Why don't you guys just suggest to G&F, to just take away NR snares and problem solved....youll get to keep your snares, blame problem on someone else, and let NR pay the price.....beings it already in your DNA to chop your fellow trappers off at the knee already

Just what you have been doing on this post lumping all into one looking at the negative and not the positive, threating to not support others, ya that's they way to do it! LOL Seriously

Here is what I put in my comments:


Comments:
This was brought about by a dog owner who's dog was caught in a snare and was not hurt so what is the point then? Educate yourself on what a snare is and how they work, in the past I have talked with people that should know how they work but had no interest in learning about them. Talk with your State trappers they are the Pros they use this equipment every day!

How did this go from a simple public announcement to help trappers to a trapper VS trapper thread? I object all three proposals. Public land should be public. The problem you get into with this is the money and influence is not coming from SD residents its coming from out of state revenue. I was born and raised here and I feel everyone has the rights to tax payer land. This instance happens one in a million considering how many people enter our state to pheasant hunt why should we as trappers give in to anything. If a dog crosses a gravel road and gets hit by a car we don't quit driving on that road because there are dogs around. To me this is really elementary stuff accidents happen in all facets of our lives and we have to learn to live with it. Government regulations have not and never will solve the complex of human activity.

Jerry,
Thank you for submitting your opinion to the commission. It's really easy to do on line.
Mark from Dakota Line Snares did a very in depth snare presentation at the May Commission meeting held in Custer State Park. Mark even brought his retriever and snared and released him in his demo for the commission. We had a very professional presentation involving both Western SD Fur Harvesters and SDTA officers and members.
Both Associations have really worked hard on this issue. By next weekend we should know the out come.
Thanks again,
Larry

My biggest fear is to have a room full of people with the power and no knowledge of snaring making decisions on things called "kill springs", "Kill locks" and "power snares"! You need anything else just let me know I will do what I can.

Dakota Trapper 605,
We used your reasons and many more common sense solutions and examples in this debate with the commission.
The bottom line is SD trappers and residents have to voice their opinions TO the commissioners.
The anti crowd has been voicing their support of these restrictions.
Thanks again for logging a positive response to help trappers.
Larry

Good luck Larry, hopefully you can get enough trappers to physically show up at the meetings. It's hard but necessary at times.

Larry Bowden- What city is the GFP commission meeting this coming week? I know they tend to move around the state

NonPCFed,
Next weeks commission meeting is in Aberdeen on the 7th and 8th.
If you can't attend to voice your opposition the best thing to do is get on the website. I have given step by step instructions on the original post.
After listing your name and address just follow the instructions on the site. You need to click on the "oppose" box and if you want just type in that you oppose the entire proposal. This has to be done this weekend.
Thanks for helping,
Larry

What's wrong with buckwheat...? I sort of like buckwheat pancakes and the crop is kind of pretty when its in bloom...

P.S. Not many mrats sold in SD last year or the last few. I haven't seen an active rat hut in my home county since 2011. I'm sure allowing NRs to open water trap rats would have stopped the effects of the 2011/12 drought, local land-use changes, and whatever else whacked the rat populations. Granted, a certain percentage of SD caught rats aren't sold in the state but this number used to be in the quarter million to 300,000 range in the past. Pretty sad actually.

https://gfpga.sd.gov/hunting/trapping/fur-report.aspx

P.S.S. I haven't sold a rat in the round in 30 years and I do know how to sharpen a knife, just can't skin very fast. Then again, I trap to recreate, at least to a certain point. I think fishers are really cool and catching one is on my bucket list so I checked the northern woods states to see where I might go someday in the future. As of when I checked a couple of years ago, MN was out as a NR unless I owned land, WI has a limited lottery system for fisher so my chances of pulling a tag there would be slim, and MI bans NR trappers from about 20 states, including both Dakotas so it looked like NY might be my best shot. Their laws will probably change in the next 10 years so that will probably be out. Bummer...

Will do tonight Larry before I go to bed. Thanks for all the efforts!!

PC, I'll sell you an acre cheap. Really cheap!

Anybody catch the irony on the last page? Let's see who is paying attention.

You can come to WI and the only restriction that I know Of Is a 1 week set back for non residents that want to trap coon. You take the same chance as we do when It comes to drawing a fisher tag or an otter tag or a cat tag.

*

True

I did some calling in S.D. back in 98. Couldn't trap at all back then. Finally got changed then restricted back some again.

I wish KS was reciprocal like we used to be. IMO that changed to increase revenue to wildlife and parks. License fees keep increasing here. I can't help but think KSWP has enough money to go back to reciprocity. What do you other KS trappers think? Think adding 10 bucks to a license (if needed) to get reciprocity back is worth it?

Larry Bowden-

Here's what I sent to the SD GFP Commission last night:

Many types of public land across the USA have to balance multiple use by various groups. Sometimes these uses may appear to be in conflict with each other thus requiring wise management of said land that don't favor one group over another. Bird hunters with dogs should not be the only voices heard in the management of public land in SD. Trapping can and has for a long time co-existed with hunting on public land. Snares are not lethal to hunting dogs or any more injurious than barbed wire fences. When trappers pay for a trapping license in SD, some of our money goes to buying and maintaining public land. My trapping license fee shouldn't be used to block me from effectively taking furbearing animals at the peak of fur quality just because an occasional bird hunter may have to get his dog out of a snare (really not that hard). Snaring is one of the most effective ways to catch coyotes and I suspect that predator numbers will increase on public land without snaring and thus negatively impact game bird numbers. Same is true with public ROW. The current snare regulations is that a snare can't be attached to a fence without the owner's permission and well as trapping with 1/8 mile of occupied dwellings and such without permission. These current regulations are good enough, how many problems do you really have with dogs in snares...? State-wide law shouldn't be created just because of a handful of bird hunters with dogs get upset once and a while. You, as the commission, are supposed to represent the entire state outdoor users, not one specific sub-group. Perhaps hunters need to educate themselves on trapping. Snares are not the enemy...

NonPCfed,
Very well said. Thank you for joining the fight to preserve our trapping and snaring.
Larry