[TMT]

I'm having fair success on coyotes this year and I'm not having any problems getting them to work my sets. I am however having a LOT of misses because of trap placement. Maybe its the way I construct my sets - I am placing the trap so the pan is 8" back and about 2" off-centered to the right of the hole. Most of the misses where I can see tracks the coyotes right foot is at about 5-6" back and 4-5" to the right and the left foot is at about 6" back and placed close to the front left hand side of the hole.

I've included a couple of pictures of this dirthole set that was worked over last night. It is taken at an angle from the front-right of the hole. You can see where I placed a stick to mark where the front of the trap is placed - the pan is about 1.5 inches to the right of that stick and an inch or so back towards the camera. You can also see the yotes foot placement which I am finding typical of my misses at the dirtholes I construct.

Do I need to close off the area in front of the trap more? Should I set my traps over to the right more and closer to the hole? You can see in the picture where the yote put all of his weight on the front right foot when he stole my bait.

 

[trappnman]

Do you have any guides such as rocks or clumps of dirt that I can't see under the snow? To be honest- it doesn't look like the canine is avoiding the set- just that the canine got lucky. If this is the case, a few pebbles and other guides around the trap to direct the foot would be in order. Hard to believe this trap wasn't fired. What traps are you using?.....trappnman

 

[TMT]

Guides

Steve,

The traps are modified Bridger #3's - you cant see them but there are sticks beneath the snow that make a tepee of sorts with the hole being the point of the teepee - I use the sticks to help prevent access from the right or left of the hole - his right paw is directly to the inside of one of those sticks. Than I used subtle ridges in front of and next to the pan - if you look closely you can see that the pan/trap is in the lowest position available at the set.

I felt that this one got really lucky myself - but we've had snow for over a week now and all my misses have had similar trap placement with the tracks in about the same position. I think I might move the stick on the right closer to the trap - If I wasn't having any success I'd be getting steamed but I dont like to be outsmarted and tend to take it personally

I will try to use some stones where his tracks are and see if that forces a catch - hes gotten 2 muskrats carcasses from this hole in the past 2 weeks so I think he is pretty comfy with the location and has no fear of being trapped here.

Andy