Fur Farming / A book of Information about Fur Bearing Animals, Enclosures, Habits, Care, etc.

Williams, a well known trapper. From my early boyhood, I had a decided liking for the wilder class of literature, and took special interest in

r among my boy friends, intending, if I could find some person to accompany me, to make an

hunters traversing the wilderness as they would their own back yards, I naturally thought that life in the forests was a very simple thing, and that there was no reason why I shou

the desired information, very willingly, and also remarked that he had been very successful in trapping mink and other small animals with box-traps. After he had mentioned it, I remembered that my father had, on one occasion, caught a mink in a box trap, after it had been paying nightly visits to our chicken coop for a week or more, killing

the cover, is fitted in top and end, and hinged at back by driving a nail in each side, being careful to get both nails same distance from the end of bo

Catching An

ached the trigger (F). One end of this trigger fits into a notch cut into the end of the box, and the other end fits into a similar notch cut in the bait-stick (G). The bait-stick, as will be noticed in the drawing, is slipped through a hole in the end of the box, just below the trigger notch, and is kept in place by mea

en the trap is sprung. This snap is made of springy wood, beveled on the top, and the falling cover presses it outward; but as soon as the trap is fully c

ogging camps, at one time or another and at such places I could always find old boards from which to construct the traps. The only tools required being a saw, a hatchet, and

caught many coons. On one occasion I caught three coons in one night, with only three traps set, and in another trap, set by the side of a small

trappers who used them for mink alone, never used bait, but attracted

arried to the nearest water and the catch drowned by holding the trap beneath the surface. It is advisable alwa

ing purposes, and now, that so many people are interested in raising fur-bearing anima

with Sw

loosely hinged gate of pointed wires is hung in the other end. I used for the gate, pieces of umbrella ribs, cut about eight inches long and the ends filed sharp. With the wires cut this length the gate will hang at an angle of forty-five degrees, or more, and will push in ea

ace around the trap should be closed with sods. Set in this way, it will catch any musk

tting the trap in the mouth of the den, blocking up all side openings. The width of the trap as shown in the cut, is considerab

kunks are found, and the bait is fastened on the bottom of the inside of the barrel. This trap is shown plainly in the illustration. It will be apparent to all that w

f the den, the other hunter drives the inmates from the burrow by prodding the ground with a pointed pole. A wire cage with a cover must be used to car

or Catching A

and catch may be carried into the enclosure before the animal is liberated. Even the skunk may be carried

ct safety if grasped by the end of

e, or at such a length of time after the birth of the young, that there will be no danger of their starving in case they are not captured along with the mother. Even if the very young anim

ood one, is described by an

g (D) to pass through, which is tied to a bait at (E) and fastened at the other end to a heavy wire (C), on top of the box, which holds the sliding door (A), when set. A couple of strips (B) are nailed on each side to hold the door in

er Bo

recommended for catching such animals as skunk, coon, mink,

y baiting and setting where they feed,

with safety to both catcher and animal, to