Getting Started in Trapping

Start with the paperwork

Before you buy a single trap, find out what your province or state requires. Almost everywhere in North America, a new trapper needs to pass a trapper education course before they can get a licence. The course covers humane trap use, species identification, regulations, fur handling and ethics, and it's worth taking seriously even if you grew up around traps. You'll meet experienced trappers there too, which is worth as much as the certificate.

After the course, get your licence and pick up the current regulations summary. Read it front to back. Pay attention to:

• Season dates for each species in your area or zone
• Which traps are legal for which species, and where (on land, in water, size limits)
• How often traps must be checked
• Trap identification rules (name, licence number or tag on every trap)
• Harvest reporting requirements at the end of the season
• Rules about setbacks from roads, trails and buildings

Regulations change. Read the new summary every season, not just your first.

Pick one or two species

New trappers who go after everything usually catch little and learn less. Pick one land species and one water species and learn them well. A common first season is fox or coyote on land and muskrat in water. Muskrat in particular teaches you to read sign, and they're forgiving while you learn.

Starter gear

You don't need much to start. A reasonable first kit:

• A dozen footholds suited to your target species (check what's legal and certified for it in your area)
• A few body-grip traps if you're trapping water species
• Stakes, cable or wire, swivels and shock springs
• A trowel, a sifter for bedding traps, and a kneeling pad
• Gloves you use only for trapping, kept clean of gas, smoke and food smells
• A trap setting tool and safety gripper for body-grips
• Lure, bait and urine for your target species
• A catch pole and a release tool for non-target animals
• A pack basket or bucket to carry it all

Buy traps from a trapping supplier, not a hardware store. Ask the supplier which models meet humane trap standards for your species.

Prepare your traps

New traps come coated in oil and need cleaning, then dyeing and waxing (or dipping) before use. This removes odour, prevents rust and helps them fire fast in cold weather. Do it in summer, not the week before the season.

Mark every trap with whatever identification your regulations require before it goes in the ground.

Your first season

Keep your first line small. Ten to twenty sets you can check properly is better than fifty you can't. Write everything down: where each set is, what it is, what lure you used, what happened at every check. That record is how you get better.

Sprung Trapline was built for exactly this. Drop each set on the map as you make it, log every check and catch, and by spring you'll have a season record you can actually learn from.