business. She was now making a mockery of my set, swimming directly in front of it. She is a smart old beaver and now trap-shy. I left the trap up, hoping for a vagrant beaver that may be traveling through but knowing full well she won't be in it on my next check.

Notice my trap in the foreground. She knows it's bad business and is staying away.

Older beavers can sense danger much better than younger ones.

Next up was the spot Dakota had found and where we had two beaver sets and two muskrat sets. We'd already taken two beaver out of this spot, but it is tough work here, as the closest you can get with the truck is about 300 yards. As soon as I came into view of the first trap, I knew I would be slugging another beaver up the trail to my truck. We now had beaver number three from this spot. And lo and behold, both Conibear sticks held muskrats.

Beaver number two from this trap, number three from this spot.

Dakota and I will be back in a couple of days to find out how our funnels traps made out and to see if we can't add to our spring muskrat and beaver catch. We probably only have another week before the rats are chewed up too bad to harvest and the beaver will begin rubbing soon.

Until next time!