What is everyone’s favorite baited otter sets? I’ve caught most of mine in my lifetime in blind sets. But there are a lot of missed opportunities on my lines where there are no pinch points to funnel them. I can’t set conibears on land here in Maine. Has anyone had luck with baited submerged buckets? Or some type of pocket set with a foothold on a drowning rod? I really want to tune up my otter game this year, trying to think creatively.

Like you most of mine have been blind sets. I have had some decent luck with lured sets using L shelf sets on docks or floating logs in a fish rearing pond and using a lured set near where I found otter scat and vomit.

The only time I caught otter in baited sets were when I had a coyote dirt hole close to a big river.

I’d be interested to hear if the serious otter trappers have had good luck with baited sets. Mine have been mostly incidental to trapping other species and an otter opportunity presented itself.

I personally have not had luck baiting them with coyote baits. I have one that runs the roads at night on a property I trap and he just will not work a set. I’m going to try shell fish oil and otter gland lure this winter if he’s still around.

Pocket sets baited with fish or muskrat are excellent otter sets.

I wish they weren't attracted to bait, but despite what some say, they unfortunately are attracted to it. I have to release numerous otters every year that are caught in baited pocket sets before Ohio's otter season comes in.

Fresh preserved muskrat meat and mouse bait seems to work pretty good down a dirt hole. I usually just use cleaned koi fish and Jamesons trout oil in pocket sets.

One of my primary species I target and the one I catch truck loads of each year is otters. The problem with baiting for otters is they are not a scavenger, but a apex predator. Down here they have a large buffet to choose from so baiting for them is a problem. Why would they eat some half rotten fish when he has a crawfish farm he can self serve from? My observations from trapping, studying and teaching about otters is as follows, remember this is for south Louisiana:

Old bait don't work.

Pocket sets for mink and coons will catch them, but it is mainly due to curiosity, not hunger.

Mink glad lure and bobcat glad lure will attract a otter.

Bucket sets work wonders on otters. I normally put some fish oil, bobcat glad lure and tie a wad of feathers or something along those lines in the bucket. They just can't help themselves, they have to stick their head in the bucket or box. A wooden box with rat wire covering the back will pull them. They love to check out a box they can see through.

Mink flagging works on otters as does lots of duck feathers. It gets them fired up.

But what do I know? If it works for you great, if not it doesn't.

Great response thank you. The area I trap, their buffet is more limited to fish only. I’ve been dreaming up a submerged bucket set for them. By law by conibears have to be completely submerged. I’ve thought about lining the inside of the buckets with reflective foil tape for visual curiosity as well as adding flagging above the submerged bucket.

Thank you Gunny for posting the info!!! I’m going to try the bobcat glad lure and also fresh fish oil on a couple of different sets on the road he runs often with duck feathers and see what happens. One problem is I can’t find the body of water he’s coming from to set a slide of trail set. The small lake that’s close by I walked around and there is zero sign. The river is about 3 miles away so I don’t know. It’s strange how he’s running the roads at night hunting just like a coyote. How fast are they on land? Could they catch a rabbit or rat ? What could he actually be hunting? Sorry for the questions I’ve never trapped water fur just coyote, bobcat and fox. I know zero about otter and beaver.

If there is no otter sign around that small lake it is due to three specific reasons;

1. There is nothing for them to eat or chase.
2. They don't know about.
3. You are "behind" them, not in front of them.

A bevy of otters can range up to 120 square miles with up to 30 linear miles of waterfront. I've been in the woods on a hardwood ridge hunting and hear the loudest commotion in the world, and here comes a bevy traveling. Or a single will come loping along. So an otter traveling is pretty much normal. Remember, even if you only see one, there are at least a couple of more somewhere around.

Duck feathers works good down here as they cruise the duck leases looking for ducks hunters have dropped. Besides that they eat a lot of waterfowl down here that is still kicking, and frogs, and turtles, and baby alligators, and mink and... anything else they can find.

The #1 reason people don't catch otters is they don't leave the traps out long enough. If you get behind them it might take a month or two, if they decide to return.

Excellent info. by Trappeur Gunny above.

Post above by Windstalker, I have had good luck with sinking white buckets with large fish head in the bottom. I wrap big rocks with aluminum foil to sink the bucket and for eye appeal. Add some holes to the bottom of the bucket, to help it sink, use the holes to wire in your fish heads. Put out 3-5 buckets at least. Sometimes they fill them up.

I too have seen otters on land, running around from one lake to another creek, and they are about 1 mile through the woods in Alaska. They drop about 400 feet in elevation to get to the creek below. Usually about 3-5 of them travelling together. I see the sign in the snow and have actually seen them one time on land half way between the two big bodies of water when they dropped into the pond by my cabin, back out and another half mile down to the creek, in winter. Crazy stuff I thought. But I have seen the sign year after year, so they do it a lot more than I think they do.

I take coated crab pot wire and make a rectangular box it’s closed up on one end, the other end l make a bracket for a 220 body grip.
I leave an opening in the end for behind the bg trap
On the top of the closed box l put an opening so l can hang a plastic rubber fish like is used for off shore fishing. These are 5-9” long.
I suspend this artificial bait fish with braided fishing line run from the top of the back through the bait out the belly. You want this balanced so it’s horizontal. Stiff wire works too.
Make a lid for the top of the bait area so the otter cannot get in the top, but you can adjust the bait or change it as needed.
A commercial crab pot will work also with two 280’s or 330’s
I add a short section of rope and a float to attract attention.
I used these in stocked ponds or canals for otter. If they see the float they know crabs or fish are in a crab pot and will dive down to it.
They see the artificial fish through the opening behind the trap. Their movement causes the fake fish to move and look life like.
They always take the easy route into the open end guarded by the body grip trap.
Cancel Christmas!

I’ve tried a handful of seasons to get otters in bucket sets submerged like they do in Alaska and coastal Canada with no luck. I made a bucket with slots and wires a whole perch to the bottom so when they swim by hunting they see it and think it’s hiding . I’ve also put swim baits on the trigger in a bucket and no dice either . The back waters of major rivers and a few larger streams is where I’ve tried. They may work better around docks if they are frequently using them but never had that opportunity. I’ve set them where I’ve seen them hunting before and near toilets. It’s very interesting when you have an otter in a blind set on either side of the bucket and they were both going the same direction.