So I just got a note from the fellow that designed and builds the Koro wolf trap. Apparently it failed the Canadian trap certification process. They want him to reduce spring pressure by about 30% among other things.

This highlights the stupidity of the certification process. I talked to the guy in charge of the testing on this trap a couple years ago and they were having trouble catching enough wolves at that time. My question to him ( that he couldnt answer) was how in the world can the Victor #3 soft catch with 4 coil springs be "certified" for wolves if they actually have to catch wolves in them. The Victor #3 is in fact certified and no one has caught any number of wolves with it....it isn't a wolf trap...period. The changes they want made to the Koro would ruin it. I think I can safely say that I have caught more wolves in the Koro than any single trapper in Canada. They are first class traps. Miles ahead of the Brawn that was one of the first wolf traps certified in Canada.

This is what happens when the Govt gets involved. Canadian trappers got the shaft with the certification process and should have fought it tooth and nail. The 30 Koro wolf traps I own will become illegal to use very soon. Anyone think I will be reimbursed ?? I wont be holding my breath. Its a real travesty in my opinion and one of the best tools available to Canadian trappers has just been taken off the table by a bunch of people who obviously havent the slightest clue what they are doing...

Last year they were at 10 of the 12 wolves needed.....so this year the last 2 failed.?
What do they think that we have a live market for wolves....Toronto politicks at is best....

Geez... what a shame. The Koro is about my favorite wolf trap.
If they 'dumb down' the trap strength and design, I won't buy another!

How much you want for them? 😖

Hang on to all your old strong inhumane ones Yukon,you can sell them in the states.

A trapper calling anothers trappers traps "inhumane"That's rich.

I was being facetious,obviously you didnt catch the inflection.
Your quick with the snarky remarks,obviously there was no problem with those traps except they didnt meet the humane standard.
They were told how to get them to pass.Your bee buddy Jim can fill you in he was/is on the trdc for the institute.

The worst trap I've ever used as far as foot damage goes is the Brawn #9. I've got a bunch of pictures that show what can happen with that piece of junk. My problem with the whole deal is that, that trap is certified....as is the Victor #3 with 4 coil springs! Any trapper that considers the Victor an adequate wolf trap or would certify it for use on wolves is someone I dont want to hear from because all they are doing is pushing hot air. The fact is obviously someone did....same with the Brawn. If you dont see a problem with that.....well all I can say is thats exactly why we are in the mess were in...my catch would go way down IF I only used the 'certified' traps on the list. Maybe thats the idea ....

I've caught a lot of wolves in legholds and you will get better catches and less damage with the Koro or the AK#9. The lesser traps just dont come up through the snow well enough and you end up with real low or even toe catches.

This is a classic catch with a Koro #9. It just doesn't get any better.

Sorry Bozo, since you regularly bash us for our marten traps
I figured it was just another one of your stupid opinions.
Carry on.

Your sorry all right.Sorry ---

Shouldn't you get ready Christmas is coming soon.lol

So the issue is too much "trauma" or what? The #9 is legal, right? Is the Koro really that much stronger or faster?

I've got one of those traps, haven't connected with it yet. It was out all last year in the wrong place, lol. Let me know if you need to get rid of some of them!

Nate, during the testing phase before a trap is certified every wolf caught has to be examined by a veterinarian. I have no idea what they look for, but I offered to try to help get these traps certified a couple years ago when the process was stalled and thats what the guy told me. I see very little trauma with the Koro. The Koro and Alaskan #9 are essentially the same trap. The dogless design of the Koro gives it a slight advantage in my opinion.

No neither the Alaskan or the Koro is legal here now. The "humane" trapping standards Canadian trappers agreed to was phased in over a number of years, and now wolves can only be taken with "approved" traps. At least here in Yukon. Thats why the Koro fellow was trying to get his trap approved before the deadline. Trappers like myself who have a lot of open ice to trap on are going to have a tough go trying to catch wolves with the approved traps.

The entire sordid deal doesn't surprise me in the least. When I was a race judge on the Yukon Quest dog race we had our share of disagreements with the city veterinarians and some of their ideas, luckily on that endeavour a race judge has the power to override a vets decision. In this deal the trappers have no say whatsoever. The trappers that supported this mess certainly didnt do the rest of us any favours and it amazes me that some of them still seem to agree with; or have no problem with decisions like this. If enough of us pushed back we might be able to change the process but thats never going to happen. I have no problem using better tools, but dont take away the best tools available to me and force me to use junk....thats exactly whats happening in this case.

When you see they have the #3 certified for wolves the only conclusion you can come too, is that someone knew someone or paid someone to certify that trap because there is no way that trap caught the number of wolves the Koro had to during testing. When I asked the guy about it, he got very evasive and didnt want to talk about it. I know why it was certified, at least I know a big part of the reason and it wasn't because it passed any tests...

Yukon, I'd keep using them and tell them that you took a torch to the springs to fulfill the "30%" weaker springs....who's measuring them?
AND did the Newhouse wolf traps get certified?

Interesting fact is they had to do some wolf trapping in Europe, oh wait they don't have any Certified traps to use. What a cluster boom it was.

Good idea. I might just do that. I know a lot of trappers still use the 120 Victors for marten, because they are legal for mink. Marten sets just become mink sets as needed. A few guys did take a torch to the springs on some of the earlier marten traps that were so strong they would crush your hand if you made a mistake.

I dont see the Newhouse listed so I would say its not certified. I know the certification process costs the trap manufacturer quite a bit of money so thats going to complicate things too. It doesn't take much of an imagination to realize how beneficial it would be for a certain trap to be certified when others are not. Do the testers have any biases or anything to gain one way or another is a legitimate question, but one few will ask.

Yukon,you need to get a hold of Jim Gibb.
Jim is a trapper and a stand up guy.He has been on trap research and development for many years .
There are standards that need to be met before a trap is approved.Jim and the crew work hard to get traps to meet or exceed the standard.
The standards are in the agreement.It sounds as if a bit of tweaking by the manufacturer will allow it to meet the standards.
Jim can answer all your questions a lot better than I can,as he is actually involved in the process.

Yukon the catch picture you show is not the best.Too high on the foot.

Boco I dont know if Jim was involved in the Koro certification? He wasn't the guy I talked too. My point is only that the process is flawed, at least in this case. I got involved with the Koro's early on, and I know I have more real world experience with that trap than anyone. At the time I talked to the guy doing the testing I had caught more than double the number of wolves he had in that trap. Its the best tool we have as far as legholds go. The "tweaking" they want done will ruin the trap. A good wolf trap needs to be able to come up through the snow and still make a good high catch. Canada is a big country and the environments trappers work in are much different from one coast to coast. When I brought this up with the fellow doing the testing, he readily agreed. Thats another flaw in the system, just because a trap will work for a guy in Ontario it might not work so well for a trapper up here. Most of my wolf traps are set out on large expanses of ice. It takes a lot of power to come up through that windblown crusted snow. The MB750s are totally useless to me. Ive tried them many times. They are cheaper so it would be nice if they would work, but they wont. The Brawn isn't any better. I caught a young male in one last year. Although the trap held him, it had only gotten him by two toes. A larger wolf would have pulled out...

See thats the problem....that picture is total nonsense. I couldnt disagree with that more.....you want foot damage, catch them low like that.