I'm making money trapping woodchucks...the Comstock traps are working great as positive sets. There are some weird situations, however, when I would like to be able to entice a woodchuck into a baited cage. I've tried zucchini, cantaloupe, etc. and have not been successful yet. Is there a bait or lure that is highly effective? Is it necessary to somehow camouflage the cage? I read through some archives, but have not found specific information. (It may be there, but my search skills may not be that advanced). Thanks for any tips you may have.

Sliced Cantalope

Let’s see, I haven’t baited chucks for years. As you’ve found out, placement of the trap is the key to catching things. If the trap is in the wrong place, the animal will never see it. It won’t matter what bait you use.

But when I baited, I used everything from cantaloupe to Swedish fish candy. I liked carotenoids. Presentation was always the key. For instance, I could use cherry tomatoes to draw them in, but they wouldn’t eat them, lol. Fresh was always important in the presentation. They are in a sea of fresh lawn/garden/flowerbed. Week old bait isn’t going to attract anything. Sometimes varieties of some fruits allowed you to cheat freshness. Cortland apples don’t oxidize and brown like normal apples.

Cubby sets weren’t very important for chucks.

Maybe Bob has a bottle of woodchuck crack he can sell you.

Use some fresh scat from another woodchuck as your lure.

I've heard the "scat from other woodchucks" idea...I will have to start saving it. I've noticed they usually are generous with their deposits of scat when I catch them in a Comstock cage. I have wondered about gland lures or something of that nature. Are the commercially produced baits any more effective than fresh fruits/vegetables?

It probably is an interesting, unusual smell. It might give you a edge.

Gland lures are extremely effective on woodchucks if well-developed. Chuck gland lure is also very good on most predators as well. Feces will add appeal and curiosity from the beginning to any set up and you can include Ghog urine in that presentation. If you have a setup of a visual, food odor and gland/feces it is pretty much a sure thing.

We do that set up at all our jobs and if you are on an active den or feeding area we catch in a few hours in most cases. If you miss your location, you may have to wait until that feeding chuck gets near the set up before you connect.

this ^^^^^^^^

or apple slices, and Mulberry type lure.

also, the dirtier your trap gets from woodchucks the better it is. You should keep woodchuck box traps separate from the others.

I use to use fully enclosed traps back in the day and after a while I stopped putting anything in the trap. The smell from the previous catches was all I needed. If the dirty trap dried out too much I would say some water in the trap to get it smelling again.

I have accidentally caught woodchucks by leaving a trap that was dirty on the ground near where I park my truck. I always keep my dirty woodchuck traps separate from my other traps.

Once the trap gets the smell of a predator like a raccoon , the chucks will avoid it.

Wow...I've actually been washing my traps really well after a woodchuck job. Guess I'll have to just leave 'em dirty. That makes it easier anyway.

Why don't you find the den and put a 160 In front of It.

Great discussion! I'm always looking for ideas on how to knock back groundhogs.

This. It's how I do it. I never use bait.

In agriculture settings or other less populated areas you may just fine using a 160 over a den. In domestic settings they just aren't practical or safe. I don't want to give trappers a black eye catching someone's pet going under a deck or shed situation.

There are precautions that can be taken by wiring or fencing the trap to catch only a specific animal. Even then you can catch rabbits, skunks or opossums using that den.

We use baited/lured cages every year with great success. Less liability and concern for all. We have been doing this commercially for many years, that is just our take on this.

"Why don't you find the den and put a 160 In front of It."

I have great success with 2 door Comstock cages setting right on the den, but once in a while I am not able to get to a den for some reason. There are applications where it'd be nice to just lure them in a cage. As Bob said, the 160's can be a concern nuisance trapping in some neighborhoods.