Is a wolf hard to trap? Take a thousand generations of adaptations, add 7 to 800 times in seeing, hearing, and smelling what a human is capable of, couple all that with a good brain and a memory like an elephant, and you tell me if they're hard to trap. Ahhh...but we can trick the trickster.

Jack Whitman

I agree with that statement Jack, and every wolf is a different animal. What works for one might not work for another, so I don't let anyone tell me that what I'm doing is wrong. The proof is in the pudding. That' being said, I always pick something up talking with a wolfer from another area. I also agree with what you said about wolf trapping being at the top of the animals to go after, nothing compares to it.
I've got another quote I really like from your book regarding why we trap. I folded the page over so I can easily find it and will post it once I get home.

A friend of mine was doing wolf work in Minnesota and tried everything he could think of to catch a specific wolf. Nothing worked. He finally peed on a beer can and set a trap in front of it. That did the trick!

The old "Pabst Post" set gets them every time. Substitute a White Claw can to catch the females.

Nothings written in stone when it comes to any kind of trapping.....lol

I like it!

X2

X3

X4

Oh yeah, they make some ignorant ones, but they can sure learn fast! I don't know that they are actually smarter than a coyote, but the difference is, you educate one wolf and you've often educated the whole pack, because it will teach what it learned to the rest of them. And they travel so dang far, not only do you have to keep your traps working longer while you wait for them to come back around, but the cover so much territory they are more likely to encounter some other trapper in their travels and learn from him.

Why we trap……I ain’t typing this all out so here’s what I thought kinda sums it all up…..

I once got in trouble for claiming coyotes here were just as hard as catching wolves.

Pretty hard to get a coyote when the wolves chased/killed them out of the area......lol.
Not much for coyote on my line, but the odd one ventures through, usually a few hours behind the wolves.

Great quote, Shakey. For me this goes beyond trapping and into any outdoor pursuit in inclimate weather.

I've heard that a lot, even from locals. But I've never noticed a shortage of coyotes where the wolves are, personally. Maybe it is the thicker cover we have, but I've never noticed a substantial drop in coyote numbers, even when wolves are thick. Now I have seen where wolves killed coyotes, but not enough to affect the population. And I swear my most surefire coyote set (at least to get worked, it doesn't always connect due to pan tension and trap placement) is a remake where I've caught a wolf. If there is a coyote in the area I will just about gaurantee it will work a wolf remake.

And yeah, they do tend to follow the wolves around, probably to scavenge off of their kills.