I wondered if that was a roof rat/black rat. I have heard they are more common in the South. Maybe they need more mild weather, like you have, to be common. I've only seen Norway rats here. We are supposed to have small populations of pack rats and black rats. I think it would be neat to see what you could find in a pack rat midden in a populated area.

The black rats are supposed to be better climbers. I've seen Norway rats climb as fast as squirrels. Do the black rats jump when climbing, like squirrels do?

Keith

And don't forget Truman was saddled with the legacy of FDR who had appeased the Soviets while giving Truman the mushroom treatment prior to his death. The same FDR that was in the process of being canonized in US history.

Only Churchill among world leaders was realist enough to see what needed to be done but he couldn't go it alone, and the british people would see him out in short order.

And it’s photo shopped.

I wish President Trump would have drones take out all the call centers in India, Pakisran, Bangladesh and every foreign country, that prey on Americans, even though I know it's not feasible to do so.

Keith

....this year? Wife and I are considering taking a trip out east and IF it works out swinging by Neil's convention.
Thanks ahead of time

Dad would take me on his back at 3 years old in 1967 been doing it every year since . First coon on my own was 5 years old. First fox was at 7 years old

I'd like to make up some castor based bobcat lure with catnip. any thoughts on ratio of ground castor to catnip oil? How about artificial catnip vs. authentic - any difference in effectiveness?

I bakes a couple das ago also. I think next week I will do the bread loaf tins and see how it works.

The last couple of times I eliminate the ovah night rest/proofing in fridge part. I start the dough after lunch and go through the stretching process then before bed I do the last stretch and into the Dutch Oven bowl. I cover and set on counter and bake in the morning. I have been getting excellent proofing/rise doing it this way. Here is the bake.

Keg Creek.

Hopefully you post some updates and pics. I can imagine it looks like a different world from what I'm used to trapping here in the West.

That looks like a Mills Fleshing Machine. Impeller model. After seeing a guy use one at a fur dealer’s place, I wanted one. About 5 years ago, I bought one (vibrating knife model) that had been owned by Ludy Sheda. It was then owned by Neil Ziegman of Z-Traps. I bought it from Neil.

It took about 7-8 small coon to catch on how to use it without tearing holes. Neil gave good instructions but, well, I guess I’m a slow learner. I think I did ~60 coon with it before I sold it to Dean Bartz of Iowa. Dean and his son, have fleshed literally thousands of coon on this type of flesher.

As has been said by those who actually use them, it’s much easier on the hands and shoulders. Plus, it gives a very clean pelt. On the down side, it’s slower than fleshing with a Necker, Caribou, or the other sharp fleshing knives on the market. You still have to comb out all burrs, etc. it’s easier to do coon tails on these machines. These cones can be used for otters. If you skin beavers cased, you can scrape them on these cones too. But it takes some doing to hold them tight to the cone and may not be worth the time.

You might want to buy it just to fiddle around with it and see if you can improve on its performance. Dean Bartz (Eedup) may be able to help you understand how to make this machine a work saver for you. He’s a decent guy to connect with

Sounds good.

The fellow I got it from worked for the pipeline. I can only guess that he got them somewhere along a pipeline route, but I doubt that narrows things down very much.