I could not disagree more!

Disagree more? Huh?

The guys with thousands of coyotes under their belt have thousands of coyotes to catch, lol. I’m nowhere near any of them in skill or expertise, but if you have that many coyotes, anything works. A first time trapped property and I can pee beside a dirthole with a can of sardines thrown in it and catch. Anything to eat is good enough with that many coyotes. Trap that same property or knock the population way down and then a good bait and lure is needed.

I don’t equate numbers with a special bait or lure. I equate it to a large population and an exceptional work ethic to place that many sets and go from daylight until dark and then some.

Yup, you F-N right I do!

This

What's so funny is you can take guys that have caught thousands of coyotes and they dont agree either

You aren't wrong there. There is an old saying in dog training that applies here: "The only thing two dog trainers can agree on is that the third is doing it wrong"


We will agree to disagree then Seldom. The fellows I am referencing are paid to trap coyotes for damage control. They aren't catching the easy ones and rolling on. They are catching them all. You have a style that works for you, and like I said before I respect that!

Wanna Be I think you have it right. Its about hard work. Here is an example. Craig Ogorman = James Lucero. Both men have had years with over 1300 coyotes per year caught. One man = Craig Ogorman uses lots of bait and lure and sets lots of traps. The other man = James Lucero set less traps and use’s NO bait and very little year. The area they both trap BOTH had lots of coyotes And their trapping styles??? Completely opposite. What did they both have in common???? A great work ethic!!! I have never went to see James Lucero over the past 3 years. That we didnt end up = working = bottling some lure in the shop. Or working on a crossbow. Even at 86. He still has a good work ethic

interesting thread.

mac

Here's my problem with what you said. First I've talked to many trappers that have thousands of coyotes to there credit and some of them can be polar opposite on there opinion on lures and baits which contradicts your statement that they can never steer you wrong. I've come to believe that you don't put much value in testing based off what you've stated here and in other posts so let me say this. The guys that test do so for one reason and one reason only, it's because the want the truth. They aren't intrest in theories, biases or opinions. They want the truth from the coyotes. Coyotes aren't bias and it's not difficult to find out what the coyotes have more attraction to. I visit and share information with many guys that test and you would be surprised at how much their findings line up with each other's no matter if they are out west, back east, down south or up north. A guy that is willing to invest the time and money to test is a guy that only truth and results matter. There's no bias, theory or agenda involved in testing. Most won't do it because they dont want to put in the time or $ to do it. The guy that will is only doing for the truth. Never talked to one single person that's tested that said it wasn't worth it or what they learned a bunch or it didn't correspond with what they saw on the trap line. Even if you only listen to the guys that have caught thousands of coyotes you will have to decide which one is right and which one is not so much. So how do you pick. How about see what the coyotes tell you. You changed you approach based on the opinions on some trappers that have caught thousands of coyotes and you caught more coyotes. That's great but if your a thinker and learner I'd bet your skill level at the other aspects of trapping increased also which would have helped your catch. Also the population could have contributed to the higher catch rate. Just because you changed something and it increased your catch from previous years means it's the best method it just means it's better than what you was doing. Lot of mediocre(at best) lures out there. My guess is a lot of people who don't like lures just haven't tried a good one. One good trapper I've visited with said he's tried a ton of different lures and 95% of them never go back in his bag. Just food for thought. As far as the magic lure or bait every critic refers to that can catch every coyote that smells it I can say in my short trapping career I've never seen that said or advertised by anyone but maybe those claims are out there as a lot of critics refer to this in their defense.

It is ! I am enjoying it ! Sitting here in = sheep trappera shack. Checked about 20 sections today 1 coyote in snares. Im = filling up 5 gallon buckets with water. Making ice. And crimping a few snares. And reading on T man. Good day so far

I dont use bait anymore. Its doesnt work well here or keep well. BUT in the day I used it. I WOULD use it again. Certain place I work. Works well in = rounding up pups and juvenile coyotes. Lure is what I use most. I try to keep an open mind. When I went years a go to take 5 days worth of lessons from = James Lucero. What impressed me most ??? He was still open to learning and experimenting with different sets and lures

Yes Sir, that was a SUPER reply! Well written!

Most full time professional trappers do things way differently with sets, lures, traps, trap placement, etc. Yet they all catch truckloads of predators a piece. Find what works for you and be confident in your sets.

Yes sir, interesting reply. For the sake of old goats like me, would you consider breaking up your paragraphs? It would be so much easier to read and digest,
especially for an old set of eyes.
Thanks.

Still a most interesting thread.

Mac

Will try to do better

I just put a piece of paper cross my Iphone. Pull it down line per line ! LoL!

I do find the idea of = Lure test to be interesting though. I just dont have the time. When I test a lure. It has a trap in front of it ! LoL!

Yes Sir. One thing that does interest me the most. What lure holder do yall use????? I have been down this road before. Bamboo sticks. Cotton 6 inch sticks. Now its on to grub stakes ? 2 days 2 weeks 2 months. That how long it may take a coyote to come back by in this country. WHAT ? Will hold lure the best ? Its like 8 to 15 % max on humidity. So lure. In this country doesnt hold well. The 6 inch cotton sticks?? Workes great in South Alabama!!! Here ? In bout a week cotton part ? Its gone ? Wind ? Insects? Other? Dont know. Thata why = grub stakes. SO. Yall that test lure. Whats the best thing to put it on??? The search never stops for me ! LOL !

I agree with a lot of what you said here Yes Sir. I 100% agree that there is no magic/secret lure. What’s the old saying, “There is no substitute for hard work.”

You are also absolutely right that we evolve and improve in each season of trapping outside of lure selection. Something that helped me tremendously was streamlining my operation and not trying to make 15 different sets.

One point of correction, I didn’t say those guys would never lead you astray. There are guys that are full of it in all circles, and trapping is no different. I was fed some of that when I first started trapping coyotes around 13-14 years old. It took me quite some time to see that the guys I was taking advice from were just mediocre guys with something for sale. On the flip side of that coin I had a couple guys take me under their wing and teach me a lot, and I’m forever thankful for that. In that aspect testing with cameras could have absolutely saved me time!

I think a great point to bring up here is the winner of the New Mexico coyote trapping contest that won it using KFC chicken, dirt hole sets and good urine. That trapper won that competition against some of the best in the nation something like 4 years in a row. Not because he had a better, more tested lure or bait, but because he could outwork the competition.

There is no substitute for being on location with a quality set. Streamlining that operation means you can put in twice the number of sets as your competition. Where you guys may put more time in camera testing, I may put more time in acquiring more trapping ground or scouting locations. We both have our ways to ensure our success once trapping season rolls around, and I don’t believe neither is wrong, one is just not my approach.

I really enjoy discussion like this, good luck this season Yes Sir!