How/what do you guys charge average for going to a job, set up fee and per animal, per Mileage etc.

Thanks!

The first thing you have to do is know the cost of doing business, and there are a lot of them. What is your time worth? There are several ways of charging. Do what works for you and your business. JMO

Check the Animal Damage Control archive- https://trapperman.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/forums/17/1/animal-damage-control-archive. Check for "pricing", "starting", etc. Many of the posts are somewhat old; but still valid. Also, use the search feature of the forum. A number of answers can be found to almost any question.

Agree. Cost of doing business is key. That'll be lower for a guy working out of his garage vs a company with employees, office, advertising, etc.

A good place to start is by seeing what your competition charges. What does an electrician or plumber charge for an hourly rate in your area?

Then you need to decide setup plus per animal or a 1 time trap everything out fee. Have both in mind as you may end up quoting both when the customer is seeing 20 baby chucks running around.

How far do you want to drive to pick up an animal? Don't go over that distance for trapping. You'll lose money.

Make sure you have enough customer base. I heard at one time you had to have at least 200.000 people in your service area. Most country folks take care of there own problems. It will take a few years before you start making money. Only buy traps as needed. Buy good trap. Not the ones from tractor supply. JMO.

I use a mix of per animal, flat rate, and per trip fee structures depending on the species and distance. That works well for me. Per animal is my least favorite, but works ok for skunks (because noone will tell you to stop until you’re done) and beaver (because competition is fur trappers who think that way). Experiment at first and be flexible.

I usually (although not always) go with a set price per trip plus mileage. This includes setup, tending traps, and all catches, be it 1 beaver or 15 beavers.


I try to drop back in a week or two after the job is complete to make sure there’s no dam repairs or evidence of activity observed.

Asking many fundamental business questions indicates that you need to consult a business expert to help you start a business.

Hire a lawyer to create a limited liability company and prepare documents to use with customers. Hire a professional accountant, not just someone who prepares tax returns. Get liability insurance. Seriously consider what operating a business will cost you - from ink pens to animal disposal. Include pay for yourself and pay for the company to use as capital for business growth. Consider the costs to purchase and operate a vehicle. Maybe you decide to use an old station wagon or a nice new truck.

Overhead and charges vary by location. Consider what other products and services cost in your area. For example, when grocery prices increased I raised my prices.

Nuisance trapping is very different from fur trapping. Do everything like are operating a real business because you should be. If you do not, you will soon be out of business.

Always be honest with customers. Develop a base rate for a standard size job to use as your standard price which can then be adjusted depending upon different jobs. That way you charge customers the same price and you earn the same rate adjusted for variables of distance or duration. Know in advance how much to charge a customer.

Be respectable and customers will respect you. Respect the animals. Be discreet about your activities. Create a good image.

Limit what you do charge what you want you'll find your way into the market