For otter I have always focused on toilets which are fairly easy for me to find on the rivers and lakes that I trap. If possible I prefer to set up entrances/pinch points on the toilets with conibears or foot holds, but sometimes it just isn't possible and I need something to get them to come to a spot. Well, with a small sample size I think I may have hit on something pretty good and figured I would share with y'all:

Well-used toilets, particularly during the rut will have fresh otter scat. Otter scat is attractive in and by itself, but I think I found a way to enhance it: I make a little pile of sand or dirt and then place the otter scat on top. Next I dribble some MB shellfish oil on the scat and place a foot hold about 10" in front slightly offset. In the last two days that I did that at one particular toilet I have caught two whomper males.

When I find a toilet with quite a bit of scat I can pick it up and put it in a plastic bag and carry it to the next spot. Like I say, small sample size but I think it has promise. I think this would work wherever otters are coming out of the water and see/smell the scat.

Thanks for the tip, will try that.

I imagine you are bedding the trap in some sandy/ wet soil mud sand. How do you prevent freeze thaw if you have it? How exactly do you like to bed the trap? And size? Thanks

Interesting. I have always thought that trapping otter on land with footholds is very similar to trapping canines.

Thank you!

Thanks

Have you ever seen where otters have balled up grass about the size of a tennis ball on high ground where a road crosses a stream? It clearly is not beaver doing this. It is a wadded up ball of grass made by an animal with functioning hands. Also there are no beavers within a hundred miles from my location.
I have always assumed that this was done as a mating season scent marker. I have never read anything referencing this behavior.

Thanks sir for your information

Interesting observations, will have to give it a try

Yep, they urinate on the balled up grass. Also piles of leaves or other vegetation. I believe it serves a similar function as a castor mudpie for beaver in communicating with other otters on territory and breeding status. Kind of less on territory because otters don't seem to fight each other over that like beaver do.

I pretty much agree with that. I've always kind of considered otters the coyotes of the waterways.

I'm using MB 750's on drowners. I cover them with sand, silt or leaves and grass. Whatever is natural for that particular spot. A lot of the spots that I am challenged to set up are sandbar like conditions so the covering material is obviously sand.

Good share. Thanks

Mac

Great information

good read thanks for posting

bvrplr..have you tried that method in the fall near toilets?

Know some trappers who use the bagged feces at a set, kind of like making a fake toilet with success as well. Toilets i know of here are so over ran with coons the whole toilet area would be ripped to shreds from catching them. Place i just finished up that set would be the ONLY set you could use as that big toilet area has open banks, no pinch points so they come and go willy nilly all along the bank at random, it's probably the largest toilet ive ever ran across. Not trying to catch them but did find it interesting I never catch a otter in beaver sets up and down stream from it, they seem to slither through drainage's like a snake.

No, I just kind of hit on the idea in the past week. My thinking is both shellfish oil and otter scat will be somewhat attractive but the two together probably enhance each other. I'm thinking maybe another otter goes "Huh, wonder was Joe had for dinner...smells mighty good, I gotta check it out a little closer." Or if it's his own going "Huh! Must be gettin' old, can't even remember what I had for dinner last".

As for coons yeah, I'll bet that is always going to be a problem. No answer for that here.

Mike Fisher from Ark. used that set to collect live otter for stocking in Mo using a #11 on either side of the pulled up toilet.
I tried it on my line and couldn't keep coyotes out of the traps. I was using #2s instead of the #11s. I did catch an otter or two using it but far more coyotes.

Jhh, did Mike go by "ArkMike" on here years ago?

ArkMike i think is a different person, not sure ol Mike Fischer even know's how to turn on a computer much less how to get on here, lol. He's an otter catching fool though, can learn alot from him on the subject.

Otter are inquisitive animals. The visual should attract them, you'd think. Good idea!

Years ago my fur buyer had a pet otter . We had all kinds of scat and urine which we used to catch a lot of otter..

On rare occasions I have hip caught an otter and they're not able to void urine as they usually do when they expire. That urine on Q tips is also dynamite to get an otter moved over to a spot. The little piles of grass/leaves are usually urinated upon and they also work great.

I had to go back and read the regulations. I thought that my Bridger #5's had to be in the water but they only have to be on Drowners. That will change things a bit for my sets here. I also think that there is a spot that I can find some toilets in the reserve for when I end up with a random pick up and know that they are around but have no way of bringing them in.