Pocket gopher checks

How often should a person check gopher traps?

I set traps one day and check them the next day. Leaving traps set and not checked beyond 24 hours leaves any gophers caught susceptible to domestic and wild predators. Even though I cover and stake my trap sets, I have had my gopher and traps thieved by a fox, coon, skunk, etc. on a few occasions.

You can check them within hours if they are active. We have set and heard the trap snap after only a few minutes

If caught by the leg in a size 0 long spring, I wonder if they'd escape if not for ~daily checks.

That's all I use and never had a problem unless they where caught by a toe. Like the Aggie said, peditors can be a bigger problem. On large jobs I might do like trapping muskrat and check them once finished with the last set. Other times I might set them in the morning and check them later in the afternoon. There is no law in MN for how often they are required to be checked but for respect of the aninmal, I do it at least once a day.