How do we miss fewer critters? Does trap prep matter if its tuned right? Do they need tuned? Is prep a waste of time beyond making sure they will set and fire?

When trapping those spooky coyutes that live where predator control is constant is how do you get them? Blind sets? Snares? Ambush with a rifle? Secret set bait lure? Hazmat suit stuffed with cedar boughs for scent control?

My mentor did very well just dying. He felt wax held too much scent. With his successes I had no reason to doubt him.

Osky

I disassemble my traps and clean them, reassemble and tune them
Dye in walnut hulls and red oak bark, bring the water to a rolling boil for 30 minutes and turn off the heat
After the water has cooled I'll remove any wax floating on top . I then overflow the kettle to remove the tiny pieces
Heat the kettle back up to a rolling boil and remove the traps hang them in the woods until they get rained on, now I can wax them and hang them back in the woods until I'm ready to set them
I also believe wax holds scent, that's the reason I hang them in the woods.
I thought about storing them in dried dirt, but I don't use dried dirt because it's just more to carry
I was taught this way and it works for me

As far as the hard to catch coyotes, I will wait until there's a snow coming and set right before it starts. I use salt for my antifreeze and it works for me.
But I don't have big numbers of coyotes yet. And I hope I never do

I also believe hygiene and footwear are very important
And staying away from your sets until they catch or need maintenance

i agree with both statements above. i dont use wax alot but when i do wax coyote traps as soon as they are removed from the dip they are placed in wooden box fiilled with sage brush tops. also most coyotes become LURE shy not trap shy.

So in areas of the west where predator control is year round and serious, do the super wary coyotes breed super wary pups? The bold and less intelligent not getting a chance to breed? Unnatural selection if you will.

I'd call that natural selection
If you believe in evolution we're all descendants of the one's who didn't stand around to find out what that noise was in the bushes. We are descendants of the scared one's who ran for the caves

I gave up waxing them. New wax I don't see any problems but the second year on a pot of wax I seem to get more traps dug. I'm not sure why and I might be doing something wrong. I just quit waxing them several years ago and I get along better and don't see any real problems with traps rusting bad enough to be an issue if I take care of them. Did dip some in paint a couple weeks ago to try this winter and see how I get along with them. I'm no expert at catching the spooky ones but blind sets and snares have worked for me. Just going to flat sets with fresh urine has seemed to work too. But again I've maybe only caught a handful of coyotes that I think may have been really giving me a problem, we have enough coyotes here it's kind of hard to know if the one you caught today is the same one that didn't commit to your set a couple days ago or dug your trap the other night. I mostly focus on just trying to improve my catch rate but with lower coyote prices I have focused a bit more one catching ones that were giving me problems for the challenge and learning experience.

From my experience testing I do believe how attractive your bait or lure is can without a doubt help them overcome their cautiousness.
Two years ago I made about 30 sets one afternoon and just to try it I used a very thick plastic drop cloth. I had 4 first night catches in those 30 sets. Which is higher than my average catch rate and a lot higher than my usual first night catch rate. But that was the only time I've use one so not much of a comparison.
I will say fur trapping for numbers and trying to catch the more cautious ones is two different games here in KS with our population in my opinion. If your just try to put up big catches just catch the ones that want to be caught and move to new locations.
Just my 2 cents

… I use the black wax… it’ll make your traps so dark you worry about them stealing your truck

I personally don’t buy the notion that dried wax absorbs scent easily.

I just can’t believe something as hydrophobic as that readily absorbs anything.

Now, melted wax, sure. And that’s easy to keep clean, just don’t throw stinky traps in it.


Thats why the fellas that only pressure wash than wax, I think may have a higher likely hook of contaminating their wax. I know I can pressure wash a skunky trap till the cows come home and it’ll still smell skunky. But that good boil in dye gets rid of it.

But I do both. I don’t wax my summer traps for the simple fact you start getting into the high 80s and that wax starts getting soft on ya.






As for tough coyotes, especially summer coyotes, better than half mine I take in blind trail sets. No smells at the set at all.

Lots more driving around looking for the spot than anything.

you left out long days little sleep and few rest breaks

Travc has mentioned making a set for an old stock killer then leaving it alone till it hits. I think thats one good strategy. Check with binoculars and leave it alone. However, rain snow even a high wind can force you to go fix stuff.

Yes the guys with huge catches have a special drive that is hard to appreciate unless you have done it yourself or ridden with them. I couldn't do what some of them do. To me the real work is the skinning. Get home after dark and have 20 some coyotes to skin...... that's rough

I do check a lot of my trap from as far away as I can. Binoculars with a lot of them for a time saving thing and also I do think it can help your catch rate.. I have discussed this topic with some good coyote trappers in big ranch country with extended check times and they think just driving into a section everyday can hurt your catch rate.

My longest days to a catch without doing anything to the set was 83 days and it was a remake. Set made for a rancher were he was calving. I'd caught several coyotes at this place but he wanted me to leave some sets out.
I could check this set from the road on way to work. The dirt hole had filled with water at least twice and trap was frozen in some of those 83 days. Actually caught on the day I was going to pull it.

I am certain of it. When trapping where the closest house is 10-20 miles away vehicles are not common. Even where no one drives very often but houses are pretty close. The guy that drives out to check cattle every day they get used to it.

In the west cattle are left to their own devices. First calf heifers might get brought to a calving pen but after that first calf if she doesn't have a calf when they gather, shes gone to the sale barn. Winter they get hay but for most of the year humans are not anywhere around. There are lots of cattle pastured on very marginal BLM. There are places that can only support 3-4 cow calf pairs per mile section. A few places where its less. You need to be playing your best game to trap coyotes in those conditions.

I see some with my test sets. If I get a location that gets a lot of action I'll keep using it until it quits. I've had location I've tested 8 or ten different formulations at in a 6 month period. Location just on the edge of a dirt road or the edge of the field along a road where coyotes expect u to be last much longer than areas I have to drive into a section to check. The worse are the ones I walk into say a 100yds or so. They quit working these set hard on these locations after I've walked in 3 or 4 times. The coyotes are still moving through these areas and if I was trapping I could probably still catch one there but they start getting spooky enough they are hesitant to really commit to a set and work it hard. This is usually checking the test sets every 3 days or so.