Need to get massive? number of musk rats caught in a short time frame. Have several colony traps out but not pulling the numbers of rats I think is needed to make a substantial dent in the population before freeze up with ice and snow.
Being in WA restricted to cage type traps, no body grip or footholds, any recommendations as to how to increase the numbers over 18 in a week? Rough estimate would be probably looking at between 75 & 100 need to be removed.
Currently have 6 colony traps in the water with 1/2 baited with a carrot looking to pick up at least 1 floating colony this weekend.
Thanks for any replies

Never baited a colony off dry-land.
Does it work?
Guessing not well.

How did you come up with the 100 rat figure?

More traps
Larger colony traps (I use 8x16 with a bite door quite often)
I usually do not take advantage of the 72 hr rule until a couple of days in
Better sets, Move traps that do not produce.
Use a vessel or walk the water edge to scout

You have over 100 days, should be able to catch 1 rat a day

ice would be your friend

Came up with the estimated number by looking at damage to the dike holding the lake back, have walked the bank and looked at it via a boat, property owner took out the hut and brought in equipment to clean out any cattails, also by figuring these rats are similar to land rats and mice for everyone you do see there are 10 you don't see.
Yea probably could do 1 rat a day, already pulling 2 or 3 but would like to have a life other than checking rat traps all winter.

ok, I have a couple of questions
How big of an area/lake/pond are you talking about?
The owner already did habit disturbances, by removing the hut and veg? and you're go in after that to catch the muskrats??
How much experience do you have trapping muskrats? and to gauge their population?

If there was just one (the hut) that the owner took out. I think you have overestimated the rat population!

If you get clear ice there is nothing better to locate them of course. Snow ice won't help, but if you get a light freeze you can mark every den hole so if you get snow you are still in business. Of course colony traps will take a bunch at a time, but if you have den holes that only have a rat or two each like we often get here, we use our 5x5 swing panel traps that are flush mount also. One night just after dark I had to set a pond that always gets one rat a year. The old dens had caved, but there were a couple of new ones the rat was working on, so I reached into the hole to see how far he dug the den and the little bugger tried to bite me. The swing panel traps set in about 3 seconds so I jammed the trap into the run and returned to the truck to show Judy the job had been completed in ten minutes. I find these trap are faster to set than conibears, need no stabilizing, no wiring and no worries about clearance. I drag them in a sled. Takes no time to set with no misses.

Lake is probably about 5 acres in size, yea owner had habitat removed so not sure if there was only 1 hut but dead.cattails around most of the bank surrounding the lake. The dike was rebuilt 2 years ago and is "honeycombed" with burrow holes not to mention one side of the lake is the side of a rock slide so rocks and openings into the rocks absolutely everywhere.
First year water trapping and doing a SWAG about population as when on the lake checking traps not uncommon to see 8 or 10 rats in various locations along the shore and traversing the lake. Estimated population as stated before using land rats and mice where the ratio was 10 to 1, for every one you do see there are ten you don't see.

Jim when you mention swing type doors are they similar to the doors on colony traps?

If you have 6 colony traps in the water and only caught 18 in a week?? You might reconsider location. It makes all the difference!

Rats 48, 49 and 50 taken out of traps yesterday ice thick enough boat would break it up going to traps so guess have to put everything on hold til thick enough to hold my 140 pounds