The American Beagler Forum

Is it legal to use leghold traps on state land for fow and coyote?

if it is traping season yes you can but i would not if you run dogs there

they have to have there name and number on them. yes it is legal if it is trapping season.

thanks guys and have a Merry Christmas

fyi, snares are legal as well during season. If legal snares are used they are not lethal to dogs assuming you can find your dog.

that is why i always have a pair of linemans pliers on me just for that reason.

bill......good idea.

i trap myself and if you use a 1 1/2 it will not hurt your dogs if they happen to get in one but the funnest way to kill coyotes is to call and shoot them from about 2 or 3 hundred yards or so

you will be hard pressed to hold Michigan coyotes in a 1 1/2. Most here use 3's or 4's and that will grab a beagle pretty good.

One thing that, has always got me wondering is why, some small game hunters, have problems with trappers in general. Yes it would suck if your dog was injuried by a trap or even killed by a snare. But think of the numbers of rabbits and birds, these trappers have 'saved' by the taking of that fox or yote. On some boards, a trapper is unwelcomed, and like wise for the houndsman, on others, (especially by deer hunters). I'd thank every fox and yote trapper around. Means more game for the small gamer. Dogs are just as likely to get hit by a passing car. By some peoples view I should be at odds with myself, being both a trapper and a houndsman. Please I hope this doesn't escalate into a whos right post. Just my thoughts.
Paul

I have no problems with trappers I just asked a question. I found a couple of sets on state land and thought that it was illegal to trap with leg holds on public land. And as far as I have read on this thread noone said anything bad about trapping.

Paul I agree ,Ive been trapping for 20 years and have never caught a dog,plenty of cats but no dogs.I trap everything from mink to beaver and use all traps possible including snares for coyotes.And Ive personally never had a beagle of mine caught by a trap of any kind.
Mark

Ive trapped for 20 years as well and only caught one dog. It was the land owners and although the dog was not injured, I was concerned about how the owner would feel. When I told him what happened he wasnt the least bit concerned.

Where problems occur is when trappers break the law and dont check their traps regularly. They are required in Michigan to be checked every 24 hours. My dad had a coon hound caught in trap and we found her 2 weeks later almost dead. If the trapper would have checked traps everyday she would have been fine.

The state game laws and regulations are designed to be fair for everone. When sportsman violate them its unfair for everyone. My advice is dont violate and report those that do.

I am more than happy when people trap,This needs to be done to help out small game populations.I have 4doz. snares (relaxing type) ready to go after the first of the year.The only things that bother me are the 220 conibears (coon sets) and people that are to lazy to check there traps.I had a beagle that got caught in a leghold and was gone all night.the next morning she came home with a sore foot.no problems.

I to welcome and am not oppossed to trapping one bit, it is necessarry to keep the predators of rabbit and hare in check. One thing that is always helpful to me as a hound hunter is when the trappers will post signs as they do in some spots up north that read "warning hunters, traps in the area predator control in affect". When I see these areas I stay out to respect the trapper as well as my dogs safe being.

However one thing that I ran into a couple of weeks ago up north When I was hunting an area that wasn't posted at all, was someone was setting 220's & 330's connibears above ground right on hare runways, and sure enough one of my dogs ran right into and it got him right by the tip of the nose. Luckily I was only 10' from the dog when it happened so I was able to free him up quickly. Maybe I'm wrong but I didn't think that it was very ethical to set connibears above ground like that. They would be better served set over a hole or underwater.