Snaring Coyotes in Michigan for the first time. Have four large bait sites going with about three dozen snares set at trails that Coyotes have used coming to the bait. In over two weeks of checking snares I have had only one site where a coyote has reused a previous used trail. He nocked down the snare with no catch. I have noticed a few set where the tracks have stopped in the trail and avoided the snare. All snares are set with maximum size loop of about 12 inches. So far this has been exciting because I know that all these snares will work in our deep snow conditions unlike the traps that I have used in the past. Coyote activity is spotty with site visits at 5 to 6 day intervals. I am hopeful that activity will pick up later in the winter. I keep checking my snares and putting out new Dakota Michigan made snares each day. I thought that the Coyotes did not see the snares when I started, unsure now. I will keep plodding along and see what happens until it stops being fun.

PM

Take some pictures.Sounds like a lot of fun.

I'm getting ready to try my hand at cables for the first time too, and it just snowed here in PA.

Good stuff and please do photograph your sets I'm definitely interested. I'll probably photograph mine too so I can get feedback.

Seems to me you're getting good feedback from the coyotes, not the kind we want but lessons none the less.

Good luck!

I have noticed a few set where the tracks have stopped in the trail and avoided the snare. All snares are set with maximum size loop of about 12 inches.

BET!

You waled up to the snare and turned around and walked back. Or walked around the snare.
So did the coyote. When set'n and tend'n Step over the snare. STAY IN THE TRAIL.
Put a chin lifter ( Ext. a 3-4" pine neddle)of the bottom of the snare loop

Agree with "Newt's" assessment and would also suggest no blocking unless very subtle.

What Newt and bctomcat said. Also, if conditions permit, place snares near bends in trails so coyote coming around a bend have only a few steps to see them.

I have been trying my hand at a short snare line too. I’ve had coyotes come up to the loop and stop short. But I’ve been approaching the trail from the side. I’ll try stepping over like Newt suggested. Also,I’ve been using snares that were lightly sprayed black from the manufacturer. I don’t know if it’s really an issue, but it seems to contrast with the snow pretty bad. I have some homemade ones that are bare metal left outside to dull up so I’ll try those and see if that makes a difference. Otsego county area does have quite a bit more than most areas right now. Thiss weekend should add some more for sure.

No black or white, these colors contrast with the background bush as seen from the coyotes perspective. A dull gray or green color is much better.

Thanks for all the helpful information. I don't walk down the Coyote trails. I circle the bait piles until I hit a Coyote track and I follow it from a distance to the side. If I decide to hang a snare, I approach the track from the side and hang the snare then back out. Only had one Coyote follow the same track twice. When you start hanging snares you return and see the thousands of other places that they can go. Their doesn't seem to be any well defined trails in the snow. They go everywhere. I think that the activity is increasing as the snow is starting to get deeper. We have 2 feet now. I hope the action picks up and some regular defined trails in the snow show up. Waiting for the Coyotes to get hungry as the winter go on.

instead of trying to catch them approaching the bait, perhaps, look for where they are circling it, and set the snares to catch as they parallel it

WRONG! Set up snares from the side of trail YES. But, do not walk around or make set and turn around and go back. Either follow thru on the trail or cross over and depart the area in a different location than your entry point. When checking snares walk thru the same route each check.

I guess that I don't understand why it would be better to walk across the tracks. I smooth out all of my tracks in the snow near the sets. That won't eliminate what ever sent that I leave at the site but it does elimates my prints visually. There is no evidence of any coyotes following my tracks. The sites are soon snowed over. I don't question your advice, you know more about this than I do. I just don't understand the reasoning behind you advice. Thanks for your time to help me to improve my snareng.

I do follow the same route checking my snare. I stay as far away as I can and still see the snares. Coyotes seem to approach the bait from different directions. It is snowing hard out side right now and I know that some of my snares will have the bottoms of the loop covered with snow. Should I go to the set and move the loop higher or just leave it as is?

Because stopping and turning around peaks their attention more so than just passing through. IMHO smoothing out your tracks is just another activity that peaks their attention also.

Leave your snares alone until the snow has settled down then adjust them if necessary.

In Wi we can't use dryland snares but we can use cable restraints. Our CR's bottom loop has to be so many inches off the top of the snow I believe. You may want to ensure you don't have a similar law.

Unless you are running cable extensions and extra long supports, it'll be hard to just keep raising them up as the snow piles up each storm. What will you do then, just remove snow under the loop?

We have C.R.'s in Michigan as well; they don't usually treat coyotes necks very kindly in my experience.

It sounds like you are not loaded up with big numbers of coyotes.
You mentioned that they seem not to use the same trail twice. Welcome to the world of random coyotes.
Having had to trap a single, individual coyote on an island made of mostly sand where you can see just about every track which it made every night, I says to myself, "This is going to be easy!"
"Wrongo Fathead", I retorted to myself many weeks later. This coyote did not seem to use the same trail twice. Maybe that is why they are not extinct.

52Carl that is my feeling exactly. It is great to hear this from another trapper. In setting up my bait sites I tried to anticipate where the Coyotes would be in Jan and Feb, our snaring season. So I put them in locations where deer would be yarding. Up until a couple of weeks ago, we had very mild weather and little snow. Since then the snow has piled up and I am hopeful the Coyote numbers will increase at the bait sites and their appearance will be more regular. Your comments give me encouragement. All these years of trapping coyotes, my main problem was to get a Coyote to my set, not catching them when they got there. I would read all the comments from all the coyotes trappers around the country and beat myself up for not catching bigger numbers of Coyotes. Your comments will make and old man sleep better at night. Although I say snaring, I do use cable restraints here in Michigan. I prefer the term snaring.

We have C.R.'s in Michigan as well; they don't usually treat coyotes necks very kindly in my experience.
John Graham mentioned this during Coyote Days last summer. States that mandate cable restraints are making a mistake. You want a dead coyote in your snare when you check. Too many other things can go wrong with CR's.