A risk I did NOT think of – heads up… Traps.

[redwingrr]

Real, steel traps. I’m reluctant to write this but thinking of those of you who might be oblivious, as I was… (I much prefer taking risks that I’m aware of.)

Caching recently in the jackson Marsh, our dog was caught in a steel trap. SHE IS OK. I think she was really lucky where it got her and the trap size relative to her size. It got her in what would be the palm of the human hand. A smaller pet or maybe even a bigger pet might not have fared as well. (There’s no way she would have been able to free herself either, short of gnawing off her paw at the wrist.) Of course, a small person might also be injured. Luckily my husband was along because it would have been really difficult for me to open it myself. Plus one of us could restrain the very panicked dog to keep it from pulling, fighting and doing further damage. If I’d been alone it would have been worse. I’m so glad she *allowed* us to help – please note that it’s not always safe to help an injured animal.

I was and am completely ignorant of WI trapping regulations – but I plan to work on that so I can to minimize the risk. This occurred along a stream, near the road and within about 100′ of public parking. The cache has been archived and the cache owner is going to ask the land manager if it was a legal placement, which is awfully nice of him. I have no idea. I don’t lay any blame on the cache placement whatsoever. I thnk maybe it’s just dumb luck this hasn’t happened to me before.

Traps come in lots of sizes and I now realize if opening one of this size was at the limits of my ability, things might be significantly worse with a bigger trap. Now I’ll be having nightmares about bear traps, lol!!! Thank goodness there were also no teeth on the trap. Good footware and a phone (if there’ reception) might be really valuable.

I don’t want to scare anyone from enjoying our beautiful natural world! But maybe if we learn about trap placement, seasons, etc we can lower the risk. Probably lots of you are aware of trapping – I am now!

Unfortunately, my very *favorite* caches are in places similar to this and much more remote! But I will cache on…

Hubby is singing Elvis.. “Caught in a trap, I can’t get out”… Humor is good medicine. 🙂

Has this ever happened to anyone else???
Sorry for writing a book.

[huffinpuffin2]

Thanks for sharing this!

We’ve not personally encountered it, but read about it recently in a cache we were going to attempt. A cacher noted they ran across a trap en route to the cache, luckily saw it, and then backed away and abandoned the rest of the trip. Living along a river, years ago, encountered muskrat traps frequently, especially near houses, where the homeowners were trying to protect their river banks, and hunters were after pelts.

No idea of trapping sport, seasons, laws. Like gun hunting, knowledge of this would certainly be valuable.

Chuck Taylors are not good footwear in the sticks.

[cheezehead]

I usually see signs posted that areas have traps. With 3 noesy food driven labs,I do sometimes worry about traps in certain places.

[cheezehead]

Regs

[BigJim]

@redwingrr wrote:

Now I’ll be having nightmares about bear traps, lol!!!

I don’t believe that bear traps are legal for use in Wisconsin. Traps with teeth can only be used in water sets, where the trap is beneath water.

All opinions, comments, and useless drivel I post are mine alone and do not reflect the opinions of the WGA BOD.

[huffinpuffin2]

@BigJim60 wrote:

Traps with teeth can only be used in water sets, where the trap is beneath water.

😯 And outta sight……………That’s comforting!

[CodeJunkie]

@huffinpuffin2 wrote:

@BigJim60 wrote:

Traps with teeth can only be used in water sets, where the trap is beneath water.

😯 And outta sight……………That’s comforting!

HMMM? “Trout Haven” comes to mind.

[CodeJunkie]

I guess I’ve never considered traps while caching. I’ve helped set a variety of traps over the years and never really considered them a “danger” while geocaching. They certainly can be dangerous and I think just being aware is a huge step to staying safe. Thankfully everything turned out OK.

[Braid Beards Gang]

I was surprised to see your log. I have cached and hunted in that area the past five years and never encountered any traps. I am assuming that it probably was a muskrat trap along the stream. It would be nearly impossible to see in the tall frozen grass. Thanks for the warning. It is something I had never thought of before this post. I hope it doesn’t deter you from finding the Lord of the cache Trilogy, it is beautiful this time of year.

[redwingrr]

I won’t be denied my time in the woods and swamps, Braidbeard. Thanks. The Lord of the Caches is one of my all-time favorites. You have probably walked very near where this happened.

A few things I’ve found…

Mag was caught in what’s called a leg-hold trap. It was a Bridger #2 (manufacturer and size) which is recommended for fox, coyotes, bobcats, raccoon, etc. Mag is the size of a coyote. They are said to be designed to hold, not injure, an animal. You’ll find news stories of some dogs who have been injured though; people too. My dog just has soft tissue injury from the snap of the steel jaws, but she’ll be fine.

More dangerous are conibear traps, which are designed to crush and kill.
There are also legal snares which can be lethal. (add wire or cable cutters to the caching kit)
Baits and lures are sometimes used – refer to regs for what’s legal.

Knowing how to open a trap seems vital… the following look like good resources although I’m certainly not the person with knowledge to judge their accuracy:
Here’s the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish’s instructional video on freeing a dog caught in a steel-jaw leghold trap: http://www.nocrueltrapsonpubliclands.info/freeyourdog
And here’s another link showing how to open 2 types of traps listed above: http://www.terrierman.com/traprelease.htm

[goirish75]

Thanks for the warning and heads up. We cache with our 2 year old, and she loves to run and play as we all explore new caching areas, I don’t even wanna think about her stepping in or falling on a trap of any size, with or without teeth. I’ve never even thought about that danger out there. It may be rare to run into one, but I appreciate the eye opener on this. It will be in the back of my mind now when we cache hunt in those types of areas.

[Northwoods Tom]

Being an individual that spends a great deal of time in the outdoors caching as well as hunting, I can see the concern many people feel about this type of encounter. I’m not a trapper yet I wanted to become familiar with this tool. Personally, I would feel confident enough to remove a trap from my Springers leg if he ever encountered one. This is the result of going into a farm and fleet type store and actually playing around with them to figure out how they work. They are quite easy to remove if you become familiar with them and how they work. This may seem like a ridiculous idea for some of you, but familiarity with an item would develop confidence. An additional thought is to take a Trapper Education class. They are offered throughout the state, the cost is $12 and even though you have no intention of trapping, you can learn how they work, where they might be located, what to look for, etc. Develop a knowledge and confidence about something you might now be unsure about.

This is the DNR Website for Trapper Education Classes:
http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/wildlife/trap/trapeduc/schedule.htm

[BigJim]

Good suggestion NWTom. I had a roommate in college who was a trapper, and he took me out on his trap line many times, so I became familiar with the hardware involved. I made an attempt at trapping myself, but after catching a rabbit, a bluejay, a great-horned owl, and the neighbor’s cat, I gave up my trapping career. BTW, the cat and the owl both survived and had no serious injuries.

All opinions, comments, and useless drivel I post are mine alone and do not reflect the opinions of the WGA BOD.

[Mister Greenthumb]

@BigJim60 wrote:

Good suggestion NWTom. I had a roommate in college who was a trapper, and he took me out on his trap line many times, so I became familiar with the hardware involved. I made an attempt at trapping myself, but after catching a rabbit, a bluejay, a great-horned owl, and the neighbor’s cat, I gave up my trapping career. BTW, the cat and the owl both survived and had no serious injuries.

Kinda like the Bears. They think they are football players, but they really don’t know what they are doing.

.

[cheezehead]

@Mister Greenthumb wrote:

@BigJim60 wrote:

Good suggestion NWTom. I had a roommate in college who was a trapper, and he took me out on his trap line many times, so I became familiar with the hardware involved. I made an attempt at trapping myself, but after catching a rabbit, a bluejay, a great-horned owl, and the neighbor’s cat, I gave up my trapping career. BTW, the cat and the owl both survived and had no serious injuries.

Kinda like the Bears. They think they are football players, but they really don’t know what they are doing.

.

OH BOY! 🙄 😆 😉 8)

[Author]

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