Dog proof traps
Contributors to this thread:Small Game
From: Buckeye
13-Nov-24
For those who have used them, is it a good idea to wax them or use as is? And also, what do you like to use for bait?
From: Buckdeer
13-Nov-24
I never have dyed or waxed them,I use little marshmellows or cat food
From: Cord
13-Nov-24
mini marshmallows
From: Brian M.
13-Nov-24
As is. I may have boiled and waxed mine when they were new, but not since. Raccoon will yank on that trigger, it doesn't have to be that sensitive.
From: wisconsinteacher
13-Nov-24
I would not wax them. Raccoons will not notice a thing. I like to use marshmallows, cat food and then something for a scent trail leading up to the trap.
From: greg simon
13-Nov-24
Never waxed them. I use dog food, don't have any cats and not about to buy any food for the damn things!
From: Smtn10PT
13-Nov-24
Use as is. Corn works about as good as anything else I’ve tried.
From: t-roy
13-Nov-24
I don’t wax mine and they seem to work fine. I use cat food mixed with some liquid smoke, a little bit of water to make the cat food (10lbs) just slightly damp, then dump a couple of packages flavored jello packets and mix it all up. I’ll fill a gallon milk carton with it. Makes it easy to shake some into the trap when baiting them. I also use imitation vanilla as a draw scent. A couple drops on the lip of the trap.
From: Buckeye
13-Nov-24
Dang Troy, hard to argue with that recipe! Looks like it works well buddy.
From: Wv hillbilly
13-Nov-24
I’ve only dipped a few of mine in trap dip once they get rusted up. Never waxed any.
From: molsonarcher
13-Nov-24
Coon dont care. Use as is and feed pretty much whatever. Hot dogs work well too, but marshmallows on top help checking from a distance/drive by quick look.
From: t-roy
13-Nov-24
I think I got the recipe off Trapperman.com. I caught right at 50 of them last winter. We had an extremely mild winter, so they were much more active than normal for that time of year.
From: BUCKeye
13-Nov-24
Put me in the have never waxed or dip group. I like to wedge a jumbo marshmallow under the trigger, top with a smear of peanut butter and a squirt of grape jelly. With holidays coming up, I'll be saving tails from cocktail shrimp...my wife loves when I do that...
From: sticksender
13-Nov-24
DP traps....no need to dye/wax. I do sandpaper the rust off the trigger bar surfaces each year to make them a little more sensitive and work smoothly.
From: t-roy
13-Nov-24
Good point, sticksender.
From: redneck hunter
13-Nov-24
I waxed my dp traps this year for the first time. Some are 5 years old and showing some finish wear and rust. I was waxing my jaw traps and thought" what the heck". They are fast for sure. Will probably be gone after a few catches. Cheap small dog food up to the lever with a squirt of liquid smoke. I'm gonna try some used golf balls for a visual aid and to help with rain and mice. We will see.
From: SD
13-Nov-24
I may be the odd man out on this one but hear me out. I put a trail cam on one of my coon sets for a while. Caught 5 in about 1.5 weeks in that spot. But... there was one that always stayed in the back. Showed up every night with the gang and never once got within 3ft of the trap. She ended up being the last man standing... continued to use that trail, but never took the bait. Coons can become trap shy, so if you want to catch every one you can then do your scent control. After that I started putting my dog proofs through the same dip routine as I do my yote and cat traps. Certainly doesn't hurt.
From: Buckdeer
14-Nov-24
I really like using a conibear 220 in a bucket or box.The guy I give mine to sells the skulls for as much as hide so can't head shoot them anyway.
From: Mad Trapper
14-Nov-24
I don’t wax mine. At the end of the season, I run mine through a lye solution to clean them out.
From: gobble50
14-Nov-24
Dry cat food. Golf ball on top with 3/8” hole drilled half way through Squirt vanilla on bait & fill golf ball hole with vanilla. Golf ball keeps mice out. Caught 75 on our 40 acres this fall with this method. I buy the vanilla (fake probably) on Amazon - silly cheap - $5 for three big bottles.
From: jmiller
14-Nov-24
I don't wax mine but do paint them. They are very effective but there will also be some coon that will ignore them. A 1.5 coilspring at a dirt hole set will usually take the shy ones.
From: Zbone
14-Nov-24
The best coon bait is mini marshmallows smeared with grape jelly... One packet from Mcdonald's is enough...
From: Iowa Rut Nut
14-Nov-24
We also squirt some Hershey's chocolate syrup in the trap.
From: Canepole
14-Nov-24
How long of a cable/chain is normally used?
From: Pete In Fairbanks
14-Nov-24
I've never waxed my DP's. Have had no problems.
Pro-Tip: I use dry dog or cat food for bait, but I add a full-size marshmallow poked just inside the top of the cylinder. Visual attractor, but more to the point, it keeps rain/snow out. Thus the actual bait doesn't get wet, freeze up and render trap inoperable.
Pete
From: Acres4wildlife
14-Nov-24
Regarding the cable length. Three feet is plenty but I like at least 3 swivels. Make sure the chain cannot get wound up in anything. I like dry cat food with something either fishy or sweet like pancake syrup.
From: SD
14-Nov-24
Anyone ever catch 2 at the same time (in the same trap)?
From: Zbone
14-Nov-24
Hadn't thought of that Pete, thanks for sharing...
From: t-roy
14-Nov-24
Zbone…. I’ve never caught two separate coons at the same time, but I’ve caught 5-6 little ones by both front feet in trap this year.
The big marshmallow trick works good, unless it’s hot out. Then, they’re nothing but a gooey mess. I know, most times trapping season is during cool/colder weather, but in Iowa you can trap them year round on private property.
From: nchunter
14-Nov-24
I don't wax them at all. I use cat food, mini marshmellos and grape jelly. Works fine. I started with sardines but I couldnt stand the smell of my traps after awhile, or my hands.
From: DonVathome
23-Nov-24
You are talking about Coon cuffs right? I tried them this year. I catch more coons with NO bait, a few days after they eat all the bait. I used dog food. Them empty them 9 out f 10 times and do not trigger it. I have set triggers as "loose" as I can. New traps, no rust.
No matter what bait I use the eat it and do not set the trap off most times. Frustrating. I might try peanut butter on the trigger.
Recently, same day, I caught two chipmunks by the head. Never happened before or since. Not sure why only that one day only, twice, after months of use?
From: olddogrib
23-Nov-24
Apologizes, not trying to hijack threads, but I posted this on another trapping related thread but got only one reply with feedback. I dispatch coons with .22 CB longs, mainly to minimize "sound pollution"! I've always heard to imagine an 'X' from the ears to the eyes and place the shot in the intersection. I'll admit I'm not batting at MLB averages, lol! When you hit the spot and it dances the "helicopter twist", you did good and it dies quickly. A half inch off and then you're going to waste ammo at a flopping target. Is there a better spot? P.S I don't get "point blank". There's always that one with an attitude who just watched Braveheart on Netflix and is going to use the entire chain length in a final lunge!
From: longsprings
23-Nov-24
I dipped them when brand new that was it I just grabem and use em
From: Basil
23-Nov-24
Don, Sounds like rodents robbing bait to me.
From: Buckeye
23-Nov-24
So I wound up dipping and waxing them, I was doing the rest of the traps and couldn't help myself I guess.. I'm not having a lot of success with them but I don't have to worry about the neighbors cats either. I am getting a lot of tipped over traps and a couple sprung ones.
From: MA_Bowhunter
23-Nov-24
olddogrib - shorten the chain length (wrap around a tree or what ever) and, yes, get point blank.
Everything else you said is fine. I also use the cb's for the same reason, and they work great!
From: grape
24-Nov-24
Never wax. Cat food. Rainy weather put an old golf ball on top. Spray cylinder with nose jammer for scent.
From: Pete In Fairbanks
24-Nov-24
Not to completely hijack this thread...! But to anyone thinking that catching 2 coons in the same DP is the ultimate trapping experience. Here is a photo of two WOLVES my friend the late Ben Hopson caught in the same foothold trap (Alaska #9 coilspring.) Now THAT is an impressive feat!
From: Buckeye
24-Nov-24
No way Pete! That's crazy!
From: SD
24-Nov-24
COOL!!!
From: t-roy
24-Nov-24
AND impressive feet….Pete! ;-)
From: Lewis
25-Nov-24
I dip mine in Zep probably ever other year clean them with either vinegar mix or acid mix seems to help good luck Lewis
From: Pete In Fairbanks
25-Nov-24
Here is my take on the 2 wolves in same trap.
They were both male pups of the year. If you have ever watched young wolves (or dogs) rough housing around, you will see them throw their shoulders into one another. At the point the shoulders connect, their front feet are very close together, if not on top of one another. I'd guess that is what happened here. The wolves were playing and just happened to each put a foot down in the same place... and there just happened to be a #9 buried there!
Ben Hopson Jr, of Anaktuvuk Pass was an incredibly talented wolf trapper. Knew more about wolves than anyone I know or knew. Years ago Ben taught me a TON about open-country wolf trapping. I will never be the wolf trapper Ben was, but his son "B-3" has become a fine wolf trapper in his own right! The Inupiat seem to me to be able to "think like a wolf!" That appears to be the secret! We Caucasians just ain't never gonna get to that level, try as we might, but I'm grateful for Ben trying to teach me!
From: fuzzy
02-Dec-24
I bait mostly with sardines packed in oil so no other lube or anti corrosion needed
From: SD
02-Dec-24
3 traps for 3 day = 9 coons.
From: t-roy
02-Dec-24
Some spots are goldmines, SD! I think I caught 3 in this triple set the first night, then 2, 2, and then a single each night for the last 3 nights. Major trail coming up out of a ravine, into my standing cornfield.
From: olddogrib
03-Dec-24
My secret bait is Kipper Snack (smoked herring) juice poured in the cheapest Dollas Store dry dog food I can find. I pour the juice in the dog kibble and eat the fish on crackers for lunch. They can't resist, I've gone four for four more than once and seem to get more 2-paw catches from the greedy devils shoveling it out!
From: Pete In Fairbanks
03-Dec-24
T-roy sez: "Some spots are goldmines..."
I would postulate that the immediate location of any deer feeder would fall into that classification!
Pete
From: gjs4
04-Dec-24
Never waxed, painted some, have used pork rinds, fruit snacks, Swedish fish.... cat food where cats are just seems a risk.... Ive tuned some of the push pull triggers but basically if youre on them, its easy
From: t-roy
04-Dec-24
I’d imagine you’re right, Pete. The farmers here in Iowa hate them. It’s incredible how much damage they do their cornfields, especially close to the timbered edges.
