Dilemma on when to trap

I take a vacation every year to trap coyotes. Nothing big, typically just catch 40-50 over ten days or so. I have to schedule this way in advance so that I can block my clinic schedule. Under my current contract I’ll be able to get about 14 days. My dilemma is when to take it. Options are as follows:
Dec 3-16 (14 days)
Data: new moon on 4th, first quarter on 10th (I catch more coyotes in darker moons). Generally warmer than late December (bad). Wife and kids would be staying about 45 minutes away so probably be at home with them at night about half the time (bad).

Dec 18-Jan2 (16 days)
Data: full moon 18th, third quarter on 26th, new moon 2nd. Generally colder but could get snow . Kids out of school so we’d all stay together (good). Would have to take Christmas morning off for family or else make wife mad (bad).

What do y’all think?

Dec. 3—16 definitely

Earlier. Here i start December first and go as long as the weather let's me or to mid january, whichever comes first.
Our December 1st coyotes are about as good as the Christmas ones, and after the first of the year it becomes a crapshoot on quality or weather, bother deteriorate quickly around then here.
Jim

Dark nights will out produce bright moon nights on land-based predators.

My temperatures are going to run a good 15-20 degrees warmer though

It would be hard for me to pass up the two extra days with the later dates.

Yep, been that way forever. If the law allowed I'd stay home on full moon nights...

Which of those two time frames based on your knowledge and history of your weather patterns gives you the best odds of having weather not impact your trapping in a negative way, such as rain, mud, snow, freezing thawing etc. Days don't mean too much if you have a lot of down days. would think that your YOY coyotes who have been dispersing would be roaming more earlier than later as they start to pair up. I don't know your conditions and how much different they are than say 200-300 miles north of you. Bryce

I’ve run into the same dilemma in the past. I’ve moved forward each year rather than later. Your coyotes might not run as great on a full moon but they’ll still run. My cat catch goes up dramatically on full moon nights. I’ve had much worse luck with weather shutting me down then catches going down if I wait. The last time I waited until later we couldn’t even get in 80% of the locations with 4-5 snow drifts. Definitely bad.

Man, if it were here, I’d avoid the month of December. It’s my least producing month of all. It was like that in several other states as well. But if those are the only options, I’d go later.

December can be a challenge because they just got feed and now there spoiled on deer and elk and things are changing daily so you must change with them.last 2 weeks of nov. To the first 2 in December be my pick fur as good as it's going to get here . There's a good chance for weather to blow in and out moving predator every little front that comes through .