Anyone else here have no luck using DPs? I've tried every trick in the book and can't catch a coon in a DP, I know it's not because there's no coons because I catch them in my coyote sets

Some coons will not work DPs period! I have issues with this to, but I find it’s not the norm. Food/bait that tastes good to em is my tip to you that and as long as your putting that DP right where the coons are traveling. I have literally had some, very few coons that will walk right over top DPs never touch em. Don’t know why but a few just won’t. Touch em

Not really. Catching coons in a dp seems one of the easier things to do.
Maybe some coons won't work a dp, but most will.
As long as there is something they like inside the dp and the trigger is working, I don't see why you would not catch coons.
I would try pre-baiting an area, set up a few trail cameras and see what's going on. Then set a few dp's and catch coons!

I have a fair percentage of coons that just aren't interested in a DP. Maybe it is for the same reason that baited sets for coon don't work so well down here. There is just so much food available here year around.

My advice would be to experiment with different baits and and lures in the DP's and make sure that the coons literally have to go around them to pass them by.

I use a big marshmallow stabbed on the trigger and a shot of fish oil down the tube more than anything and have done pretty well with it.

If I am not able to set right on location for some reason or I am not sure if I am right on location I will add a bit of sweet smelling lure to the lip. I sometime do this even when right on location normally in colder temps.

I had that for a while but I started using dry Purina cat food when i am around farms and now I don't think I get too much of that.

Stick with it a little longer, a little more patience and you will start catching them in DP's. Most if not all the DP's on the market today are extremely effective. If you are going to trap during fur season, go ahead and prebait a couple locations and once you know they are hitting the baits set 4 to 6 at one location. You be surprised at how quickly once one is in the trap that the others will work the area more and get caught. I had a little beginners luck the first time I set 12 Featherlights I caught 11 coon the first night. Try some of the better known raccoon baits on the market, as well as the many home brews you can pick up here on trapperman.

I had some of the same issues when I first started using them Mama, this is what I learned so far.

Seems like for me I have to put the trap right into the trail where they almost trip over it verses on the side of it.

I think a lot of new trappers tend to put too much bait in the trap. I learned to just put enough in there to cover the space between the trigger and the bottom. I use the dry cat food as well sometimes I'll make a small trail of fish oil to the trap.

Once you figure out what system works for you they are very addicting lol

I am going to try and add some liquid smoke to the cat food this year and see how that works I seem to hear a lot of good things about that mixture.

I have tried DP's myself and haven't caught one yet either. But then the low prices came so I never tried again. Setting a baited set with a foot hold, no problem. I am going to keep trying. I keep sets close together so I don't miss the opportunity.

There are times and places where a good percentage, if not all coon, won't commit to a DP not matter what bait you shove down them. More so in the south as Shane says. When they work, they work well. When they don't, quit beating a dead horse and go to plan B.

Personally I won't use a DP anymore unless pets are a concern. Far better coon taking equipment available.

DP's work for me....BUT, I have a hard time setting one knowing that I will miss the mink, fox, rat, etc. that passes by. They work, and they work very well. Very fast to set and move on. I just don't like to limit myself to ONLY catching a coon at the set, when a foothold or even a body grip will pick up some extra fur. I use mine, but very sparingly. Now, next to my chicken coop is another story...

How are you setting them, what kind of trails, what kind of locations, time of year?

If you are catching them in coyote sets maybe you should look at those catches and see what the difference in with bait lure and location.

I use wet canned cat food and the used oil/sludge from the bottom of my VFW's fish fry cookers. Put a dollop under the trigger and a schmeer around the rim.

I set them near trails and along the edges of fields, fall and winter

Put them in the trails, not near the trails.

^ Put them in the Trail. Also Smear some Red Fox Gland on the Lip of the DP. Late season here it works great on big boars in the rut that arent interested in Bait.

For sure.

I went to the DP's for the reason if am close to a residential area or town where the chance of a incidental in pretty good. Cages in these areas still end up with to many skunks.

You'll catch skunks in DPs too... and possums, house cats, the occasional fox, mice, rats, and other things too besides coons. The majority of your catches should be coons though if you set the traps where the coons will encounter them and they are baited correctly.

Look up the posts by Ron Jones (Jonesie) on Tman and follow his lead. It really helps to use a taste bait over something they won’t eat. I use Ztrap’s DP cover to keep cats out. They may be smart animals but it’s been my experience they won’t pull a DP cover. Coon may not be smart but they have no trouble flipping those covers off for a meal.

DPs are a tool. Won’t catch muskrats, mink, most fox etc. they will catch grinners, skunks and coon. Sometimes coon do get trap shy. Then just plant the DP in a 4-inch wide hole and they’ll work it just like a dirt hole.

I use a lot of DPs. More so than your standard 1.5 or #11 foot traps or even body grips. I can bait at hone and with a metal stake can set and be gone in 30 seconds. Speed aside however, it’s just another tool to use and it’s a good one once you catch on to their use.

They have their place on our line for sure. We also have a couple farms where cages and DPs are all we are allowed to use in order to take coon but to avoid catching their dogs. They work great for us but are definitely not the end all-be all coon taker.
We use old golf balls as our mouse proof cap, those work great to keep mice out but every coon can still knock the ball off and get caught trying to reach in for the baits.
We make our own baits from cheap dry cat food and a few simple things added.
Set these traps right under their noses right in the trail. We paint ours white too. Not sure if that helps but seems to give them a lot of eye appeal.
Jim

Plenty of good information has been said in this thread. Mention DPs nowadays and you will get those that swear by them and those that swear at them. I will say I like them and think they are a great tool to have on the trapline.

I do think some coon walk by DPs, but no method we use on the trapline is 100%. Coon can step over even the best blocked/guided foothold in a trail, they can and do go around or over body grips and snares, etc. I find coon are pretty erratic and scatter brained in their habits. Just because a coon walks past a DP one night doesn't mean he won't work it the next night.

I am not saying I am 100% a DP guy by any means. I still take plenty of coon in footholds. But, DPs are a great tool, and IMO one that a good coon trapper should learn how to use. I like a good blind set as much as the next guy, but how often do you see an area of riverbank where coon tracks are plastered about and not following any real defined trail. I am willing to bet we all have. Sure you can narrow things down, shove blocking sticks in place, or walk the bank and look for that natural narrow spot in the trail. All options. Or you can stick a dog proof right in the area the coon are working, lay a trail of a few drops of salmon oil to help guide him and get going. Fast and effective.

I do think there is something to the regional effectiveness, at least to an extent. I remember trapping in southeast Georgia and finding a few locations that DPs just wouldn't work. One spot in particular comes to mind. I had permission to trap a small cattle farm, something kind of rare in that area of extensive pine plantations. There were wrapped silage piles that I could see the coon were working, and a large beaver pond at the back of the property. Bottom line there was plenty of food around and the weather rarely dipped below freezing. These coon had no problem filling their bellies. Sure enough my DPs just did not work. Blind trail sets proved the answer and I took several coon in them along with a pocket set or two back along the water. That being said other locations I trapped in the area the DPs worked really well. Go figure.

I have experimented with different triggers and DP traps. I remember thinking having DPs the color white would up my catch. Not the case at all. The same goes for two-way triggers. I find I do about the same with pull triggers as I do with two-way triggers. Just my own findings, and I am pretty certain others will disagree with me.

I have also experimented with all kinds of different baits. They all work to some extent, but I have found some work a little better for me than others. I do like mixing baits up as again I think coon are fickle. If I have two or three DPs set in a spot I want to offer him a variety of baits, increases my odds of finding something he wants. Also, unlike many others I am not a fan of caps or covering my DP traps. I don't want anything standing between a coon and my bait. A few years back I got the idea that shiny tin foil coverings on my traps would probably help to attract coon. More than once I found the foil covering a few feet away and the trap still baited and set. Tracks in the mud suggested that coon showed interest in the trap, but after pulling the covering he must have become enamored with the shiny foil in his hands and played with it for a bit before losing interest and moving down the trail. A true case of the old shiny object syndrome if you will. Lol. If rodents or rain are problems for you I personally think a rubber trigger bait is a better solution than a cap on your trap. Jut my thoughts.

I have found a little lure, coyote gland can be really good for this, smeared around the upper lip of the trap can be good. I have also placed lure up high near my trap with the though that it might help to draw them in a bit. That being said I don't want to rely on pulling that coon very far. Remember, they are pretty fickle critters. I want the trap as close to his line of travel as I can get it.

To the original poster, don't give up on your DPs. Like I said they are a great tool. Now is the time to keep playing around with them. Experiment with locations, baits, lures, and anchoring methods. Develop your own system that works for you. Let coon prices come up a bit and you will see trapper after trapper setting DPs again. By then you should have your own system down and be harvesting your share of coon. Also, Teacher is spot on about Ron Jones. Look him up. He gives some great information on DPs and their use.

Best of luck.

I have great luck with DP's. I prefer pull only DP's. Fill 1/4 full with cat, fish oil around trap and a tiny dab of caven's coon and mink bait on trap. And most importantly, I set on sign.

These were all caught in one night earlier in the week. 6 traps 4 catches. The trick is to use some kind of cap for the do and make the set irresistible.
It needs to be sweet and you need to use fish oil of some sort as a trailing scent.

I prefer the American Coon Caps but the basic white caps will do this keeps the other none targets out.
Then take some tuna and add Cherry Jello mix and some SB to it.
And bring Marshmallows and some strong lure worth you.

I used Terminator and moonshine as a lure even this Terminator is more of no a bait.

Out the tuna in the trap maybe a teaspoon, add mini marshmallows on top play with the trigger so it rest on top of the marshmallows.
Put some lure I'm the trap.
Add some trailing scent and set with a cap in it.
9 times out of 10 it will be a coon that takes the cap off, but the rest of the time it will be a possum.

They will pull that trigger trying to get the tuna. It's fail safe. Every coon who removes the cap gets caught.

^ I always like the Two hands in the Cookie jar catches. You know they really wanted that bait.

I trap a small plantation here in Ga and those DP’s were the first traps I bought when “told” to start trapping. This was early summer and couldn’t use anything other than corn due to ants. A little grape koolaide powder on some polyfil under the trigger and a little corn just to barely cover the trigger and that was it. I caught plenty. In fact the manager said he didn’t realize there were that many left on the place. They have live traps year round on all the main roads. I hit the Creek drainages. I can’t imagine how well they’d do if I could actually use something with a little scent to it.

When i used to have access to ground carp for cheap, id use that if not around farms with cats. Now i use the large marshmallows everywhere. I like the pull only triggers like duke dps. I stab one on the trigger then i tear one in half and place a piece of mallow on each side of the dp right on the trail. I think, especially with no snow, that bright white slows them down if theyre running down the trail at a pretty good clip. If im not around any farm cats, i squirt a little fish oil on each side of the trail a foot or so away from the trap, also in an effort to slow them down. I then take a sweet smelling lure like mtp Moonshine and drip a little on the marshmallow on the trigger. I know coon arent hard to bait and it might be overkill, but having seen numerous coon flying down a trail to cross the road, i like having several things to slow that coon down enough to get caught. I feel like some of the commercial dp baits dont have that intense of a smell to stop a fast moving coon and i cant understand paying the money they want for some of them. But the previous posts are spot on- dead center of the trail.

I do well using marshmallows and cheap dollar store maple syrup....trailing shot of syrup works great to get them interested..

I have great luck with DP traps. I use cheap cat food with a little fish oil and a little fox urine . At first I set them near sign and caught a few but they were not the magical coon catchers I had heard about. I started setting ON sign ,in the middle of a trail ect and my catches went way up.

I will use a DP every chance I can. I can't use Foot traps in my state But I use the DP anywhere you can use a foot trap and in the same manor. I prefer taste baits and lure and I use 3 odors per set and I believe that different odors segregated at the set or in the trap, produces a, have to check it out responce, to the coon. I could be wrong. But the key here is I really believe that presentation is the key to those 20% coon that are not going to take a standard DP set sticking out of the ground. Bob Noonan and I talked for hors about my thoughts with DPs and there is a 2 part article in the last issue and this issue where I just skim the top of DP's I make a large part of my living from coon in my ADC business, so there is a real reason for me to catch coon, and when the fur prices are up I catch a few fur trapping. When I go on a job and have to get the last one (coon) my thinking changes from see what happens to figure out how to get it done. I have found that the last one or 20% most times will fall for the same baits and lures and traps that they have been avoiding, when I present the baits lures and traps differently. the DP trap can be presented many different ways!!!!! Coon can and will make a trapper look bad, but most of the time we never know they are doing it because the 80% gets caught after he did it LOL Note there is a typo in the part 2. I use k9 gland lures not the coon gland lures. I will use a coon gland to catch big boars in the breeding season sometimes but only when going for the big bad boars

Dog proof traps are fantastic for me. Fast, efficient, and extremely effective. When I do a raccoon eradication, I can clean out an area in a hurry. .

I suspect that a significant problem for many people is using too much bait - it is a trap, not a feeding station. Also I use only dry bait in the trap. As stated above, I use a total of three scents per trap. Since part of my work is on large properties in civilized areas, I use only pull type triggers in order to avoid all unintentional catches.

Like all forms of trapping, to be most effective everything matters. The trap must be in excellent working order, good staking system, plenty of swivels, proper bait and scent, and excellent locations. Think of these traps as a system. I prebait them at home to save time.

Analyze what you are doing. Put out a camera to see what is happening. Stay with them.

My preferred brand is the PCS Feather Light. I cannot imagine a better working or more effective trap. They are nearly ready to use right out of the box. Plenty of swivels and a good chain. No misfires and no pullouts. The only problem I have found is that they don’t survive being brush hogged.