tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73647478303511652982024-03-01T23:03:25.969-08:00Wild WisconsinMy outdoor activities and pursuits in Northern WI. From coyote hunting, trapping, deer hunting, fishing to picking wild mushrooms. Whatever's in season and tid bits of my views on the outdoors and issues that affect us all.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-83246351094044422042014-04-24T15:16:00.003-07:002014-04-24T15:19:48.109-07:00Trapping Truths<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 36.79999923706055px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i>Trapping Truths</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">by Duane Fronek</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trapping has been around since this country began and was the driving force behind the exploration of the west, mainly beaver. Trapping still exists today, and like hunting has gone thru many changes over the years like technique but more importantly, the tools or equipment that we use. Just like guns and bows, traps have morphed into more efficient tools to ensure better results. Guns and bows are more accurate resulting in quicker cleaner kills as well as more user friendly. Traps are no different, improvements over the years have made them more humane to human standards. I say human standards because ma nature isn’t so humane as outdoorsmen and women are, not by a long shot. But in the minds of people, pain and suffering is looked at in the human sense and not the animal kingdoms sense, they are two completely different plains. Take for example a deer that gets hit by a car and breaks a leg and runs off. There’s a good chance that animal will heal and be fine with no intervention from anything. A person on the other hand requires medical attention, pain meds, antibiotics and physical therapy. The reason is we are made completely different than animals. Animals have different pain receptors in the brain than people, and they have too in order to survive the elements.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now with taking this into account, lets look at traps. There are basically 2 kinds of trap catagories, live traps ie cage traps, footholds and live catch snares aka cable restraints. The kill types are snares and body grippers. Cage traps basically hold the animal in a cage, a simple cage with an opening and the door closes when the animal trips the trigger, simple concept, but is mainly efficient for animals like raccoon, squirrels, rabbits etc. Footholds aka legholds innappropiately because the trap holds the animal by the paw and not the leg, is one of the most popular traps for general trapping. Though their design looks similar in appearance as their older counterparts, much like bows and guns, there function is productive and humane. We’ve all heard the stories of animals chewing their leg off to get out etc., the truth is, older traps back in the earlier days could cut feet or break a foot and the animal would twist out or the trap would cut off circulation to the toes held beneath the jaws causing them to go numb, the animal would chew on the trap that has a hold of them in defense, but being the numb toes beneath the jaws were easier to chew they would chew on them, they didnt feel it so they chewed not knowing its their toes. An animal can’t reason that if I chew my toes or foot I can get away, they would have to done it a number of times to make that reasoning, just like teaching a dog a trick. The other part of this is, being that the toes or foot are numb they don’t feel it, an animal will not inflict pain on itself, it seems humans are the only species that tend to self harm. So what makes footholds today more animal friendly? If you think about, if traps result in animals chewing their foot or pulling out, it is of no benefit for the trapper. It results in a lost animal, which in turn means lost fur or food, much like a gun that fails to do what its intended for. Footholds today have improvements built into them that not only insure animal comfort, but also prevents losses and also allows the trapper to release unwanted catches unharmed. These improvements include smoother jaws with rounded edges that prevent any cutting along with wider thicker jaws that cover more of the paw to ensure blood flow, and gaps in the jaws when closed to ensure blood flow even more, some have rubber jaw pads on the trap, but rubber if not the right hardness like the older types can cut blood flow by comforming to the foot if left too long. These traps have springs on them that ensure the proper amount of tension on the foot to just hold the animal, not a crushing strength, they also have added swivels in the chain to allow the animal free movement while restrained so no twisting can break a bone. They also have the ability to adjust the tension it takes to trip the trap, each species puts a certain amount of weight on each foot when it steps down, so like a canine like coyote it takes about 2-4 lbs, so if you set the trap with that much tension, you can avoid catching animals that exert say a ½-1 lb like raccoon, the trap won’t fire. Now couple that with the fact that an animals paw is tough and fleshy and able to walk on whatever terrain it encounters whether its wet, dry or sub-zero temps, and you have a device or tool that really treats the animal well. The nice thing too is, if want to release what you caught because its say a non target animal or fur that isn’t quite prime, you can. These traps have been used often in relocating and reintroducing animals such as wolves. They use them to catch wolves then move the wolves to areas they want to introduce them to, with no harm done to the feet. Because animals like wolves and other canines are hard to coax into a cage trap, thats why footholds are used extensively on canines. So now days even though the foothold looks the same or similar to its older counterpart, the improvements in the modern traps have made it humane and also user friendly, much like our modern firearms and bows.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now lets look at snares. They’re two types, kill snares and live catch cable restraints. Kill snares do what the name implies, they kill. But they kill humanely, they are not the crude snares of yesterday, they are like the foothold with improvements implemented into them to make them fast, efficient and humane. We all remember the animal rights adds with animals heads hanging by a thread or cut completely off from snares. In reality not you or I or any other living thing could live long enough for the time it would take to do that struggling in a snare, you’d be dead way before the skin was even cut. The AR groups work on emotion, not common sense or the law of physics or reality. Any how, snares today have what we call locks, these locks cinch down and dont back off, when the animal goes through the snare the loop closes on the neck and cinches down tight with the aid of a small spring on the lock that ensures the lock not backing off. The animals air is cut off and thus passes out not regaining consciousness. This all happens in a matter of minutes and a lot of times faster than the time it takes for an animal to die from a bullet or arrow, and if you’ve done any tracking of an animal that has been shot, you’d see this to be the case. Like the foothold the snare can be used to be animal specific by adjusting how high the loop is set off the ground, allowing non targets to walk under or step over or push over, they can also be set with certain loop sizes to further ensure avoiding non target catches. Most states trapping regulations will list what can be used and what can not, just like hunting regs. Same goes for footholds or any other traps. Live catch snares or cable restraint are another type of snare but just holds the animal alive, and some states like here in WI, this is what can be used. Live catch snares have whats called a relaxing lock that doesn’t stay cinched down, but relaxes when the animal quits pulling and to ensure that it does not kill they have what is called a stop on the cable that only allows the loop of the cable to close only so far, so that it does not choke the animal. It basically works like having a dog on a leash, and here again the trapper has the ability to chose whether to release or to dispatch the animal. The other thing, studies have shown that if a dog gets caught in these, that a dog being use to being tied up, just sits and waits to be let out. On that note I’d like to say that most animals I have trapped with snares, cables and footholds, most were relaxed and laying down or sleeping. Studies have shown with the modern day trapping equipment, that the animal will initially fight the trap, but soon settles down and relaxes.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The other style trap we have is called a body gripper. Its designed to be a lethal quick kill trap, and that it is. Its used mainly on raccoon and water animals. It works by the animal sticking its head thru when going into a hole or tight trail, which it trips and catches the animal by the body or head, instantly knocking the animal out, but the animal does not regain conciousness because it cuts off its breathing. Regulations on these type traps are very specific in most states depending on there size, some can only be set in water for animals like beaver and otter, and the smaller ones may have to be set inside an enclosure like a cubby box to prevent domestic animal catches like dogs or cats, so the regs are quite strict on their uses. But they are very humane that they kill quickly and effectively.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As you can see, traps of today have had many improvements through the ages, as well as being species specific. Trapping has taken a bad rap through the years, basically due to things that happened years ago with outdated equipment then toted by animal rights groups as gospel today, and being trappers make up the smallest percentage of the outdoor user groups they are a prime target by these groups, many times times turning other sportsmen and women against trappers using fallacy. All user groups need to stay educated on not just what they do as their outdoor pursuits, but educated on others chosen outdoor pursuits so they don’t get pulled into the lies that will eventually be used against them when others passions are outlawed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I hope this article has helped shed some light on traps and trapping, and dispel some of the fog thats been exploited by the anti groups over the years. Good luck out there in whatever you do.</span></div>
</span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-17399526283941705082013-11-12T07:24:00.000-08:002017-10-12T18:10:43.711-07:00The myth of "Always and Never"<br />
by Duane Fronek<br />
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I recently had an interesting conversation with a very knowledgable Huntress of western WI Skye Goode. She had been out bowhunting and commented on how much the deer were moving that night despite what some of the so called experts claim is a bad time to be out hunting because the deer wouldn't be moving. Why? Because of the high 25+ mph winds that were howling that evening. She noted that the deer were everywhere despite the wind, shooting may be a challenge from a tree waving in the wind like a flag, but none the less the deer were out and about. She mentioned she sees things like this happen often, what is claimed as gospel turns out to not be so. And myself I couldn't agree more.<br />
I call it the "Always and Never" myth or rut. So many times we hear the phrase "this always happens" or "this never does" and/or "Always do this" and "Never do that" and its usually from those that claim they've seen it all. When I hear people use those two words when it comes to hunting or trapping it makes me question the level of the individuals experience. And for new recruits to hunting it can be a real hindrance because they are putting their faith in what that individual is telling them and can leave them in a rut and eventually keep them from reaching their goals and improving their skills and knowledge making a longer learning curve.<br />
So what made her go out and hunt in those condition despite what she's heard. Well for one, she thinks outside the box and she knows her quarry. Why would an animal that depends on it sense of smell and keen hearing sit like a duck in conditions that severely hinder your senses for survival. No, your gonna be on the move, edgey and wary. Scents and sounds in high winds and the animals ability to use its assests in those conditions is severely dimished. So the claim that deer dont move in high winds is false as is claimed by some as I have witnessed as well.<br />
Thinking outside the box and using common sense and our own experiences and observations can make us more successful in out smarting the quarry we persue. There are so many variables out there in the wild world that there really isnt a blanket statement for much of what happens out there.<br />
Take for example, and this may ruffle some feathers, but the wait and let the animal bleed out after a hit before you persue it. Maybe a short wait to collect yourselves after the initial adrenelin rush. But its been my experience to get on that animal right away especially if you didnt see it go down. Why? The longer that animal has to rest the more likely the blood will clot and stop bleeding externally. Take for example a coyote I tracked that was marginally hit at the elbow. It was partially snow covered ground and while tracking this animal I seen where this particular coyote would put that leg into the snow and wait till it was kicked up again and each time the blood trail was lighter and lighter. We did get to that coyote and when we did we found that wound was partially froze and the bleeding looked to have stopped. I dont look at tracking as following the bread crumbs to the prize, I use and look at tracking as a way to keep that animal bleeding out as fast as possible. Ive tracked alot of animals deer and bear for others over the years and found the longer they left that animal the more difficult the retrieval. When an animal is out of gas its out of gas and that faster you can make that happen the better off you'll be. I'll be writing more on tracking in another article, so lets move along.<br />
Another one of those things that ''never" happens is getting a second crack at a deer in the same spot you missed the day before. I've had it happen three times that I recall where I missed a buck and spooked him only to come back the next day to the same stand and hunt and the missed buck comes back down the same trail same time or close to it and this time I connect. Why? Because animals are creatures of habit and routine. The only thing different that each of these animals did, was when they approached the spot the arrow missed them, they just made a wide berth around the spot. Two of the three instances I got the buck. The third went behind me. My point is this. Many times I've heard if you miss and spook a particular deer you wont get a second chance. And again I've found thats not always the case.<br />
Or take for instance when it comes to trapping, canines for example. You've heard it said to keep things clean, use clean traps with no rust, dont spit or pee around a set. Although as a general rule this is true to an extent but there is a lot of lead way. I use to be very meticulous about clean trapping to the point it bordered on insanity when it came to canines. I wore hip boots, rubber cloves, traps clean enough to be used in surgery if need be,lol. But I still wasn't connecting like I wanted and couldn't figure out why. I was doing everything the experts claimed, always wear rubber boots and gloves, never set a trap with rust etc. Then I started thinking more about this stuff harder, did I really have to go and re-dye and wax all my traps because I got stuck waiting behind a potato truck pouring black smoke down on me for 15 min. in traffic. (that really happend) the answer was no and it was slowly coming to me, I started thinking outside the box and looking at what is really happening in my case. First I was wearing so much rubber to keep from being detected by that fox or coyote that I sweat more on the line, giving off even more human scent. So I start dressing more comfortable, wearing my hunting boots wearing leather gloves etc. I once had a fellow trapper along and he watched me smooth out a set with my bare hands that a deer messed up. He said you touched that set bare handed aren't you worried about scent. I said no. The next day he got to see a coyote bouncing in that set and he said he would have never believed it if he hadn't of seen it. So many times we believe too much of what we hear it actually hinders our success. Take for example about the fact of human scent and not peeing around a set, yet how many trappers set traps at farm gates back in the fields. The trapper might not relieve himself there, but just about every farmer and farmhand does when opening a gate if the need arises. Yet thousands of canines are caught at those locations every year. And the rust issue when it comes to traps, theres rusted wire, fence posts, hardware all over farm fields buried over the years but you don't see coyotes digging them up. One other fact about human scent, its all over in the woods in the fall from bird hunters to deer hunters, we just need to understand whats detrimental and whats tolerated.<br />
So what does all this mean? Simply, think for yourself and outside the box. There are basics in hunting and trapping, but there is a lot more gray area that varies in each situation. Test what you hear, try what your gut tells you regardless of what you heard. I've learned more from my mistakes than I have from my successes and to be honest I would not trade my mistakes for anything, they taught me a lot that has been invaluable over the years that have improved my successes. I've also found a lot of times that gut feeling is spot on and its in all of us.<br />
So the next time you hear a self proclaimed pro telling you never or always when it comes to this or that, really think about it and compare it to what you've seen or experienced. You just may realize the answers you seek are in you and like others you'll be further ahead and have the edge over the competition and the quarry you persue. And the other is that feeling of accomplishment in becoming a better hunter and/or trapper. Let me leave you with one last thing to think about. The next time you go buy yourself a $5 stick of hunting deodorant/anti-perspirant just compare the ingredients to the $2 name branded unscented ones. I think you'll be surprised. Good luck!<br />
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A second chance buck. I missed him the day before, got him the same spot the next day. A nice 9 pt. 198#</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-57559872908801978992012-03-20T01:35:00.004-07:002015-01-22T21:45:26.515-08:00So, You Want to Eat a Beaver<br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">By: Duane Fronek<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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So, you want to eat a beaver (Castor
Canadensis). I’m asked many times if I eat the animals I trap and the answer is
occasionally I do. And one of the things I get asked is do I eat the beaver I
trap and yes I do. As a matter of fact it was pretty much the only meat I ate
in the winter of 2008, I had just went thru a separation and money was tight as
it is at times with these sorta things and was trapping to make a living. And
beaver meat is high in protein and probably better than beef and supplemented
well, well except for a good ribeye. So, where do ya start, well first you have
to find one. Beaver are pretty much located throughout N. America. Most are
trapped and some are shot depending on your state regulations. It’s really not
hard to find one or you may know a trapper or a landowner that may have them in
a pond or river etc. I prefer to eat a fresh beaver for the reason that when
trapped they are not bled out. If it’s trapped I would go 2 days max to have
good tasting meat. We’ll take care of the blood shortly.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Taking care of a beaver you’re
planning to eat is important as it is with most game, to ensure the quality of
the meat. Beaver are mainly caught in or near the water and are pretty much
clean to begin with. Skinning them and the way you do it is important to have
good tasting meat.<o:p></o:p></div>
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First lay the beaver on its back on
a table or tailgate that’s clean, if it’s not clean layout a garbage bag to lay
the beaver on. For your initial cuts I like to use a filet knife. I start out
by sticking the knife in at the base of the tail with the sharp edge up and
just below the skin, then run your knife up to the vent but stopping about an
inch away and then run the knife around the vent till you’ve cut the hide all
the way around the vent. It’s important to add that any juicy liquid coming out
of the vent if any, needs to be dabbed off with paper towel so that any of that
juice does not leak onto the meat. This stuff is oil from the castor gland and
has an interesting odor, not a real bad odor just interesting but can ruin the
flavor of the meat in an instant, Castor is used in cosmetics and at times goes
for $50.00 a pound, but we’ll touch on that later. Once the vent is circled,
run your knife straight up the center of the belly just under the skin, you don’t
have to get into the thin layer between the hide and stomach. Continue all the
way up to the chin until you come through the bottom lip. Next, make a cut
through the skin at the base of the tail where the fur stops and the tail
begins and cut all the way around the base. Basically ringing it. Once that’s
done you need to next cut off the feet. The diagram shows where these cuts are.
Start by cutting from the underside of the foot where the heel pad meets the
fur and then cut all the way around the foot, once the foot is ringed cut
deeper into the underside where you started, this will cut the tendons. Beaver
have soft or weak joints by design that aid in swimming and once you make that
cut you can grab the foot and twist it off, you might have to aid it with cutting
to completely take it off, but it’s relatively easy. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Initial cuts</div>
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Front foot</div>
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Back foot</div>
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Once you have the feet off it’s
time to start peeling the hide off. Now is the time to swap out the filet knife
with a hunting knife, they seem to work best. The best ones I’ve found are the
Buck(skinner) or the Shrade (sharp finger) both these knives have the right
curve for skinning beaver, but whatever you have is fine, as long as it’s sharp.
To start getting the hide, grab the hide about midway between the chin and
vent. Note: the reason I call it a vent is because it’s similar to a birds,
just one opening and all reproductive parts are inside, even males. Anyway, it
doesn’t matter which side of the cut you grab. While grabbing the hide pull it
away from the carcass and make a sweeping motion just under the hide going
along the belly and ribs, keep working the knife this way while cutting and
pulling the hide the whole length of the initial cut. Then do the same with the
other side. Once you hit the legs it gets a little tricky, but once you figure
it out it’ll be a snap. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Getting the leg through</div>
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Pulling the hide away</div>
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Pick any leg to start and pull
the loose hide over the leg and feel for the leg. I usually grab the hide
between the thumb and fore finger and use the other fingers to push against the
leg from the fur side until the hide slips over the severed part of the leg
bone. This will help push the leg up so you can run the knife along both sides
of the leg and keep cutting along the leg until the hide is separate from the
leg all the way around. Repeat this with each leg until your hide is basically
laying flat and the beaver basically looks like it is just lying on the hide
and the legs are out.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Now take the beaver by the head
and base of tail and flip it over on its belly on a clean surface. Starting on whichever
side you want, take and grasp the loose pelt like you did while skinning down
the belly and just continue pulling and cutting along the beavers sides until you’re
to the spine, then repeat the same on the other side the whole length of the
pelt.</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Once you’re to the spine, the hide should be separated from the carcass
except for maybe the head. Just pull the pelt over the head and pull and cut as
you have been until you cut through the ears, then onto the eyes and finally to
and off the nose. Your pelt should be separated from the carcass at this time. </div>
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Working it off the head</div>
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Fold the pelt in half skin to skin, then fold in half and again, fur to fur. I
will usually then put the pelt in the freezer till another day when I have time
to flesh them out or sell just the way they are. Beaver pelts are worth a few
bucks if they’re taken in the fall and winter, and in early spring.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now for the meat. There are only
a couple things I take off the beaver for meat, which are the hind quarters and
the backstraps. With the beaver still on its belly, take the filet knife and
cut along the spine, then peel the meat back and keep cutting along the length
of the back, staying close to the bone, working the backstraps off like you
would on a deer. </div>
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Cutting out the straps</div>
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A nice beaver backstrap</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Once the straps are removed move to the hind quarters. Grab a
hind quarter and move it around so you know where the hip joint is close to the
spine and make a cut to the joint. Do this on both hinds. Now you can flip the
beaver onto its back. You should be able to see or tell where the joint is from
this side by now and cut into that joint and then all around. Now just bend the
whole quarter back to pop and reveal the joint and finish severing the joint
and hind quarter. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Cutting off a hind quarter</span></div>
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Hind quarter off</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Now that you have the hind quarters off that’s pretty much
it, for the meat that is. Now just set the meat aside for a minute or two. You’ll
notice if you look at the vent that behind it there is a gray mass on both
sides, these are the castor glands and fur buyers buy these, basically take and
cut away the membrane that holds them in place. But don’t cut into the gray,
just the thin, basically clear membrane and gently work the castors out peeling
it away from the membrane. When you’re close to getting it out you’ll notice
they are joined together at the vent, just cut the vent off with the castor. It’ll
kind of resemble rounded saddle bags.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Beaver Castor glands </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">You can put them in a Ziploc and freeze
fresh or hang them on a nail in a shed out of sunlight to dry as well. If you get enough of them they’re worth
saving, fur buyers pay by the pound.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
With clean hands take the meat you
just cut off and trim any fat that you can, then rinse under cold water washing
whatever blood you can. Now take a large bowl and throw in a table spoon of
salt and start filling with water to dissolve the salt, then add in the beaver
meat. Once you have everything covered in the salt water put it into the fridge
until the next day. The next day take and rinse the meat under cold water. Then
proceed to cut the meat off the bone on the hind quarters and any fat that you
missed the first time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
At this point there is a couple
things you can do. You can freeze it in freezer bags for a later date or
prepare it. If you’re going to prepare it you can do a couple things. One is you
can chunk up the meat and throw it in a slow cooker until the meat just falls
apart then just add your favorite barbeque ingredients and finish cooking. Or
you can par boil it for about 20 minutes
and drain. Then you can flour it with a mixture of salt and pepper or your
favorite spices then pan fry. My favorite is to just chunk or cube it raw, then
fry/sauté in butter and salt and pepper until done add in fried onions and
mushrooms. Then add in fried potatoes and cover the whole thing in shredded Colby
or Monterey jack cheese, cover with a lid under low heat until the cheese is
melted and serve. Most people who have tried and ate the beaver I have cooked
in these 2 ways said they could not tell the difference between beef or beaver
and said the beaver actually tasted better. I sometimes grind the beaver into
burger and they taste great. Anything you can do with beef, you can do with
beaver, well except a good steak. Take a walk on the wild side and give it a try. Beaver, it's what's for Dinner.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-60621252389614506462012-02-16T16:04:00.000-08:002012-02-16T16:06:43.882-08:00Coyotes, Keeping it Simple for Success<a href="http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2012/02/calling-keeping-it-simple-for-success.html">http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2012/02/calling-keeping-it-simple-for-success.html</a><br />
<span style="background-color: #441500; color: #ffeedd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">So what does it take to be successful at calling coyotes? Which call is the best? Which E-caller should I buy that’ll call em’ all in, what’s the best camo or rifle or decoy?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #441500; color: #ffeedd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"> Read more at Foremost Coyote......</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #441500; color: #ffeedd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2012/02/calling-keeping-it-simple-for-success.html">http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2012/02/calling-keeping-it-simple-for-success.html</a></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-41462990925338257612012-01-17T23:17:00.000-08:002012-01-17T23:17:28.008-08:00Winter Time Coyote HuntThe other day did some calling so I did a video story on the hunt. Its not long, but gives you an idea of the type of coyote hunting I do with the type of terrain and using it to my advantage, Northern WI style. I haven't blogged in a while because I've been trapping and calling coyotes, but when it dwindles down, I'll have more articles for you, its been an interesting season.<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-28149409046496620732011-11-18T01:16:00.000-08:002018-04-29T16:02:56.543-07:00Some days ya just gotta go with the flowSometimes the trapline throws ya a curve ball. Well mine came today. Wasn't sure if I should just burn it and bury it, or try to pull it out. Well I didnt have enough matches so I opted for the latter. In the end everything worked out fine with a little brut persuasion.<br />
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And then help arrived</div>
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My partner standing in the hole.</div>
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But all's well ends well. Helped out on a cull hunt and got me a nice meat doe for the freezer,so all was not lost.</div>
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So, that was my day,it was alright though, I was in the outdoors like everyday and wouldn't trade it for the world, I belong out there. All in a days work chasing and killing coyotes.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-49161701257310939952011-08-20T13:46:00.000-07:002011-08-20T13:46:19.255-07:00Late Summer Wolf River Smallies<br />
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<b><i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By Duane Fronek<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">I’ve
been fishing the Wolf River the last couple weeks. And the Smallmouth Bass
action has been hot. The Wolf is historically known as trout water, the upper
part at least north of the Menominee Reservation. Brown trout is the main
target. But for me I’ve switched gears and got into hunting down big smallmouth
bass on the Wolf. By big I mean 16-18 inches maybe 20”, they’re in there
because I’ve caught them up to 18”, not overly that big compared to other areas
of the state or even compared to the Largemouth. But these smallies or
Bronzebacks as some call them put up one heck of a fight in the strong current
of the Wolf, they make big Largemouth look like powder puffs when it comes to
the battle. The smallmouth could probably whip their weight in wildcats, seriously
they are a fighter but majorly overlooked on the Wolf.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">A good example of a deep eddy around a boulder</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">My partner Volker landing a nice 16 incher</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>I’ve been fishing the Wolf since the late 80’s
mostly for Brown trout. But after hooking into a few big smallies they slowly
got my attention. I know the Wolf pretty well from all the years of fishing it.
And found the big smallies hang in the deeper eddys and holes. Fishing these
spots you need to take caution on the Wolf. The current is strong and the
deeper you wade the more chance of getting dumped and going for a swim.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>So what gear do you need for this type of fishing?
Well first off, you can don chest waders and I do at times. But for me I throw
on a pair of shorts and rubber boots. You’re gonna get wet fishing these guys
so I look at it like go comfortably, chest waders are hot and when you fill
them, it’s a pain. So I go light. I strap on a back pack for my tackle which is
minimal, a bottle of mountain dew or 2, my camera, and my surgical looking
forceps for removing hooks. My camera is in a Ziploc bag as well as my cell
phone, never know when you may need to call for help.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>For a rod, use what you want in the med. to ultra
light using atleast 6#-8# test line. My buddy is using that red Cajun line in
#4 test and hasn’t broke off yet, tough stuff. My favorite line is Royal Bonyl
but it’s not made anymore, at least I can’t find it. So I use Trilene Max, and
it has been performing fine, I was using Berkley Iron Silk, but can’t seem to
find that either anymore, at least it’s not carried around here anyway.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>For lures I’ve been using spinners in the
size 2 range or topwaters in the 1/8 oz range. The Rapala Skitter pop is doing
a dandy job smacking the bass as is a shallow running rapala. The spinners were
doing fine early on but the topwater lures have been explosive, getting hits
that send your lure 2 feet or so, or the explosive smash of a big smallie or
sometimes the subtle suck it under. Either way it’s been fun. Fishing deep
rapids with large eddy’s or stretches of deep water with weed growth along the
edges seems to be the ticket, these spots provide a good food source with
crayfish thick and abundant in the slow weedy stretches and in the eddy’s they
prey on other fish like chubs or even trout. I caught a 17” that had a small
brown trout in its belly. I usually catch and release but will keep a few for
the frying pan, they are good to eat with a tighter grain meat than the
largemouth, and ones feeding heavy on crayfish have a taste of crab which I
like. A local lake I fish the smallmouth taste like snow crab to me, their also
bigger in that lake, but the action and fight on the river is more exciting and
challenging, fighting around logs rocks is tough on your line and you just
never know when you’ll here that dreadful snap of your line being shredded in
an instant.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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A nice stringer full</div>
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Deeper slow water</div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">20" from an area lake</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><o:p> Sometimes the action is so fierce you get 2 on one lure,lol.</o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>You need to take caution wading in the Wolf,
the rocks, boulders, trees submerged under the surface are a challenging but treacherous
obstacles to be aware of. Many times I’ve taken a header into the strong
current of the Wolf, and she is not forgiving. When this happens always get
yourself positioned facing and your head upstream while trying to get up it’ll
protect your head from smashing a rock and you can actually swim it out if you
face upstream. I’ve recently twice now this past week took swims, once losing
my small tackle box and once yesterday smashing my knee into a boulder. So pay
extra attention to where you’re walking, and if you’re going to fish till dark
carry a waterproof flashlight to shine the bottom as you walk, walking blind in
the river is dangerous stuff.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Some areas along the Wolf are walkable from shore where you can take your son or daughter. As you can see in the background how rough the Wolf can be.</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>A bonus to fishing towards evening is the chance
at catching a nice snapping turtle, their good to eat and not hard to catch.
When you see one swimming, just grab it by the tail and hoist it up, but keep
it at arm’s length to keep from getting bit. I’ve caught 3 so far with shells
measuring at 15”, that’s a good size turtle. I usually carry a plastic burlap
bag in my backpack for these guys. Just put them in the sack and tie it shut
with a piece of rope and drag it along on my way back to my truck, then kill it
at home, then clean it. I guess I’ll have to write up on how to kill and clean
a turtle. Their excellent table fare.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span> </span>Well any way I hope you enjoyed the pics and
vids, and give the Smallmouth a shot if your ever on the Wolf you won’t be disappointed.
<span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-25541374336967515692011-08-18T20:32:00.000-07:002011-08-18T20:42:03.322-07:00Hot Summer Coyote Control<br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">By
Duane Fronek<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Hot summer days don’t
really bring visions of coyote hunting but more of fishing, swimming or just
trying to stay cool. A friend of mine, Volker, had the permission and the go
ahead to kill coyotes coming in to their dairy herd barns and calf pens. I had
the privilege to go along and do some coyote hunting. The coyotes were coming
in to feed on the occasional dead calves or cows that were put in an area to be
picked up by a carcass disposal truck. Before the truck picked up the carcasses
coyotes would come in to feed. If there were no carcasses that the coyotes were
accustom to they would come in closer to the calf pens and open stall barns
looking for a meal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> The coyotes had become dependent on the free
meal. So Volker and I would go to the farm around dark thirty or so and set up
the ambush. And some nights the times would vary when we went, depending on the
weather. One particular night was a thunderstorm ,so we decided to go out and
setup behind the front. With the lightening still chaining across the sky we set
up, the rain had stopped and the temp dropped quite a bit.Volker was setup with
his Rem. 700 thumbhole .223 zeroed in to dilate the pupils on a coyote at any
range. I was set up with my old faithful 700 Rem in .243 shooting a new load of
an 85 gr. Speer soft point that Volker loaded up for me. Groups of .750 was the
norm and plenty tight to kill a coyote in the dark.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> We set up in the tall weeds that ran along
the lane along the barn. The lights from the barnyard lights illuminated the field the coyotes
would come across to check the carcass dump. The light was enough that we used binoculars to spot incoming coyotes.
With the fur thin on the coyotes they would tend to glow in the light of the
barnyard lights which made them easy to see.I’d like to make note that the fur
was not prime for the taking, we were basically in there to kill nuisance
coyotes, not to take fur. Sometimes whether we like it or not animals need to
be taken out when causing problems regardless. I’d much rather take them prime,
but that was not an option here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> The first night out it was like a coyote
hunters dream, coyotes coming in without so much as a care, no predator call
was needed and wind didn’t matter, they were accustom to the sound and smell of
people, trucks and noises <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> The first coyotes came in maybe 10 min. after
we setup The deuce pair came in from the west through a potato field The lead
dog was 75 yds away with the trailer about 50yds behind her. I took her out
with a neck shot that dropped her like a sack of rocks. Her accomplice trotted
off maybe a 100 yds and stopped. I put the .243 to work on him putting him
down, but he got up and ran into the poytato field and went down again and
stayed there We couldn’t find him that night but the eagles and crows found him
for us the next day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Volker and I with a nights worth</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">After retrieving our
first dog of the night, we settled back in our positions and not another 10
min. another deuce shows up. Volker lines up on the lead dog and I line up on
the trailer, the bark of the .243 and .223 simultaneously complimented each
other putting the 2 dogs down. We recovered mine at about 252 yds according to
the range finder, and Volkers was about the 100yd mark, though we didn’t recover
her either till a few days later because the hay field was about a foot or so
high and a dead coyote is tough to find lying on the ground in thick alfalfa
and clover. We set back in to our positions once again to see what the coyote
world would bring us next, and sure enough in comes another which died of a
fatal 85 gr Speer from the .243. The rest of the night was quiet after that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> A week later we went out again , this time it
was about midnight when we set up. A pair of coyotes came in from the north.
But when I got the shot off I missed, yep, I do miss once in a while. But this
pair wasn’t off the hook yet. After the shot instead of running off they just
walked away like nothing happened. They were out there maybe 300 yds or so.
Volker had a hard time picking them up in the scope, and I held off shooting
again, because they acted like they may come back. I said to Volker that they’ll
probably come back in but from a different angle to catch the wind better. Sure
enough they came back in about 20 min. later from the east trying to pick up
the southwest breeze. But they didn’t catch it soon enough, the .243 found it’s
mark on the lead dog convincing the trailer to high tail it out of there. The
rest of the night was dead. Volker and I would setup about once a week to let
things cool off and to give time for other coyotes that were coming in to fill
the void. As of right now it’s been pretty quiet there and looks like the
problem is taken care of for now. But like a vaccum the the void will suck in
more coyotes that will need to be dealt with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> Night hunting requires a couple things, a
good quality scope that gathers as much light as possible, a knowledge of what
lays beyond in the darkness of your bullets path in case of a miss. A good
battery operated spot light for those long shots if legal. Here in WI we can
use a hand held light at the point of kill, but cannot shine looking for eyes, that’s
where a good set of binocs comes in handy to spot coyotes coming in. We we’re
using a Nikon, and an old pair of 10x50 sears that must have good glass because
I could see just fine with them and there almost as old as me. My dad used them
while working as a game warden back in the early 70’s I believe. But the most
important thing is gun safety at night, be extra careful. And shooting at night
and consistently hitting your mark takes practice at night. Having a good
accurate rifle and optics is vital to make clean kills.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 14px;">Tired eyes are common in night hunting especially at 2am</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> Even the dog days of summer coyotes are like
us, lay around trying to stay cool, but at night when the sun is down and temps
are down, their on the prowl to fill their belly. Thanks for reading and good luck on all your hunting
activities. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-19037309513403567482011-06-16T15:04:00.000-07:002011-06-16T15:04:40.983-07:00Making a trappers dirthole punchBeen busy with alot of things lately and my latest project is making 30 dirthole punches for a Youth Trappers Camp here in WI. It teaches trapping and each kid gets his own equipment to get started, from lures to traps. My job the last 2 years is donating my time making a dirthole punch and trap stakes. So I decided to do a little video on how to make one. To use one you just pound it in the ground, twist and pull out and you have a hole to put bait or lure down for your intended target animal.Hope you enjoy.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/tRJe11pDPvc?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-14916497756693718082011-05-26T06:50:00.000-07:002011-05-26T06:50:21.738-07:00The Coyote Question: Things That Make People Go…….hmmmmmmm<a href="http://www.furinsider.com/the-coyote-question-things-that-make-people-go-hmmmmmmm/">The Coyote Question: Things That Make People Go…….hmmmmmmm</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-60003114379931979942011-05-18T15:25:00.000-07:002011-05-18T15:25:09.117-07:00Foremost Coyote Hunting: Basic Coyote Trapping Equipment<a href="http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2011/05/basic-coyote-trapping-equipment.html?spref=bl">Foremost Coyote Hunting: Basic Coyote Trapping Equipment</a>: "(getting started) By Duane Fronek Well to get started trapping coyotes I guess is to know what equipment to use and how to use them. Con..."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-62660274103409670642011-05-18T15:24:00.000-07:002011-05-18T15:24:43.933-07:00Foremost Coyote Hunting: So, you want to trap coyotes?<a href="http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2011/05/so-you-want-to-trap-coyotes.html?spref=bl">Foremost Coyote Hunting: So, you want to trap coyotes?</a>: "With the ever growing coyote population, predator calling has become a popular sport and useful tool in coyote control in some areas. But is..."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-1112592092976276872011-05-16T07:24:00.000-07:002011-05-18T19:23:38.993-07:00“Trap Modification from the bottom up” <br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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Trap modifications have been around for some time. But they have gained trapper awareness or acceptance in the last decade or so. With change comes questions. Some frequently asked are “What do they really do? Or “how do you do modify this or that?” And probably the most common, “are they worth it and will this work?”.<br />
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Well, I'm here to tell you they do work and are worth it, they help prolong your trap’s life just by the fact your basically reinforcing it's components, base plates keep trap bases from bowing from hard fight animals or just plain use over time or even utilizing four-coiling systems. Laminating the trap jaws strengthens them and helps keeping hard fighting critters like coyotes from popping the jaws out, they also provide a wider jaw surface or face which prevents paw damage. They’re easier on the animals that are trapped and can withstand the extreme abuse the animals can dish out; and stubborn trappers for that matter. This article is going to address the basics of modifying your traps from the bottom up to better understand the basic techniques to properly modify traps..<br />
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First, it’s critical to start with a clean trap. New traps don’t need much cleaning just basically a good washing with a power washer at a local carwash. Used traps on the other hand, are a different story. Steels enemy…rust can be removed easily by soaking in vinegar a couple days then hosed off with a garden hose. Traps with wax or speed dips need to be cleaned up as well. Wax can be taken off by boiling in Sani-flush or Dawn dish soap then hosed down. The speed dipped ones can be done according to the manufacturers suggestions. Usually, an over night soak in a bucket of lantern fuel sometimes called “white gas” does the trick. A wire brush might be needed to further clean off the dip. Then hose down.<br />
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After your traps are cleaned up you need to break the trap down by removing chain and the springs. To remove the factory chain you can either open up the j- hook with a screw driver or just cut it off with a bolt cutter; I prefer the bolt cutter. I won‘t be re-using the j- hook anyway I feel it just weakens them. Removing the springs helps you work on the trap easily and prevents you from accidentally striking an arc on the springs while welding. This can weaken or completely ruin your springs. It also helps for when welding close to the D-ring because the bottom of the lever ear won’t be in the way.<br />
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To remove the springs, I just take a screw driver and get behind spring arm that sits behind the lever and pry it out by sliding your screw driver behind the spring arm. Next, by prying away from the lever the arm will be released. Keep your fingers out of the inside of the jaws when doing this or you’ll get smacked by the spring when it snaps out of the lever.<br />
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With this done it should look like this. Now you can easily pull the spring pin out. To keep things organized, I’ll put the spring pins and springs into separate containers like coffee cans. Spring pins go into one, the left springs into another and the right springs into yet another. This helps keep things organized and aids in putting your trap back together when your finished. At this point, you can also remove the pan if you wish especially if you chose to beef the pan up as well. Keep the bolts and pans in there own containers as well for reasons already mentioned.<br />
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Now that you have the trap broken down, your ready to start modifying. For welding, I use a 110v wire feed welder with gas, you can use flux core but it spatters a bit more but does the job none the less just not as pretty. First, we’ll start with the base plate and D- ring. You can get baseplates from most any reputable trap supply like J.C. Conners or Minnesota Trapline products. Or you can make your own but that’s a whole different subject. Base plates come with their own D- ring some may have a ring already attached to the baseplate, It all depends on what you would prefer.<br />
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Now that you have your base plates, take your trap and secure it in a vise upside down. I usually clamp onto the frame end or jaw post. I position it so the jaw post is clamped in the middle of the vise and the rest of the frame rests on the jaws of the vise. Before I add the baseplate on some traps like Northwoods or Bridgers I’ll grind off the rivets that stick out on the bottom of the base at the cross frame. Completing this process helps prevent the D-ring from binding once the base plate is welded on giving it more clearance to move like it should. Once the trap is clamped securely to the vise it’s time to reinforce the cross frame. Make sure you ground your welder to the vise somewhere, you can even ground right on the trap but clamping it to the vise saves time. Once your grounded you can weld a bead where the cross frame meets, weld a bead along both sides. At this time, you can run a bead of weld along the pan post. This helps secure it from abuse and possibly loosening down the road. Note this in the picture below..<br />
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Now you’re ready for the base plate. With your D- ring slipped over the base plate, lay the base plate on the base of the trap. Make sure it’s square along the sides, this is important because if it sits over the side one way or another you won’t be able to get your levers back on. The ends should be square with end of the trap as well. Once the base plate is in position you need to clamp it to keep it in place while welding. For this I recommend using two sets of small vise grips. Clamp just a little more than an inch from each end of the trap base. Each vise grip is clamped on opposite sides of each other to keep the base plate flat. Clamping along the same side raises the base plate slightly on the other side and often leaves a gap between the trap’s base and base plate. It should look similar to the picture below.<br />
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Once your base plate is secure you can run a weld bead along the ends of the base plate and base. Next, put a good spot weld on both sides of the hump in the base plate where the D- ring is located. You’ll have four spot welds here. So right now you have basically modified the bottom of the trap. After letting the trap cool for awhile you can proceed to modify the jaws. One word about cooling the trap after welding, just leave it cool at room temperature. Never dip the hot trap into water after welding; this will crystallize the weld and it will usually break.<br />
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Now let’s bring our attention to the trap jaws. Lamination strips for most brands of traps and sizes can be purchased through trap suppliers that were already mentioned or you can make your own. Again that‘s another subject. You can use flat bar stock, #9 wire or 3/16” or ¼” cold roll rod. I prefer the cold roll rod it’s just my personal preference but the method to add them to your trap jaws is basically the same.<br />
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Once the lamination strips have been obtained it’s time to get started. First clamp the trap in the vise by the base of the trap. Once the trap is secure, you can proceed to set up the jaws for welding. You’ll need a flat piece of steel or sheet metal to clamp between the jaws, I usually use a 1/8” piece of flat bar stock for square jawed traps and a ¼” piece if they are offset. For round jaws I use a piece of sheet metal or if their offset a piece of flat stock either 1/8” or ¼” in the offset. The thing with the round jaws is you need a piece between the jaws that’s just thick enough to keep them separated if the piece is too thick the top of the jaws wont be flush against the flat steel between the jaws and not allowing you to get the lamination strips even along the jaws. Now with the piece of steel between the jaws, I clamp everything together by using needle nose vise grips around the jaws. These are positioned just off center, being off center will allow room for welding at the center of the lamination strip. Also when your jaws are clamped like described it will hold your jaws up. Once this is accomplished it’s time to secure your lamination strips. Lay a lamination strip on top of the jaw and tight up against the flat piece of steel between the jaws. Now taking a small vise grip, clamp one end of the strip to the jaw. Be sure to keep the vice grip about an inch from the end of the strip to allow for welding. Now proceed and clamp the opposite end the same way. It’s very important to clamp this way instead of just using one vise grip in the middle somewhere because the heat from welding will make the lamination strip move causing you not to have your lamination strip flush with the jaw face. Now that you have your strip clamped securely your ready to weld. What I do is just hit a spot weld on each end to secure the strip even more. Then weld a bead on each end of the strip utilizing a ¼” bead to ½” bead is recommended. Once the ends are welded, run a weld at the center about an inch long. Now after that’s done your ready to go to the other side and repeat the process. This illustration shows how it’s set up for the jaw laminations as described. The springs were left on just for a demonstration..</div>
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Also at this time if you want to inside laminate your trap jaws as well, leave the flat bar stock clamped between the jaws and remove the trap from the vise. Then, flip the trap over and clamp the trap in the vise by the flat bar stock. Now clamp your lamination strips on the inside of the jaw as you did to the outside laminations. Be sure to keep them tight and flush up against the flat stock. Then weld as you did the outside laminations.<br />
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After you’re done with all your modifications go over your trap with a file or wire wheel. Smooth any rough edges that might have occurred while welding. Pieces of wire sticking out from welds are common..<br />
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Now it’s time to reassemble the trap. Put the springs and pin back in there places making sure your spring pin is through the trap levers as well. To get the spring arms back into the slotted groove behind the levers take something like a piece of bent over brake line or a 3/16” or ¼” socket driver that looks like a screw driver. Now slide it over the spring arm and while holding the levers up with one hand pull the spring arm back. Use your other hand to get it behind the lever and slip the brake line or driver off and your spring arm will snap in. This picture illustrates how to do it.<br />
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After installing the springs you can replace your pan and do your pan adjustments. Add your swivels and chain to the D- ring, dye and wax and you’re ready to go. You’ll have a trap that looks similar to these depending on what type of trap you modify.<br />
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You’ll have a trap that will last you probably a lifetime and will take any abuse a critter can dish out. Also it will treat your catch gently by decreasing paw damage even on incidental catches. In this day and age improving the equipment we use is a responsibility we as trappers need to take on not just for treating our catch humanely, but to also show we as trappers are a viable and efficient wildlife management tool. But also show we are not some caveman using medieval equipment that maim like the Anti’s would like the public to believe.<br />
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This is how a modified trap treats the animal.<br />
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No chewing feet here. Just like a pair of hand-cuffs.</div>
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I hope this article answers questions to modifying your own traps. Good luck trapping.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-91899782783932367782011-04-25T21:57:00.000-07:002011-04-25T22:07:44.040-07:00Busy Spring so far<div style="text-align: justify;">
Spring is finally here, I think. Been cold, snowy, rainy. But it hasn't slowed the predators down. Still working on a coyote job where a family of coyotes setup camp in the middle of a game farm waiting for the annual fawn crop to drop. Unfortunately, they won't be there for the special occasion, for they had reservations made for them by yours truly and now are chasin' deer and bunnies in the great beyond. Still have the steel set for any intruders that may find there way there being that there is a vacancy open now. Young males tend to travel now seeking a suitable home that will tide them over till they find a mate of their own.</div>
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It's been interesting, I managed to catch a red fox twice in one week. First time he got caught by a front foot, the second time a week later he submitted a back foot to the set. Both times he was released unharmed. If I keep catching him I might just have to name him. I like red fox, well I like most animals, but the red fox is cool. These days their numbers are low around me. I use to trap a lot of them up until 1996 when mange ran through the fox population here. They never recovered their numbers as the coyotes moved in and took over. Now when I catch a red fox I usually turn him loose in hopes that maybe they'll come back like they once were.Skinning a red fox is a lot easier than a coyote any day.</div>
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Doing this kind of control work takes some skill and woods savvy.During fur trapping your basically taking the cream off the top and it really isn't that hard. But when you target 1 animal or a certain few, you need to read sign, and be able to detect even the subtle stuff. Sometimes these critters will quit using woods roads altogether where finding tracks is the easiest. You may walk deer trails looking for scat or tracks on top of deer tracks or a small mud spot. Ttrapping techniques are a little different, relying on more territorial lures or just plain coyote pee as compared to food type lures and baits. Coyotes are very defensive of their territory during this time of year, intruders are quickly persuaded to leave. The area they will usually defend is usually only 2-3 square miles. So trapping these problem critters requires getting in close to the denning site or at least inside their territorial boundary this time of year. Trapping techniques are subtle, usually a trap buried in front of a clump of grass and a shot of urine as if another came through marking territory. Sets like these tend to end the resident coyotes killing days. As with this couple, they were a veteran pair, being chased by a few trappers the past few years, but to no avail. So they were educated to the trapping world and highly pressured. When I came in, I set heavy but stayed away from the traditional stuff and went subtle and simple, no big flashy dirt hole sets which do attract coyotes, but these two seen it all. So I'd find where they were traveling and plant a trap just off to the side of tracks they left behind and give a shot of pee or just a small drop of gland lure from that of mink. Ole wiley comes trottin down the trail, he see's nothing out of the ordinary, then all of a sudden a faint whiff of a mink hits nose, he stops and immediately his nose is honing in on the smell with his feet in toe, and as he turns on the trail to get a better whiff of this new odor, his next foot fall lands on the pan of the trap and he's bagged, his mate fell for the same trick, but her nose picked up the scent of another coyote that left his calling card along the trail. Their nanny a 1 year old pup from last year fell for the same trick momma did on the same day. A pair of adult coyotes usually will have a female pup from the previous year hang around to help with puppy care duties.</div>
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Now that the trio were taken out, the challenge remains to keep another pair from setting up camp. So far it's been quiet, with just a red fox who was a slow learner and a bobcat that was released unharmed.</div>
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Tonight I get another call from a beef farmer with calves dropping right now and coyotes are starting to come in like flies. So will be checking that one out tomorrow. Seems to be a little bit of a surge in coyote numbers around here. The year before distemper or parvo had gone through here and killed most of the pups and the trapping season was slow with mostly older coyotes caught. But their making up for it. Most of the young of the year this past fall consisted of mostly females, if these females that made it through the season get bred, we could see another surge and fear we'll see mange to follow. I guess we'll have to wait and see. Got some beaver work coming up as well. So thought I'd get a blog in before I get busy with that the next few days as well.</div>
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The Alpha female</div>
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The helper female</div>
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The red fox who still runs free</div>
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The Alpha male</div>
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A Kodak moment with my little friend</div>
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She cheered up once I let her go.</div>
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A vulture that seems to be following me around for some reason.</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-21808126360825959712011-04-07T08:31:00.000-07:002011-04-07T08:43:51.691-07:00Fair Chase<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
I see this little phrase come up from time to time. What I’m about to write might infuriate some and please others and leave others thinking about where they stand on this little phrase. My thoughts on the phrase “Fair Chase” in a nutshell is basically, has got to be the most dangerous word to outdoor men and women and our pursuits in the wild when it comes to hunting, trapping and fishing. The phrase in my opinion is probably the most responsible for hunting, trapping and fishing rights lost over the years, pitting one outdoorsmen and women against another. Simply put fair chase is basically not just a phrase but an attitude and a tool to justify ones way of doing things, while sacrificing those of another. We see it all the time when issues come up such as the use of cross bows, high fence, hunting with hounds, trapping and the list goes on. The animal rights groups love that little phrase, because they have it figured out, and know those two words are their meal ticket for pushing their agenda. Their agenda, banning all forms of hunting, trapping and fishing, period.<br />
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I’ve heard it said many times before, don’t know who the originator of it is but it goes something like this; “in order for a hunt to be fair chase, we would have to hunt with what we came into this world with, naked and our two bare hands.” And that would be true in my opinion. Animals survive with what they were born with, necessary to survive. Man on the other hand were born with a thinking brain, to solve problems to give us an edge. When it comes to hunting, we surely can’t run as fast as most animals, so man thought of ways to do the running for him, spears, bows, traps, guns etc. If we were to take a step back in time with our modern hunting equipment, we most likely would be worshipped on what we had to make our hunting more successful, that edge so to speak. Man has always used his most important weapon, his brain, when it comes to hunting, trapping and fishing. Because that’s our biggest weapon in order to survive and to equal out our physical short comings to the game we pursue.<br />
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I’ve heard so many arguments over the years on what was fair chase, things like running coons, cats or coyotes with hounds not being fair chase, or baiting is not a fair chase practice or high fence hunting isn’t real hunting, or trapping isn’t fair chase because the animal doesn’t have a running chance. To all that I say hogwash. Hunting with dogs is more than just turning dogs loose, there’s training, breeding and basically one’s way of life or way of doing things, they have a passion for it and they’ve figured a way to use man’s best friend to aid him in hunting, using the dogs as a tool. Baiting is just another form of hunting, no different in my opinion than placing out doe in heat or sitting on a corn field, your using the animals needs and instincts against them in order to gain an edge, same as just sitting on a ridge where you can see several yards and perched on the ridge with your trusty 300 mag. To reach out and touch one. It wouldn’t make much sense to sit there with a pistol or slug gun, no, we utilize the tools we have, to give us that edge. Now a deer walks up to within 40yds and you have the 300 mag in your lap are you gonna pass up the deer because he’s not 300 yds out, I don’t think so. Same with high fence, some say it’s not sporting or fair chase. Well think about this, a lot of high fence are 100’s and even 1000’s of acres, where the deer roam where ever they will in basically in the same settings as their wild counter parts, just better taken care of. there are quite a few hunters out there that don’t have the luxury of time on their side to enjoy the outdoors the way a lot of us do, their business men and women with busy schedules or locked in a city with no land they know of to hunt on or the time, but yet have a love and a passion to hunt just like the rest of us. I’ve heard it said trapping doesn’t give the animals a sporting chance, well most of that comes from those never doing it, just like I suspect with the other claims of why this or that isn’t fair chase. Trapping involves knowing your target well, well enough to put his foot on a pan or trigger no bigger than say 3”x 3” in order to get caught, you need to know their habits, what makes them tick just like pursuing any other thing like hunting or fishing.<br />
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So why condemn something or tactic another uses? Could be a number of reasons , jealousy, greed, or just plain stubbornness because that’s not how I do it. And each time we attack another’s legal way of doing things, we in essence are driving a nail in our own coffin for future use by the anti’s. Take for example your on the front lines in a war, and all the tall guys are getting killed. Everyone gets together and says, lets not use tall guys in this fight, it’ll eliminate anyone getting killed. So they do and go back into battle and now the medium height guys are getting waxed. So they have another meeting and decide, ok lets just use short guys, to prevent any further damage and fatalities. Now the enemy has the advantage of less troops in the ranks and basically over runs the troops and wins the battle. And in essence that’s what we are doing to ourselves when we start acting under the guise of fair chase. We essentially are sacrificing another’s way of doing things in order to preserve our own, but in reality we are destroying ourselves and our numbers in the ranks that allows us to be over run by the opposition..<br />
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We may not agree on everyone else’s way of hunting or pursuits, but know this, everyone of us that hunts, traps or fishes has a love and passion for what they do, just as much as the next guy or gal, even if his/her way is different than ours.. Ben Franklin once said; “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.” No truer words have been spoken when this country first began, and feel those words hold true for the outdoorsmen/women of today.<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-57163591695035847862011-03-28T11:59:00.001-07:002012-02-26T23:43:04.655-08:00The Modern Day Trapper<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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I hear it often, “people still trap?”. Believe it or not trapping is still alive and well since it’s beginning in this country. When most people hear the word trapper or trapping, they envision a leather and fur clad mountain man clutching a .54 cal Hawkin rifle, with traps slung over his shoulder with a mule or horse in tow. Boy, how I wish it was at times. But times change as the season’s and the years and decades roll along like a river carving it’s way through history. Unlike the river where it’s course has pretty much stayed the same, trapping has changed considerably, but yet the spirit in which it’s pursued still lives on in the trapper.<br />
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There’s also other visions that come to peoples minds as well, animals chewing their feet to get free and animals maimed by traps. Most of what was and is out there today is from the animal rights campaigns back in the 70’s and it’s still spread today, the images are used over and over , the same pictures. Most of which were acquired by staging such photos or by getting pics from a non educated trapper back then, but most were staged by the AR groups, maybe stealing traps and setting them to catch and photograph something of what they desired. They spread a lot of untruths about trapping and use the shock and awe type angle to make believers out of non trappers and even other hunting groups that trapping is inhumane and causes needless suffering.<br />
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Aside from the lies these AR groups spread, its what they don’t want you to know about trapping that is a threat to their cause and credibility. They try to mis-lead the uninformed and if they ever accomplish their goal of outlawing trapping, hunters will be next on the chopping block and in full assault mode, probably the dog hunters first, the hound guys then bird hunters, they are already going after dog breeders, then the bow hunters because of the crude weapons and the list goes on, They have a systematic plan to do away with all blood sports and anything to do with them. So what don’t these AR groups like the HSUS or PETA want you to know and not telling you about trapping?<br />
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Well where do I start. Well for one, trapped animals don’t chew off their leg to get out of a trap, that would take reasoning and to to have been caught before to come up with that reasoning. Animals just don’t have that mental capacity. It would be like “gee I’m caught in a trap, if I chew my leg off I can get away”, the second flaw in that is traps today are designed to hold the animal comfortable, meaning the blood flow is still going to that foot, which means the animal would feel the pain of chewing if it did that. Animals will not intentionally inflict pain on itself, the human is the only thing on this planet that will intentionally hurt its self. So, where do these images come from the anti’s tote about so much. Well most are old photos like I mentioned and anything new these days is pretty much photo shopped. Not saying things like this hasn’t happened but it was usually due to wrong trap size, trapper inexperience etc.<br />
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Well that’s all changed over the years. Trappers them selves have experimented, discovered, put into use more humane traps. They were in the forefront in the Best Management Practices for trapping (the BMP’s) testing traps, equipment etc. to find what traps worked best. You can find the summary here<br />
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Trap showing the thicker jaws eliminates foot damage</div>
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Traps today are more animal friendly, using traps with thicker jaws to eliminate cutting that sometimes happened in the past, the thicker jaws ensure blood flow to the foot so it doesn’t go numb. A trapped animal will try to chew on the trap itself, but if the foot is numb below the jaw, they have in the past chewed on the numb foot because it was softer than the trap to chew, but with the way trappers are setting up the traps these days and techniques these issues are null, using better systems to stake traps down and using swivels in the chains to allow free movement for the animal.All this brought about not by the AR groups, but by trappers themselves looking to improve their equipment and their success, and their appearance in the public eye. Traps today can catch animals and those animals can be released unharmed with no foot damage, and this is important when trapping in areas where people don’t keep their dogs tied up like they should. Then the free roaming dog gets caught and they try to blame the trapper when he was legally set and had permission to trap the land their dog crossed over too. But the incident tends to go away, not always, but usually is forgotten because traps today don’t wreak the havoc and damage the AR’s claim. The dog usually limps off after being release and acts like nothing happened in just a short time.<br />
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Foot undamaged , just enough pressure to hold the animal</div>
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Coyote held comfortably in a foothold trap</div>
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Another thing the AR groups don’t tell you is, even though we are a small group, we contribute the most when it comes to keeping furbearer populations in check. Take coyotes for example. Most coyotes that are killed in this country are taken by trappers, coon, it’s a horse apiece between hound guys and trappers. For critters like skunks, possum etc. the majority are taken by trappers. And good that they do, all these animals mentioned can be hard on nesting birds, from song birds to ducks by eating the eggs every spring and some hunting clubs hire trappers to come in and clean out these nest robbers. Then theres the beaver that causes millions of dollars each year due to the habit of building dams and flooding, roads, property, timber etc. If trappers weren’t out there, the cost to the taxpayer to control all these animals would be astronomical. The reward for the trapper is the fur he sells and recent years hasn’t been that great. But yet because it’s in their blood, they forge on. Some, even hunters disagree with killing an animal for it’s pelt. But the reality is, by doing so the resource is being utilized and it’s renewable and green. I believe some animals were meant to be eaten and some were meant to be worn. And like mentioned before if trappers weren’t out there, the gov. would have to do it all, costing taxpayers and probably the fur being tossed if it were to be that way, wasting a resource. There are gov. agencies that trap, and when the fur is prime it’s sold to help fund the program, but fur that’s not worth anything that’s trapped in the summer by the gov. because it’s necessary are usually no good and a waste. So trappers do a huge service for the public. Yet there are others that claim trapping isn’t fair chase. Well I hate to break it to them, nothing is fair chase unless your out there naked hunting with a stick. Every tool man has developed, bows, guns, traps were developed to give man an edge over the animal kingdom, period. We cannot compete without these tools. Animals don’t even execute fair chase, to them it’s do or die, it’s that simple.<br />
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What else do trappers do. Well they contribute both time and money and work with state agencies to further ensure healthy populations of wildlife, just like the many other outdoor user groups, like DU, Delta Waterfowl, White-Tails Unlimited, Trout Unlimited. Trappers have been instrumental in re-introducing the pine martin in WI, Fishers in eastern states and WI. Trappers play a vital role in animal studies, often being called upon by state agencies to submit animal samples to study, etc. Even being asked to keep an eye out for observations. Most trappers spend more time in the outdoors hours wise than most user groups and they observe a lot.<br />
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Trappers have also taken it upon themselves to ensure trapping is here to stay, most states now have a trapper education program just like they have for hunter education. It’s usually a cooperative effort between trapping assoc. and state DNR agencies. They teach ethics, humane practices, wildlife management, fur handling, diseases etc. In WI. It’s mandatory for first time trappers. Which is a good thing, it gives new trappers the right tools and knowledge to go about it to prevent those problems we’ve had a few decades ago.<br />
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In this day and age, you may not recognize the trapper in the outdoors, he won’t be clad in furs or leather. He’ll probably be wearing hip boots or waders, or wearing blue jeans and a ball cap, he’ll probably be driven a 4x4 and the bed loaded with fur, but you’ll get a hint of aroma in the air, it may be mink, or skunk or the sweet smell of beaver castor. At any rate, if you do happen to run into a trapper, you can know your talking to an individual who loves the outdoors as much as yourself and is putting his time and money into what he believes and the passion he holds for the outdoors.<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-63252794643779722162011-03-25T05:20:00.000-07:002011-03-25T05:21:58.445-07:00Cannibals and Useful Idiots<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">The following is from a friend of mine John Wasmuth and shows just how we loose hunting rights, whether it be the example below, or cross bows or hunting with dogs or trapping etc. the list can go on because it may not mesh with your own idea of what real hunting is. The Real Hunter mindset. Something to think about. We must all hang together or all hang separately. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Cannibals and Useful Idiots</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> The following is real, and it’s here now. Joe Hunter goes to a cocktail party, nothing fancy, just a holiday gathering in Anytown, USA. A conversation begins with Bob Peta, it goes something like this.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob Peta: Say Joe, didn’t you go deer hunting this year?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe Hunter: Sure did Bob.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Man, that’s great, did you get one?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: Yep, I sure did, a nice six pointer.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Hey, that’s great. Say listen Joe, you’re a true hunter, a “real” hunter are you not?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: I sure am.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Say, I hear tell of a kind of hunting where people can go kill animals in fenced areas. You’ve never done that, have you?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: No, no I haven’t.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Well, I wouldn’t call that real hunting, would you Joe?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: Well, that’s not the way I hunt.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: I know Joe, but there are people who hunt in fenced areas. I don’t think that’s really hunting, do you Joe?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: well, uh, I guess not.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Great. Say, listen Joe, a group of us concerned “real” hunters are trying to get that method of hunting done away with. We feel it is unethical, will you help us?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: Sure, because that is not the way I hunt, and I’m a real hunter.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Thanks Joe. Here is what we need you to do. As a real hunter the big boys in Congress and the Senate will listen to you. They know that any “real” hunter only hunts the way you do, and that’s the only real hunting there is. What we need you to do is get out there and get petitions signed, people will sign them because you are a real hunter, and they know that only your way of hunting is the “real” way.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> So Joe diligently goes after the goal, to ban, and outlaw any kind of hunting that Bob suggest is not real hunting. He gathers up signatures, petitions courts, and makes meetings. He is really cleaning up this unethical way of hunting, he’s got a lot of support. He is gathering “real” hunters from all over, and finally, after much hard work, they get a legal way of hunting banned.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Joe, you did great and we sure appreciate your hard work, but let me tell you what I heard. There is another type of hunting that we think is not right. Could you help us again?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: Well I guess so Bob. I don’t hunt like that, so it’s not real hunting anyway. How can I help?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> It’s the same old story. It’s odd how Bob Peta keeps adding to the list of what “real” hunting is. However, Joe goes at it hard and heavy, and in the end, he helps get that type of hunting banned. Bob and his friends are happy. Joe is a “real” hunter, and these other guy’s aren’t, because the way they hunt is different from Joe, and Joe does not like that way of hunting. So what’s the harm in getting rid of that type of hunting. Joe is a “real” hunter after all, not like those other guys. He even goes to sportsmen’s organizations and recruits from within, it’s easy because they are all “real” hunters too.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> Time passes, and more and more legal ways of hunting are banned. Bob and his friends are real happy with Joe, he’s been a real help. So after all the unethical ways of hunting are gone, Bob and his friends decide that it is time to get Joe’s way of hunting banned, the final chapter.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: Bob, hey buddy, this is Joe. I know I helped you get rid of all those other forms of legal hunting, but now there is a move to get rid of the way I hunt.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Well Joe, I know. My friends and I are spearheading that movement.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: But Bob, I thought you liked the way I hunt, and it was OK for me to do that type of hunting?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Well Joe, no, any and all types of hunting are bad, the poor defenseless animals never have a chance, and we dislike, actually we hate hunters.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Joe: But I thought the way I hunted was “real” hunting to you?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;">Bob: Joe, it was all real hunting, but we at PETA and HSUS hate you. Thanks for all your help, we greatly appreciate it.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> You see, what Joe became was a “Cannibal”, a“Useful Idiot” to the anti-hunters at HSUS and PETA . They don’t give a rats backside how you hunt, what you hunt, or where you hunt, they just want all hunting done away with. The sad thing is that they use hunters against hunters for their causes. If you do not support any and all forms of legal hunting, or voice any decent about the way someone else legally hunts, you my friend are a “Cannibal”, and a very “Useful Idiot” to the enemy. Think twice the next time you mouth off against another hunter’s methods, they could be coming after you next.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px;"> Written by: John Wasmuth</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-11891578414190731212011-03-17T11:21:00.000-07:002011-03-17T11:21:13.880-07:00The Last Coyote<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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Back a few years ago, I had a friend that was a well seasoned veteran hunter. He was feared by deer anytime he crawled into a stand with a bow, and for fishing, he was a local pro in the eyes of the community. He was one of them people everyone liked. But his life was hunting and fishing and he excelled at it. He had more woods sense and experience than most twice his age, he was only 18. He was raised by a family that hunted and a bunch of uncles that taught him well.<br />
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I knew Jesse for a good many years, you’d see him when he was younger pedaling his bike down to the lake to fish and as he grew, you see him driving off to hunt. And as a kid he would often times come by to see my trapline catch for the day. I worked with Jesse at a local mill when he turned 18. We worked 3rd shift together and often talked of hunting and fishing. At this time Jesse had picked up the predator calling bug as did his buddies. They were in pursuit to see who could take their first dog before the others. And the talk led to Jesse and I setting up a morning of calling to get him his first coyote.<br />
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The morning came that we made plans for. It was -10 below zero and the snow that dropped five inches through the night had ended. It was overcast and just cracking daylight when Jesse and I parked the truck where we were to walk in to our set. The wind was calm, with an occasional whisper from the north. Walking in to our setup we cut 3 sets of fresh coyote tracks in the fluffy snow. They were heading east, cutting the cross wind disappearing into a large open field.<br />
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Jesse and I arrived at our point of ambush in the early dawn. A brushy fence line that ran north and south along the vast field the trio of nomads silently slinked across. As our anticipation was rising, Jesse took the west side of the line and I took the back to back seat to the east. We couldn’t see each other even though we were only 10 feet apart. But we could hear each other. And after settling in to our snow covered bunkers, Jesse let me know he was ready.<br />
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I pulled out my trusty little sweet talker, a Carlton open reed call. The rabbits screams were chilling, piercing the cottony landscape adding to her deadly beauty. Not even a minute into the bunnies death throws, the nomadic trio appears out of the twilight making their way to the shadowy edges of a brushy uncultivated clump of brush and sumac. They were coming hard right straight to the fenceline, trying to get to the slight downwind breeze to assess their plan of attack. I knew it would be over in a matter of seconds if I did nothing but watch. So turning to get square on them, the squeal of my foam seat pad against the bone chilling cold alerted the killers to my presence. One by one as if they were dominos their heads came up and eyes and ears stood at attention to my existence. In a desperate attempt to salvage the fast deteriorating situation, I awkwardly centered the cross hairs of my hungry .243 on the lead dog, a half a heartbeat later the trigger trips and sends a 100grs of copper and lead into the empty air around the intended recipient. In turn the roar and the flash of the cannon sent the tribe in a mad dash to the west through the brushy fence row seeking what cover they could to put between us.<br />
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Unknowingly they crossed into Jesse’s world. Jesse had already been standing when he heard my seat pad squeaking, thinking I was getting up myself from an unproductive stand. But Jesse was a quick study, the report of the .243 to the east alerted his model 7 .243 to the ready. As the fleeing aggressors angled straight away from Jesse, he had already locked in on the lead dog. Touching the trigger as the Alpha hit the 275yd mark, it kicked a 100gr. Boot right up the tail pipe. The intended target fell head over heels as if it were meant to be, and came to rest in the puff of snow facing the way he came without so much as a twitch . Jesse now held the braggin’ rights of the first dog, with a Texas heart shot.<br />
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Jesse was elated, the smile on his face was carved in stone, high fives and the trek to the fallen to retrieve his carcass who’s fur was to become, the reflection of memories. For myself I was once again satisfied to have introduced another into this thing they call predator hunting, connecting one to the results.<br />
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This blog post is dedicated in memory of my friend Jesse. He passed away the following fall, due to contracting spinal meningitis. He would never hunt again in our world, we lost a true sportsman in the truest sense of the term. At his request, about 40 of us all hunting friends and relatives , donned our hunting apparel to his wake and services as we laid him to rest. He is sadly missed by all.<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-36511451637533382932011-03-17T09:02:00.000-07:002015-01-29T00:05:00.414-08:00The Fisher<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
<br />
Been awhile since I posted a blog. So to my readers I apologize for the lapse, there may be more as I venture in to the spring beaver. Been kinda busy with stuff. Been rollin’ a lot of things around in this head of mine. Thinking about past hunts, season’s, mishaps(believe me I have plenty) etc. So let me begin.<br />
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It was the second day of the 2009 WI deer season. And like every deer season I string some steel for coyotes where I hunt. The hunting season for coyotes closes during deer season, supposedly to protect the few Wolves we have(yeah right). But we can still trap during that time.<br />
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Anyway I’m driving the two miles of logging road and skidder trails into my stand with my son. As I come around a corner of my first set, in the headlights there’s a big orange blob standing there. I commented I got something in the trap to my huntin‘ partner‘s. Which I did. As I closed in the orange blob turned out to be another deer hunter, posed in a shooting stance with his rifle pointed toward my set.<br />
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I stop the truck and say hold up. What you doing. He replies, I think there’s a mink or something here and he’s big and just nasty. Turns out I had a fisher, and that’s what I told him. I explained to him that I was trapping some coyotes and that it was a good thing he didn’t shoot the fisher, for a number of reasons. The biggest is about $4000 in fines and loss of license for 3 years. He was from down south around Milwaukee and wasn’t up on the regs except deer and never saw a fisher in his life. He thought it was pretty cool. Now a lot of guys would of went off on this guy for his ignorance the deed he was about to do. But I tend to treat other sportsmen and women with a benefit of doubt and in this case was the right thing to do. I was able to educate a fellow hunter and some things he didn’t know.<br />
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Now onto the fisher. Since you need to draw a tag to keep one and I wasn’t lucky this go round, I had to release it. This is where it gets interesting. It’s still kinda dark and I’m working in head lights in the shadows and my son is hanging out the window watching intently and mumbling things like don’t get bit, is it biting. I carry a catchpole in the back of the truck for releasing critters I don’t want. So I get it out and try lassoing the fisher. Well if you ever had a fisher in a trap, they are about as squirrely as a barn cat that’s tail hit the electric fence. After a couple attempts trying to get the noose on the little rascal, he manages to get the cable fouled up and is now holding it firmly in his jaws. Since his teeth are occupied, I did the next best thing, I put the boot down on him and got my hand wrapped around the back of his muscular neck. They are a stout tough animal and can be hard to hold. But after a few decades of handling wild life I pretty much had it down pat, pretty much. After getting the little psychopath subdued, I release the trap off his back foot. Now comes the tricky part, letting him go. This can be a delicate matter, the fisher had finally dropped the catch pole and I now have a firm grip around the back of his neck and the other firmly gripped around the base of the tail. First I asked the suburban hunter if he wanted to feel the fur, he just stood there staring with his mouth agape and nodded his head side to side and finally uttered; that things too mean too pet.<br />
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So now I have to put the release plan into action, with my grip on the fisher I had, I just normally just do the ol’ heave ho toss and the critter is slightly airborne and in perpetual motion away from me. Works every time. Well it use to, seems this fisher was plotting and planning while I was distracted with his release. As I was in the final motion of the forward movement and the release of my grip, this little Tasmanian nutcase decides to roll in my hand that was now releasing it’s grip around his neck, and he firmly planted his nice razor sharp canines into my wrist, and at that moment a few explicative’s rolled off my tongue as my son made a few shrieks out the window when he realized daddy got bit. Now you d think as this little fur ball of fury would realize I was no longer holding on to him he’d just release his grip and fall to the ground and run off. BUT NO!!!! He has to shake his head while his teeth are sunk into the tendons in my wrist like a musky trying to shake a bucktail. I could see the gleam of victory in his beady little eyes as they shown in the headlights. With a sweeping motion like a pro bowler on steroids I fling the little creature from hades and he comes loose while one of his canines rakes across one of my tendons like a guitar string, sending what felt like 20,000 volts of pain up my arm as he breaks free and sails off into the darkness.<br />
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Now my dilemma, and the inevitable that I know is coming. I get to get more rabies shots. Yes, I said more, I was lucky enough to have to get the series of shots once before and knew, I was about to get them again. But right now it’s deer season and the dawn is cracking. I heard comments in the truck that I should get to the hospital and stitches, etc. For now I didn’t want to hear none of that, I wanted to hunt. I let the wound bleed into a bandana to help cleanse the wound, as I finished driving to our spot. Once there I downed 4 ibuprophen and wrapped the wound in the bandana. I figured I could make it till noon and then head the 18 miles to town to get the rabies treatment. Well I made it till 10 am, I wasn’t seeing any deer, probably because the screaming in my head was getting to loud and deer are sensitive to such things. Or they were just sitting around a stump somewhere listening to some fisher telling his story how he whupped a hunter this morning, laughing their tails off.<br />
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So we pack it in and head to town. As we get to the emergency room, I check in and go thru the regular ropes, some know me by now and don’t get too surprised with some of the afflictions I’ve managed to acquire over the years. I explain the details and that leads to setting up the series of the shots. I’m a big guy, but when it comes to needles, I tend to get weak. With rabies shot, I not only get weak, I wonder what Nazi came up with this treatment, he couldn’t make a pill or 1 shot instead of 9? After the wound is clean and shot dispensed in parts of my carcass, the Dr. tells me that I’m not really doing too bad for rabies shots, 2 times in 30 some years of handling wild critters isn’t too bad an average. I think he was trying to make me feel better or add a little humor to the situation, but I guess I missed it, cause I was a little distracted with all the new painful spots inflicted upon me.<br />
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Ahhh, fond memories, that will not be easily forgotten, unfortunately. Below are the pics of the little critter and his brand mark he left and a vid of my son kinda making fun of me. Hope you enjoy!! Till next time stay safe,lol<br />
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You can see the evil.</div>
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The damage</div>
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My Huntin' bud</div>
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And an interview with an on scene eye witness</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-72455964646096617092011-03-10T14:08:00.000-08:002011-03-10T14:09:46.563-08:00Were Wolves ever really Endangered?<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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What is the definition of Endangered? According to The World Conservation Union, it’s “Generally, an endangered species is an organism in danger of disappearing from the face of the earth if its situation is not improved.” <a href="http://library.thinkquest.org/25014/what/definition.html">http://library.thinkquest.org/25014/what/definition.html</a> Did you get that. The face of the earth. Yet this is posted on the Wolf. “Endangered in USA except Minnesota; Threatened in Minnesota (USA) <a href="http://library.thinkquest.org/25014/what/definition.html">http://library.thinkquest.org/25014/what/definition.html</a><br />
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Do you see what I’m getting at here. Wolves never were in any danger of becoming extinct or even threatened for that matter. The wolves range stretches across N. America, Europe and into Asia, and still thrive today. What happened was there home range changed due to civilization In the lower 48, they still thrived in Canada and other areas of the globe. But groups like the Humane Society of the United States decided to use the wolf as a poster child for their agenda which basically is an end to sport hunting. It’s been ingrained in every school kids minds growing up about the plight of the Wolf, especially back in the 1970’s when these animal rights groups started to really take off. Targeting children’s minds, knowing that it would be of a benefit to the HSUS and other groups in years to come.<br />
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Those years are now, with all the controversy surrounding the wolf and why it’s been a difficult battle for us. Those children are grown up now, the wolf issue is here and the mindset is the wolf was and still is in peril in the minds of many due to putting the wolf up as a poster child for animals rights, you may as well be trying to regulate hunting someone’s puppy the way some have been misled. While the wolf was scarce in the lower 48, they thrived in Canada and not because wolves wouldn’t cross international bounderies, because animals don’t recognize human geographical boundaries. No, they thrived because the habitat was better in the north and the US was at the fringe of this home range. We don’t have alligators in WI, but that doesn’t mean their endangered, we just don’t have all the conditions here for them to flourish, but they do down in Louisiana. So why isn’t the HSUS putting these on posters? Because their not as cute and fluffy.<br />
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The wolf battle has been a tough one, but if we keep up the fight, point out the flaws in the animal rights statements and reasoning, we can get it done. So, were wolves ever endangered? That would be a resounding NO. The lower 48 is the fringe of their home range plain and simple due to civilization and need to be managed.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-11479183387951149882011-03-03T18:01:00.000-08:002011-03-03T18:01:36.589-08:00Foremost Coyote Hunting: Howling Up Coyotes<a href="http://www.foremostcoyotehunting.com/2011/03/howling-up-coyotes.html?spref=bl">Foremost Coyote Hunting: Howling Up Coyotes</a>: "by Duane Fronek I am often asked, do you howl for coyotes and does it work? The short answer is yes and yes. But I’m going to try and break..."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-52952732950350586182011-02-28T09:57:00.000-08:002011-02-28T12:13:34.525-08:00Double Down Coyotes<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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I have a couple hunting buddies that I like to hunt with and when time permits I’ll team up with one of them to go after coyotes. Today one fellow dogman Volker gave me a call, he had time to get out and do a few stands before dark. Volker has the addiction as bad as me, he will go through anything to call in and kill a coyote, it’s a passion that he shares with many of the other coyote hunters out there. So I head over to his place and load up the gear, rifles, hot seats and shooting sticks, then we’re off.<br />
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We decide to hit the river nearby and decide on a spot we were busted on a few weeks back by the skeptic nose of a coyote, well twice actually, This spot has a funny bend in it that messes with the wind. Today the wind was out of the southwest, and figured that might be the ticket for that spot. On our way we noticed that the deer were out feeding and not just a couple, a lot. We had deer cutting across in front of us on the way there and we even seen rabbits out eating the dry grass and probably the salt that was along the roads. It was feeding time and if those critters were out, no doubt the coyotes were too.<br />
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We arrive at our point of entry, a small pull over spot on state land, gated of course. After getting saddled up, we head down the well packed deer path to the river, it was about a quarter mile walk in, no other human tracks around, but deer tracks up the whazoo. We even seen 6 deer walking in as well.<br />
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Upon arriving at the river we find the wind in our favor on this go round. We pick our position right up tight to the river where a clump of tag alders made it’s home. Volker takes his seat to the right of the tags, with his 10ga stuffed with 3 ½ mags ready to unleash it’s load of #4 buckshot, he’s nestled in and ready to take a sneaker wanting to come in through the back door. As Volkers ready to go, I am as well, taking my position to the left of the tags and perched on the shelf ice on the rivers edge, hoping it doesn’t give way.<br />
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I’m facing down stream, wind in my face, I can see a good 500yds of open highway, ready to tumble any speedsters coming in. Across the river about 50yds is a thick cedar swamp that stretches for atleast a half mile both ways, perfect habitat for deer and snow shoe hares and the killers that stalk them, the coyote.<br />
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Being it’s late February, I pull out my Red Desert open reed. Putting the call to my deceitful lips, I unleash a few barks and howls, notifying any resident King and Queen there was an intruder in their kingdom. Another 30 seconds and I broadcast my blatant trespass into the wind with another series of barks, yips, and howls. Then give a moment of silence for the dirty deed I'm about do. The deed arrived about the 2 minute mark when my lying lips screamed the death throws of a hare being murdered by the intruder.<br />
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This was too much for the Queen and her King, through the cedars across the river two figures were fast approaching, their legs mingling with the under brush as they move frantically through the swamp, giving only glimpses of their vulnerable figures. The Queen arrived first, looking for a fight, her hackles raised on her back as she closes in on the river bank 50yds away, suddenly she comes to a halt to assess the situation, looking for the squatter. Her King stood back 20 feet upon the slight rise behind her majesty, shrouded by the bows of the cedars that covered the Kingdom. Little did she know the intruder had the Nikon locked on her chest at which a second later sent the signal to the .243 to send a screaming 100 grainer into the boiler room through the front door. As she hit the snow her sidekick ran in and nipped at her back and darted back into the shadows of the cedars. He paced back and forth as his legs gave away his position. As I watched, I reached into my pocket and pulled out my second line of offense, my carlton mini open reed ,and squealed like a wounded dog giving up the ghost. As the sounds of my deceit reached his panicking ears and confused state of mind, he made a beeline to the right of his fallen comrade, not knowing he had passed her due to the slight rise hiding her from view. As he headed for a better vantage point to find his fallen partner, he hesitated in an opening just before he could of reached the safety of an uprooted cedar. The assailant wasted no time in taking advantage of that fatal mistake. The roar of the .243 raped the landscape, notifying the occupants the ruling duo would harass them no more.<br />
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The Double Feb. 27th 2011</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-37590536603005393282011-02-26T11:35:00.000-08:002011-02-26T11:35:45.509-08:00Calling the Coyotes Camp<br />
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By Duane Fronek<br />
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The day started as any other day set aside for calling. My partner Yotefever came to go calling and after the usual double checking that we had all our gear with us and in the truck, we set off. We were heading up into the National Forest about 3 miles from my place. In the dead of winter it’s a serene place to spend a day calling. As we reach the National our thoughts and talks are starting to develop a game plan on where to setup and whether they were compatible wind the light wind out of the north. A couple miles in on the ice and snow covered road, we spot a flock of ravens up ahead, assembled in there usual form fighting amongst themselves when they find a winter meal. As we’re approaching, the black cloud ascends and scatters about, taking their roosts to watch the intruders close in. What we discover is a half eaten carcass of a deer, road kill probably. We pull over to inspect the scene a little closer as to see who else may be visiting this resting place. Among all the raven tracks scattered about as if someone dumped a puzzle out, we were able to decipher coyote tracks intermingled with the ravens, and a single trail coming in from the north which contained a thick tamarack swamp.</div>
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Being the tracks of the coyote seemed to be quite fresh and pert near smoking, we decide to implement a quick game plan to coax out the guardian of this winter buffet. No doubt he is camped out back off the road enjoying a relaxing snooze that can only be induced with the intoxicating euphoria of a belly full of red meat.</div>
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We jump in the 4x4 and head down the road about a ½ mile and pull to the side. We were about a 100 yds east of the edge of the tamarack swamp. With the wind coming out of the north we had a good chance at cracking this guys code. We head into the hardwoods looking for a good vantage point in which we could snipe an incoming visitor. As luck would have it and a little intuition as to how this country lays, we find ourselves a slight rise from the hardwoods that fingers out to a point that abruptly descends into a fairly open flat of maple saplings that thicken as they approach the tamaracks.</div>
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With the wind sweeping through from right to left as we take our positions, I have yotefever guard the downwind side with his 22-250 savage striker hand cannon. I figure the direction of an incoming suspect would opt to come in from that direction, giving yotefever the opportunity to add another notch on his pistol grip. For myself, I perched myself to yotefevers right out on the slight point, ready to snipe any incoming less educated dogs that ignored the wind.</div>
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With our carcasses settled into the comforts of tree stumps, I lay my .243 across my lap while it waits to make it’s report. I pull out my open reed Carlton pee wee, a medium range call perfect for this type of assault. Within a few seconds of our concealment, I rape the air with the blood curdling pleading of a bunny that wants to live. The bunnies torment and piercing screams for help summoned a willing suspect within minutes of his first cries for help. Unbeknownst to me, the intended target came in down wind at lightning speed, right in to yotrefevers lap at 20yds in full tilt mode. Yotefever announced the arrival by unleashing the 22-250, sending a 40gr sleeping pill at the incoming blur of fur seen throw the cross hairs of his trusted Leupold. Problem was the incoming dog failed to take the pill and swapped ends to make his retreat.</div>
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The crack of the 22-250 alerted the .243 to the situation unfolding to the left. I brought the .243 to full attention, and attempting to help the 100gr bullet find it’s mark through the ever thickening saplings, the monarch that rode her back did the best she could in guiding the pill to it’s intended target, but failed to part the way unobstructed. The intended “ending” to this hunt, left with his hide intact, but left behind a yellow trail for 50yds or so to let us know we gave him an education he will carry to his grave.</div>
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After picking up our seats and what was left of our dignity, I decided to check out the trail that our lucky suspect left behind. As Yotefever was starting to regain his composure and settle his nerves, he said to me; warn me next time you decide to throw a coyote in my lap that fast. I told him I was just trying to surprise him.</div>
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Well upon further inspection of the outgoing trail, I found where this fleeing dog actually lost control of all bladder functions, the yellow streak laid out on the snow better than 50 yds and I just had to laugh, yotefever wasn’t the only one rattled. Being curious, I decided to follow the incoming set of tracks just to see the incoming line of approach. To my surprise it was a fairly straight bee line for our fictional bunny in it’s death throws. But the real gem was I had found where our little friend came from, I found a nice little coyote bed nestled under a blown down tamarack, with another trail of which I followed and not surprisingly led to the deer carcass not 75yds away.</div>
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Below is a short vid of the calling sequence that called this one in, it’s from the actual stand.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-51786072539357941972011-02-24T12:53:00.000-08:002011-02-25T11:41:36.094-08:00Full Moon TripleBy Duane Fronek<br />
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It was a fairly nice February day, temps in the 20’s. I had a buddy up for hunting coyotes. We made plans to go up into some back country that requires a 4 wheeler or snow mobile and snow shoes, a 6 mile trip from the main road. It was a river that snaked its way through some of the prettiest country around here. Going through tag alder marshes, tamarack swamps and popple slashes. The plan was to hit spots along this corridor for the day. It was a full moon cycle and we wanted to be out there when it rises.<br />
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The moon was due to rise around 3:30 pm. In the past it seems moonrise was a very productive time and we wanted to capitalize on it.<br />
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Our stands for the most part for the day only raised a few ravens and for some reason the chickadee’s , it seems their attracted to bunny screams, for they would flit around us and even had one land on my shoulder. We were fast approaching the magic of the moonrise and it was time to set up at our jewel of a spot we’ve been saving for this particular event.<br />
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Thee spot was a fork in a river, with one leg coming from the west and the other from the north, conjoining together to flow south. To the north the river rambled through heavy tag alders, and to the west it rolled in through tamaracks. My partner whom we’ll call “yotefever” as he calls himself for reason’s similar to buck fever. But make no mistake, he is a deadly assassin when you put that coyote out there beyond sniping range and with a center fire pistol to boot. On this particular day yotefever was packin’ a 6.5-.284 that bench pressed a 100gr ballistic tip out of a lever action single shot pistol that loaded through the breech, topped off with his leupy. He was cocked, locked and ready to rock as I toting my trusty 700 that lived off the .243.<br />
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We took our seats, with yotefever nestled up against a hummock facing north and me in the rear 20 yds back up against a stump facing west. With the sun hanging low to the south west and its night shift counterpart due to arrive shortly in the east we were ready to put that poor bunny to the test. I proceeded to scream through my red desert mouthpiece driving those talons deep into that poor bunnies back, it was a horrendous death, his screams so high they could cut through the ice that topped the river. Within moments a dark figure was spotted slinking across the ice from the tags to the north about 600yds out, a half a second later another unsavory character followed suit, then another. A bonifide triple was forming a hit squad on the paw. As they made there way in at a semi trot, I whispered to yotefever, “dogs at 12 o’clock“, he gave me the thumbs up as I gave a short waaaah on the red desert to keep their interest. And interested they were. Closing the gap single file galloping down the white carpet heading to yotefevers lap. When the lead hitman closed in on the 100yd mark he slowed his pace allowing his subordinates to take the lead. I could tell that dog was starting to get nervous, his posture was getting more hesitant. In all the excitement, it was just now becoming clear he was running into an ambush, he was facing right into the sun and the wind was blowing up his backside, he knew bad news was about to break, but the thought of that crimson colored meat had him hesitantly hooked. At that moment it dawned on me as well my mistake was about to magnify itself, as is the case when your too blind to see it in the first place. I had placed yotefever , not realizing it, right in the line of an incoming possibility, for he was between myself and the murderous trio.<br />
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I was waiting for yotefever to give the bark of death as the deadly trio was pushing the 40 yd. mark. And just like many hunts before, the scene was about to go down . The bark of death rolled off of yotefevers tongue, in an instant the trio locked the brakes, with the two lead dogs facing each other posed to bolt as the rear dog stood sentinel another 40 or so yards back ready to witness the show. A semi- second later the roar of yotefevers pistol caused the two lead dogs to bolt, only to collide with each other causing their descent to the ice, As in slow motion I pull myself out of hiding in the crouched position moving in to yotefevers right so to get a shot at the departing witness, as I come to yotefevers side I proceed to lock the cross hairs on the bolting dog who was now a couple hundred yards out , I send a 100 grainer in his direction but fails to slow him down. As I’m rackin’ the bolt for another round, thinking atleast 1 dog is dead on the ice and not knowing where the other went, two well furred critters jump from their iced slabs and getting traction peeled out, one heading straight away to catch up with the departed witness as the other heads to the hard right to the east. Now being surprised, rattled and mind going into frazzle mode, I send another round at the 2nd fleeing ball of fur. As I’m rackin the bolt for a 3rd round I glance down at yotefever trying to get another round in his, I swing around to the east bound dog who’s now truckin as if he’s floating across the ice at mach speed, I lead too much and blew snow up in front and just beyond his direction of travel. As I’m rackin the bolt for the 4rd round, the intended target hit’s the woods edge and stops for one glance back. I find him in the cross hairs of the Monarch and smile as I squeezed the trigger. The hammer drops striking air looking for the primer that wasn’t there, the coyote takes the cue and disappears leaving behind a scene of despair.<br />
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I look up into the eastern sky and there he is, the man on the moon peeking over the trees.<br />
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After regaining our composure, we assessed the situation and checked out the spots where the shots were to connect. Yotefevers spot in the front row showed no blood, but long guard hair that graced the top of the first coyotes withers and no blood to be found, just a maze of scrambled tracks of 2 confused and temporarily scared witless coyotes. The hung up dogs postion, showed nothing but snow and ice fluffed up from the .243 and which brings me to the last shot I realized I only loaded 3 rounds in the magazine After carefully investigating the scene and much head scratching, it was determined that Yotefever hit us both that afternoon.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7364747830351165298.post-52332264536321984792011-02-23T12:51:00.001-08:002011-02-23T17:33:17.038-08:00Sportsmen & Outdoor Groups vs. WildlifeBy Duane Fronek<br />
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I’ve been debating about writing this for awhile, it’s basically just my view on what the different organizations out there today whether it’s fishermen, deer hunters, duck hunters, trappers and even some groups like the Timber Wolf Alliance. So before I proceed I would like to make it perfectly clear, that this is in no way, condemning or saying any one of them is bad, as a matter a fact I belong to a few of them. And I share this same viewpoint with them inside the different groups I belong to, as I’m sharing here, and the reason being is, because I believe in what I believe strongly, as do those who do not see it in this way. All the outdoor sporting groups all play their important and necessary part as they should, and I commend all the groups for their dedication and hard work. The ones I use as an example in this article are ones that are close to home so it’s not like I’m picking on certain groups, their just the ones I’ve seen more of and worked with more or has affected myself more and more importantly the wildlife around me.<br />
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These groups pour a lot of money into their designated passions because after all, that’s their passion and it’s understood. But what I’ve seen, although good, there tends to be a certain degree of tunnel vision within these groups, some more than others. And I believe that this tunnel vision is sometimes detrimental or maybe just not the best course of action as a whole for the wildlife outside of their preferred wildlife cause. Like an over all blanket way of doing things because it benefits their species of choice. But when you apply that blanket of say logic or way of management it can and does affect the rest of the eco-system around it. For every action there is a reaction, a chain of events sometimes not seen or even realized till a much later time, the domino effect. The recent wolf issues is a prime example of that, in all the haste to re-introduce this species, major things like how they were to be managed down the road or the effect on other wildlife populations as a whole were in my humble opinion over looked or put on the back burner in the haste to move the agenda forward, basically putting the cart before the horse.<br />
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I guess the biggest thing is not seeing the whole picture. Take for example, here in WI the musky clubs would like to see either catch and release only or a 50” min. size on musky state wide. Sure that would say be a feasible thing when talking large lakes but as whole on every lake, I don’t believe is the way to go because of the other fisheries out there like panfish, walleyes etc. Some lakes would not even beable to sustain that without dire consequences to it’s fishery, you can’t stock pile wildlife and fish included. And I’m glad we have spring hearings with our state DNR for people to voice their pro’s and con’s. so that there is a balance out there. I guess when you look at it, we need to micro manage in a sense to the specific needs of everything as a whole in that particular lake.<br />
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Take for example Trout Unlimited of which I’m a member, but I’m also a member of the WI. Trappers Assoc. as well, you would think that would be a perfect combo and at times it can be. I belong to both because I believe in both, but I do see where there can be improvement in the tunnel vision aspect to widen there perception and knowledge to be more of a benefit not for their respective members but for wildlife as a whole, because it isn’t what we think is best but because we need to do what is best as a whole for the wildlife, not ourselves. Here in WI. The beaver numbers are getting low and have dropped a lot in the last ten years. Here again is an animal that was so numerous in the 80’s that a bounty was put on them and limits were lifted, and left that way after the bounties ended with no fore thought as to what should be done when the beaver get back down to manageable numbers. So now the state is scrambling to figure out a solution to protect the resource. On one hand you have trappers that trap them and want to continue trapping them in years to come and want a little more stringent regulations put in place to limit or eliminate summer trapping of beaver that are causing damage or a more defined definition of what constitutes damage to prevent unnecessary removal of beaver by groups like Trout Unlimited. Trout Unlimited in this state want a zero tolerance for beaver on trout streams, problem is, most streams in WI are trout streams or waters in one category or another.<br />
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Now, the past 3 years I have been involved in a stream restoration project involving a once premier trout water and cold water resource that fed anther major river here. That stream was basically ruined by beaver, but it took beaver 50 years to do it. The beaver turned the 9 miles of stream into a series of ponds that were warmed up to temps like bath water and silt deposits of extreme depths. The beaver had changed that environment considerably. It now no longer provided much needed cold water to it’s larger counterpart down stream, the trout fishery was pretty much destroyed. But on the other hand it now provided homes for a much more diverse set of residents, muskrats, coon, ducks, geese, deer not to mention turtles, clams and a variety of other plants and wildlife, the only thing missing was the fish and cold water. But something else was on the rise a new danger lurking that was right their in front of your face but not seen.<br />
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The beaver were eating themselves out of house and home, the tree line had receded a considerable distance and in order to sustain the beaver the dams would have to become bigger to reach it, flooding out timber and land once it reached the new food source. The other danger that accompanies this scenario is the high risk of disease which would virtually eliminate the beaver there eventually, plus the nasty stuff that grows in stagnant water. So in reality although it looked like as rugged a country you would ever see and everything was fine, it was basically destroying itself or if looked at it a different way mother nature taking it’s course and changing it to something else. Man has a habit of wanting change now, mother nature takes her time. So, even though the beaver were abundant on that stream, the rest of the state is not like that. So Trout Unlimited comes in to restore the stream to it’s original state, the DNR is involved and trapping is involved and it’s on it’s way to being what it once was. In order to do that the beaver need to be completely removed and dams blown so decades of silt can be flushed from the system, then a management plan to keep beaver out so that it can come back. Which I feel is the way to go in this instance. How ever you now have drastically changed the eco system on that stream and mother nature will adjust itself, ducks and geese will nest on adjoining waters, some muskrats will survive, some move on, bobcats will hang around but surplus ones now will travel in search of a new home and the list goes on.<br />
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Now lets skip on over to another creek 10 miles south that feeds the same large river the one we just cleaned up that feeds the same large river. There’s beaver on it a few dams, but still fairly good flows of water and cold, gravel bottom, lots of trout, etc. Trout Unlimited has a zero tolerance for beaver on trout streams and feels those beaver need to be removed too. BUT, do they really need to be removed. The trout are fine the waters cold, so does it make sense as for the fishery and wildlife around to eliminate the beaver. No not really. I look at it like this, you need that creek left alone and let nature take its course, because you need the diversity to support wildlife that were displaced 10 miles north. Only thing is if it is manged properly like selective trapping the beaver so they don’t totally destroy the stream, you’ll have a longer run not only on it being a healthier stream, but healthier all around for the wildlife around it. Basically farm it. Because if you go at the angle of no beaver on the streams you are creating a more sterile enviroment sustaining less wildlife. It takes years to make a trout stream unproductive from beaver, it really does and I mean 20, 30-40 years. Not a couple. I know of a stream with beaver dams on my dad fished in his teens that I fished as an adult with the same dams in place and the size and fishing was great, until that was cleaned out and beaver removed. So I know it takes a long time for a stream to be a wasteland.<br />
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Now enter the trapper, he wants to see more beaver because part of his income comes from beaver, they would rather see the beaver dams and streams like the plugged up one left alone because it’s a benefit to what he does, just like what the TU guys want done because it benefits what they do. But what really matters here is what’s best as a whole for wildlife and that’s where all of us no matter what association or organization we belong to and our goals as such, need to look at what we do. How does it affect everything else in the grand scheme of things as a whole, because in the end, that’s what matters most for future generations to come. And the unnecessary shock to the system as was seen on the over populated stream to change it back.<br />
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I hope I didn’t come off as condemning, because that’s not what I’m trying to get across, I belong to TU as well as the WI TA and other assoc. as well. And just thought I’d point this type of thing out so we all, no matter what we’re involved in take a better non bias look at what each of our groups are wanting to accomplish and how it affects everything as a whole. Whether we’re for ducks or deer or bears etc. And what is better for the eco-system in the long run.<br />
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Thanks for taking the time to read.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2