all duck , turkey, pheasant,.....stamps and in general all small game licenses too. Doesn't seem like all that long ago, I figured the first $100 of a fur check covered the general costs of lure, bait, hardware, and a few trap mods. Just ordered a few jars of lure/bait, J hooks, a few swivels/anchors and replacement springs for some #3s and BOOM - there went $350.- after deducting a few extra items i was thinking about. That got my curiosity up to look at what it would cost for a kid to start with buying new for a few coon and coyote sets. Coyotes around here are paying next to nothing and coon at 5-15, my Lord that a losing proposition.

Grateful I started when I did and benefited from very good fur prices to establish what I have today. This truly has become a sport you do for love. I recently was at a pheasant farm and the topic came up about coyotes, skunks,coon,.. and me trapping. Amazing how everyone gravitated to me and the importance of managing the nest robbers for natural populations. When I offered up to give them a proposal for trapping their land in their "off season" they choked. Guess they thought trapping was free.

I suspect like most people they never give a thought in to the amount of time that one puts to provide a service or product.

You have to be a bit of salesman and sell your services. Explaining what goes into your services, equipment costs and expertise you have may help. I find doing this before giving a price seems to work better.

DNR used to have a list you could put yourself on if you were a trapper. Maybe still do?? The idea being when someone called the DNR about nuisance critter they could call a local trapper to take care of the problem.
I had myself on that list for a while. Problem was that people always thought it was a DNR service. Or that you could do it for the value of the fur. I did get rid of a few coon for couple people really close by I made a few bucks on. Most people as soon as I said I needed to charge. They decided they would take the cat food dishes off their porch. I wasn't looking to be in the ADC business. Just maybe pick up another place to trap or couple easy furs when they had some value.
Was more hassle than help being on that list. Then you have the people that find out you can catch a coyote. Want you to come catch the coyotes killing their deer. But of course only for the fur value and only at noon during none rut..

Mac

I've had landowners balk at paying to have their "nuisance" beaver trapped, but think nothing of hiring a backhoe and operator to take out the dam.

There's a list of "nuisance" trappers listed by county on the WTA website.

Time experienced trappers view their services as a plumber-electrician ect do money wise. If not let the person-persons buy traps, trapping equipment and start the learning experience!

YES, a deer hunter will pay big dollars to try and get a deer, tree stands, bow or guns, feed for their bait piles, food plots, but won't pay you to trap coyotes, not to mention turkey hunter,

I do and wish others would do the same. Time is much to valuable for me and I don’t give it away.

Since fur prices dropped , not many trappers out around here. Don’t see many pheasant, grouse, turkey population is way down. Lot of people gripe about it but don’t understand that the effects of a trapper can really enhance small game populations.

As I was looking at the prices of equipment and supplies, made me realize how hard it is for the next couple generations to get into trapping. Start up costs are pretty steep. But then compared to hunting, $800 rifle, $1000 scope, and so on isn’t much different

I got carried away last year and spent a wad, but I was starting from scratch and wasn’t sure what all was needed or what I liked.

I didn’t get back into trapping to make a profit but more for enjoyment and to manage the predators. And in that I have been successful.

I agree as to the issue of youth not wanting to or not able to start up trapping. First many have the opportunity to make $12-$16 per hour from employers who are willing and able to get them very flexible schedules so they can go to school, do extra school events etc. Making a couple hundred a week instead of selling coons in the grease for 2-7 bucks or rats for $2.50 makes CENTS to them, even if they don't like math. Also putting together a modest trap line with even used gear and then getting permissions, setting, checking, dispatching, fur handling etc is not only cost but time impactful. Also traps here in WI need to be checked every 24 hours, come rain, snow, ice, mud, etc. A youth can get a job, and buy a used .22, used shotgun and a used center fire rifle and hunt a lot and use way less time and probably money and he/she can go when the weather or seasons are right and stay home when it is not. Also the vast majority of our youth even in WI are living in built up or suburban areas which makes trapping more difficult from the getgo.

As to the never getting enough money for the work we do for ADC well that door swings both ways. I work with a couple larger dairies that have real coon issue and a lot of coon habitat. One contacted an ADC firm and when he heard the fees he just hung up. He contacted me and I showed him how to buy a half dozen cage traps. He has about $300 plus in the traps. Over the last 5 or so years he has caught over 200 coons, skunks and grinners around his feed storage, barns and along the field edges. He runs these himself as he watches as employees tell him when they are seeing eyes as they work at the place 24/7. He told me he is averaging about $2-$4 to remove coons where it would cost him $30-$50 hire that firm. So if you can get high revenue take it,we also have to realize that several persons learn to be very capable as well. I trap the one farm and have for 25 years. I used to get 20-25 a year there now I get less then half dozen usually so he is doing very well.

Bryce

I didn’t get back into trapping to make a profit but more for enjoyment and to manage the predators. And in that I have been successful.

Put profit back in the equation, managing predator's becomes a lot more beneficial for any entities concerned .

I’m not worried about return on investment. I like to trap to reduce the amount of ground nest predators. I don’t make any money off it. The only payment I get is hunting access. And it’ll be a cold day before I pay to hunt someplace.

Anywho. Carry on…