I didn't want to take the chance of my fur slipping, I guess I should have though. The hides would have probably froze in there due to the extreme cold. We had plenty of days in the single digits. That's besides the point. I took a chance and I lost. I don't want any other trappers to get took like I did. It's better it happned to me than a kid.

This post is about me getting .60 cents a hide for my GREEN FUR as I have said multiple times and you should know since you obviously spend alot of time on here considering you have over 7,000 thousand post on this website. There are plenty of good folks on here but we all don't have time to live on the internet. Some of us like to get outdoors every now and then.

cfowler, I think you hit it right here in my opinion. "Without a minimum or a No Sale option, the buyer is not compelled to offer more." I'm not saying it's the association's fault but why would I bring my fur to sell somewhere knowing that if there arn't any buyers interested at the moment that they give it away?

I would like to hear an answer to wissmiss question,which was,how much other green fur sold at this sale and what were the results\prices\avg.
Was all other green fur discounted to near worthless,or only some.Or was there no intrest in green fur and it was all let go to the first offer just to move it?

The negative comments regarding out-of-state fur are simply unfounded. Several of those who sell their finished fur through the WVTA auction are from Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Virginia. As a matter of fact, a high percentage of our Select and/or Heavy graded Coyotes come from Ohio. Also, at least one gentleman from Ohio regularly receives a Fur Handler's Award for his well put-up fur. And interestingly enough, the XL Bobcat from Pennsylvania actually brought $2 more than our WV XL Bobcat at the sale. That being said, our members of the WVTA Fur Committee do the best we can. There have been many sales in which 3 graders have worked nearly round the clock for 2 days to grade well over 15,000 pieces of fur. This sale was well below our average, with only about 6,000 pieces graded (plus roots, horns, etc.). Knowing we have no control over fur prices is disheartening to us all especially when prices are low across the board. And with green fur, it's especially disheartening. As I said before, some of the green fur was in very good shape, while others were pretty bad. We had 17 lots of green fur at the March sale. Prices for that green fur ranged from $1 (for the entire lot) to $550 (for the entire lot). There were 17 total buyers at the sale, and 8 buyers purchasing green fur. Also, as I said before, I do not remember what this man's fur looked like, but things to consider: were the coyotes rubbed, early or late caught, or damaged? were there any visible holes or rubs in the beaver? what size were the bobcat and were they damaged or flat? were the coon caught early/late, how large were they? how large were the muskrat, any damage? These are questions that any buyer looking at green pelts would determine before determining a bid price for a given lot of fur.

Yes you did, and you have whined on, and on, and on, and on, about it.
Here's a little cheese to go with your whine.




You've whined that several times now. And it's time to speak up. I'm not going to let you put WVTA at odds with the children. The WVAT is very active with kids. Each fall there are a bunch of kids who graduate from the Trappers Education class at the annual convention. I believe they even teach those kids some rudimentary fur handling. Exactly what are you doing for "some kid"?

And I'm tired of this crybaby "somebody else take care of me" crap too:



"THEY" did not give away this fur. This trappers association IS NOT responsible for the price folks get for their fur. "THEY" are providing a service venue for trappers to sell their fur. As I said before, "THEY" would be better off not to provide a venue by which trappers can sell green fur. Then let the trappers with green fur fend for themselves -- at which point you will hear some crybaby whine:



"THEY won't let me sell my green fur."

Trapper123456, I don't think anyone reading this thread has missed the .60 a pelt you were paid. That's an obvious disappointment to most of us. Most empathize with you on that issue. Honestly though, it's your issue. It's not the association's fault for following the guidelines of their sale. Neither is it the buyers. They have no rule forcing them to buy, or what to pay, and I don't think they should have. Since your pelts were all in one bundle, and your cats had Kentucky tags, many might assume that it was Kentucky fur. Why any buyer would give that any consideration hasn't been presented, and can't really be considered. Especially in light if the explanation given for the notation on the sales paper. Every sale has it's own quirks. Buyers have their own quirks. This all goes back to trappers learning the best options for selling their fun. Otherwise, you fall into the group of trappers who only do this for fun.

I will add....your post does inform those who might consider selling at the auction mentioned of how the sale is conducted. It may also encourage a young trapper to learn proper fur handling and put-up. I appreciate your sharing, hope you and others learn from the experience. Hopefully you can do so without a grudge, unless it's against yourself.

Pay attention.

I agree, if there is no market to sell green fur they should not accept it. They did give away his fur he essentially got nothing for it. I'm not saying they operated outside of how they claimed they would I'm just saying he got nothing. It's a service by their rules.

Further explanation of the green fur sale sheet shown by Hal: The F means finished fur (fleshed/dry), the C means frozen on the carcass. With the 6F coon (I remember these), they were medium to large, partly fleshed, and dried fur side out. The lot with 68 coon was put in by a dealer who bought them back. The third lot from the bottom were all frozen on the carcass until you get to the 2cat, from there on, they were skinned and still frozen/partly thawed, the bear were small and frozen and you couldn't tell if the claws were on the pelt. The third lot from the top (5Fposs, 2Fcoy, etc.) was a lot to raise money for a trapper whose house burned, and was auctioned at $50, donated back and auctioned again at $50. Hope this helps a little, lest you think I put the F there to mean Grade F or something

Jonnytrapper

Without seeing it or smelling it you have no idea what his fur was worth and neither do I.

This guy has questioned the integrity of the association, volunteers who work it and the buyers in attendence.

Proper thawing is as important as proper drying and if not done properly will dramatically affect value.

I couldn't help notice the OP was doing a European mount in his kitchen. Just saying.....

This is true Gray Dog. And one of the reasons I agree they shouldn't be taking green fur as it's not graded so who knows.

The more you babble the worse it gets.

now that's the pot callin the kettle black

Haha! Good one Hal, thank you for the cheese. The baby pic? Wow! Did you come up with that or did Miz help you out? That was also a dandy. You sure have a way with trying to come up with some entertaining post. No doubt it gives many folks enjoyment. If you could have put some of that witty humor in your bland dvd's maybe they would have been more popular. I frequent another website and folks can't even sell them at a super cheap price. Some of your posts are pretty funny though. How is your website doing? Is it still a slow as a turtle crossing the four lane?

What have I done for kids you ask? I have gave away multiple dvds to help young guys get started or to increase what knowledge they they already have. I actually gave a young man a skull cleaning dvd and he ended up getting a job with a taxidermist. I have gave away bait lure and other items.

Gray-pup,
Shouldn't you be complaining about violent video games or talking about something besides a trapping related thread? Go get on facebook and watch days of our lives you computer troll. Why would I waste my time on you? Now if you were as famous as Hal....

Just signed up a week ago. Do you have multiple accounts or just practicing due diligence?

Should have done that before the sale.

Um, that's what I was wondering. This thread just got way more entertaining though.

According to the sales sheet,there was others in the same boat.Thanks for the clarification on the letter designations.

I think you are missing the point. The word Kentucky written across the lotting ticket and then actually printed on the PRINTED sheet !! Made him and LOTS of other people think it was discrimination against Ky trappers. His original post was to warn Ky people to stay away. Can you blame him.

After this fiasco I don't think you will have to worry about changing the rules to no out of towners and or NO green fur. It would take an IDIOT to roll the dice at WVTA's auction if you fall into one of those catagories.