Question: Do you guys find it necessary to put a few scoops of dirt in/on the bottom of your cage traps? I've read some things that say some critters won't enter the cage unless there is something soft for them to step on. Some don't like the metal cage feel on their feet. I've been a fur trapper for years and have caught lots of coon with just a box trap with nothing on the floor of the trap. Are groundhogs different? Skunks? Others?

I'll do it for g'hogs if dirt is available, if not no big deal.

Save your traps that catch ghogs for ghogs. Don't use them for anything else. Never clean them once they are dedicated. Save your feces from the trap and use in other traps if needed.

If you don't have enough cages you can try to keep them clean by pressure washing them when you catch coons, opossums and skunks. Hogs can be funny at times hesitating to enter some soiled traps other times not so much.

Thanks for the info

I’ve bedded the traps in sand before, and it then covers the floor, but if the substrate isn’t sand, I’m not importing it.

I have heard in one trapping video that skunks hate walking on the wire floor. The guy recommended putting something down. I however have found it is not needed.

I am sure you may find varying reactions at times from different animals regarding their instinctual behavior once they walk upon an unfamiliar material base. Accept it or refusal?

Kind of like us walking from a firm surface area like a hard top road to a sandy/loamy type surface. It is different in some manner, and you perceive it.

Image that you are blind and that you can't see the logical reason for the walking surface area to be changing. It would cause you pause, I am sure at first until you determine your next course of action.

Some animals don't really care so it just won't make a difference to them. You may run into different scenarios in your line of work. Sometimes you may not realize the problem unless you see the reaction on camera, or someone sees it happen and relates the findings to you.

If in doubt ,settle the trap firmly into the grass / sod or dirt. Use grass clippings, leaves or other non-interfering ground cover. Stake all your traps to prevent wobble or movement.

I agree with this 100%

IMO , 'bedding' the trap is more important than covering the bottom with dirt. Make sure it doesn't wobble. Your catch rate will improve.

Great info. Thank you guys

Definitely best to bed a trap of any kind, cages too as you don't want rocky. Rake up the dirt in front of a den just to break it up the dirt and then push the cage into the dirt. Twist the cage back and forth like screwing it into the ground so that it sinks into the loose dirt and beds in while it covers the wires. If on concrete or asphalt I will sometime put some dirt down first to keep the trap from wobbling if needed but there have been times where I just left it as is and it still worked. It's best with wire trigger traps because the dirt will not interfere with the trigger like it can with a pan trap. I used to have pan traps jam up at times, not realizing dirt had gotten packed up under the pan keeping it from firing. With wire triggers the trigger way up off the ground so you can also add a rock, sticks or dirt piles to steer animals into the trigger where you want without worry of trigger interference.

Like others have said, I feel bedding the traps is the most important part. If you have loose soil adding it to the bottom of trap is a bonus. You can sift it right through the 1/2 x 1 inch mess of the Comstock’s pretty easily.

I put my cage trap , bungeed to an old toboggan. Have caught coon, skunk, possum , groundhog, and cats. used cat food. If there are scat in it you really don't need bait. Makes it handy to move to disposal site. old243

Cage trapping bobcat it’s very important to stabilize the cage , I actually dig it into the snow so it’s rock solid and make sure the whole floor is covered in packed snow ( all my cages use conibear trigger’s instead of a treadle pan ) and I don’t have to worry about frozen pans . A piece of contractor plastic on top and then brushed in nice and heavy. A couple at turds and a big hunk of beaver in the back ! Hang a wing above the cage and beaver castor for lure

Absolutely used it and use a sifter to dispense it by holding it over the trap and let it fall evenly through the wire

Depending on the trap door, skunks, coons, dillos and other critters will fill the bottom of the cage trap with soil for you! Lol

Not an ADC trapper but I use a piece of indoor/outdoor carpet in my cage traps, it's only about 1/8" thick and slides right under the pan without ant interference. By the way, I enjoy the ADC threads, lot's of good info/tips here !

Go though the archives and read the old post from some of the best in country

I have never filed a cage floor with dirt unless I was cat trapping
Set,bed,next

No Lt Grey, I meant dedicated to trapping ghogs only. If you can save the traps that have held captured ghogs as they are extremely effective and will hold great attraction to other ghogs.

Of course, I know you are aware of that.

I will do it for groundhogs only in a trap that has not last held a groundhog. If you can save some groundhog droppings and put them on bottom of the cage no need for dirt.