Thanks Cope. He's a REAL coyote. I'll get him sooner or later or he'll die of old age or get heart worm and croak!

No updates last couple days on Mrs. June. We got several dealers orders and she had to run home to package and ship those out asap. Tiss prime time. She'll be back in the buggy again tomorrow, ready to rock, ready to roll. 65 miles of traps out now, all from a Kawasaki Mule.
Her sets did catch a bobcat and a coyote today.

I caught one of the largest south Texas coyotes I've ever caught today - 42 lbs. That's a hog in the land of 20 pounders. He was up closer to the main buildings and he turded so I set it. Caught him on a 2 turd with coyote P on one turd, bobcat P on the other and Smokey Post (few drops) on both turds. Mean, mean set up. Then I caught the female running with him 30 yards away in a set with bait and FF.

Here's a picture of the difference in weight between the two.

Wow! Nice catch! Thanks for the ride along and sharing your story!

Way to go Mark and Donna!! Living the dream!

Chris

It was another solid day in south Texas yesterday, 50 target animals first seven days (dogs and cats) which is far above last year's pace after a week. Anyone who's trapped a high fence enclosure knows it's different in that you don't have incoming "newbies" like you have on a general fur line. Each time you catch a coyote it seems to put others on alert and they move on you within the confines of the fence. They scatter! And this ranch has predator skirting supreme so there's no holes in or out. Thus they now know (if they're still alive).... game on.
Weather has certainly been on our side this year and that helps - but Donna getting it done is really the most important reason we're stacking 'em in the Kawasaki.

Yesterday started off just like all trappers like... a target in one of the first few traps. Donna scored on a pretty bobbie cat in the middle of the road in her fav baited walk through set. She catches 'em and she puts the noose on 'em too. She does say she might like the 5 foot Ketch-All but I assure her the 4 footer is best. Says you have to watch out for the bobcats hind feet when they get to flying around the catch circle!

She is putting the coyote paw directly on the pan most often and that always helps.

Big winds moved in for a few days but it sure beats cold/rain/ice.

Cool stuff Mark!

Many of you may have had some wicked storms move through last night. We thought we would be hammered but we were spared from the rain, but not from the wind. Rugged.
Today, we had coyote tracks on numerous sets but one dog to show for the trouble as they did move - but they the wind was HARSH NW and we set primarily for a SE wind.

So;
Donna had dogs (so did I) walking across her "walk throughs" and they walked on out the other side also.


Me, as I was making turd sets today, I was setting rocks on the turds to keep them from flying away! Besides, only smart coyotes can figure out that the rock is supposed to be under the turd, not on it!


All in all, it was one of those days that isn't easy peasy on the trapline. We took a few minutes to laugh at the gale force winds and smell some roses as hubby and wife.

Thanks for sharing,i miss dirt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!It was -30 this morning,making ice I guess is one way to look at it lol.I have 4 bobcat sets still out,we have a warm up for the next 4 days above zero for highs lol,i think i'll see SPOTS in the next few checks,next Sunday I pulling the plug,it's been a great season up here in the frozen tundra.

Rick,

Good luck on the kitties brother. We were busy ourselves re-doing about 150 sets. Gotta love that wind.
But tonight it has settled down to a gentle breeze, and all sets are ready for action Jackson. The critters will be moving big time after 2 full days of lock down 40 mph wind with gusts to 60.
Especially the cats...

Looks like fun! Thanks for sharing!

Great post Mark glad you two are having fun. The two turd is a killer set! Hope the wind goes down for you. It’s been blowing like heck up here. What is your preference on urine on them? Cat/coyote, fox/bobcat, etc.. I’m assuming your notes tell you, but just wondering what you usually start with in new territory. Thanks

Good to hear from ya brother! Good question on the urine. You know, when I'm on a fur trap line, I'm more "cookie cutter" and use red fox quite often in so many areas. Coyote is good and bobcat is awesome but red fox outproduces quite often for me or so my notes tell me. There are exceptions. Louisiana had coyote working better. I trapped OK and the bobcat was crazy hot. So I go with what they like. I start out with red fox often though.

On a high fence predator project, we vary it up as the dogs get crafty quick when it's you and them playing in the playground together day after day. I start out with coyote and bobcat on my two turd in TX. Red fox works but coyote works better. I use red fox and some change ups after a week into the two week contracts as the remaining survivors can be shy as I mentioned. We had a pair come down a bladed road yesterday and we could see their tracks after the wind had everything glazed... they walked and walked and BING.... 30 feet from our sets, they beat feet into the brush. Do they know the sets are there? My guess is yes. These boogers don't get smarter of course but they don't get dumber either.

Varying the sets and smells is an option we use with success as this happens.

Take care and be safe out there.
Mark

great to see you guys having fun catching animals , I told Kim [my wife] if we can go south an trap in winter I will go with her , she always wants to go south In winter

TD,

Trust me, it's different than our homeland of Michigan, but it's pretty darn fun trapping down here where fur is not so pretty but the trapping is abundantly easier for most of the year. I didn't say easy. I said easier.

Seasons are extremely liberal here because the 250,000 ranchers carry a load of political clout!

Mark

Good job, your braces look great.

I esp admire the way neither of you get dirty.

bacatrapper,

We don't get dirty, we get dusty on the buggy in ground that hasn't seen but a few inches of rain this entire year. Large stock ponds of 80-100 acres are now about 2 acres of mud. South Texas is in a drought in this area that hit hard for over a decade not that long ago. Plus, I'll admit having the Mrs. along makes for our dudes getting "wershed" about every other day. Can't beat that.

When it rains here, you hole up anyway. Ruts last 1,000 years so we don't run the bladed roads, even in a UTV as the owner would not be happy.
I'm from the land of rain and freeze/thaw = Michigan... so I kinda like this non-mudster version of trapping!

MJ

so how is the fur down there ,is there a sale for it , I know your cats are nice ,

TD, the coyotes are not worth much here but the cats are quite nice further south you go.

So, Donna likes those nights when it's foggy and damp when the critters move, but she decided she doesn't really care to use a buggy with no windshield in the misty/rainy/spit. I tell her, I can't see the tracks and scat when the windshield is wetted up!

She had a nice day;
She caught coyote #1 today at the entrance gate so they see it on the video camera! Always a good thing. Bait and FF in a dirt hole.


She caught bobcat #1 on a toilet set.


She caught coyote # 2 on a couple piles of turd with PF.


She caught bobcat # 2 on a toilet set with our lure and Blackie's lures


She caught coyote 3# today on bait and WW.


She caught bobcat #3 today on SS and bait.


She likes equipment to be a bit drier and the dirt a little less sticky too!


She's a woman to ride the rapids with!
Oh, and we like middle of the road sets when we see tracks as you can prolly tell.

Mark June - "She's a woman to ride the rapids with!"

Looks like a great time Mark. Thanks for the ride-along. Am I detecting some old Louis L'Amour there in your final words? I think every one of the thousand books he wrote, he used that line.


Jack

Jack,

Yes sir! I grew up reading every Louis L'Amour book my dad would "lend" me. My dad loved 'em, I did too, and so does my son. Reminds me, I need to get a few to the grandson in a few years.

Donna is doing very well. Fast, efficient sets. I drive the stake most often is all since the ground is gosh awful hard, what with so little rain this year.