Pocket gophers

[fishermusk]

Does your area have a bounty on them? I think East Bethel does, I read that Scandia thought it was a waste of taxpayer money. They were spending 3000.00 per year on bountys. I think it is a good use of taxpayer money, keeping the young kids out of trouble and paying them for there efforts. I used to make 60.00 dollars a summer trapping them and I only got .50 cents for a pair of feet.

Good Luck,

Dave

[ARNE]

We get a buck a tail in my area in western WI.

[carpshooterdeluxe]

$2.75 per gopher in the township i grew up in...turned in 43 pairs of feet on saturday. also getting 50 cents per 13 striper.

[Double D]

Ah, yes, the good old days. As a kid in the late 70's it was 50 cents from the township, and then maybe an extra few quarters from the right neighbor, especially if they were in the alfalfa field. My brother and I paid for our bikes with gopher money, and then rode the bikes to set more gopher traps. We also liked to have a contest to see who could catch one the fastest. 9 minutes was my personal best, but my brother beat me, and Dad could get one in the trap in less than 5 once in a while if he gave it a try.

Kids must be backing out of this; the piles are everywhere around here.

DD

[carpshooterdeluxe]

got 11 more two weekends ago; a friend of mine had to re-seed some alfalfa in a few wet spots and the diggers were going crazy; that is until a few death clutches and pannys stopped them in their tracks! even got a flicker tail, which for the area i grew up in is pretty rare.

[beer batter]

What's the easiest and best way to get these suckers. Everytime we get up to the lake there's mounds of dirt all over. Then the dogs dig up the holes leave some ankle breaker holes near all the dirt piles. I'd like to get rid of as many as I can.

[fishermusk]

I use a stick to poke around the mound and find there hole, once I find it I used to place a #0 victor trap in ther laying flat. Stake the trap and cover the hole with a piece of wood and check the next day. They are alive when get there, use your stick to rad them on the head. Cut there feet off and collect your bounty if there are bounties in your area.

Good Luck,

Dave

[GOOSEBILLY]

Any one ever use these diggers for bait in the trapping season??? Dirt hole sets?

[walleyes12]

Great bait!!! work very well

[USDA3]

What's the easiest and best way to get these suckers. Everytime we get up to the lake there's mounds of dirt all over. Then the dogs dig up the holes leave some ankle breaker holes near all the dirt piles. I'd like to get rid of as many as I can.

We use the death-Klutch type of trap and are usually very effective. make sure before you leave your place, kick over all the mounds so when you return you can focus on the most recent diggings and typically have a better chance at catching them. Use a stick or trap stake to probe the fresh mound, and find the hole. Dig out the @3 inch hole and place one of the set death clutch traps inside, either in the run below the mound or in the lateral tunnel. stake with a stick or tapping stake. I like to re-cover the hole so only a little light enters, I use grass pulled from the area. I have added a link to a HSOforum that has some info on pocket gophers as well other info on wildlife damage management.

http://icwdm.org/handbook/rodents/ro_b17.pdf

Good Luck

[Brownie77]

Those quick set traps are the best IMO that you can currently buy, but I would love to have abotu 2 dozen of the old a-frame traps.

[Double D]

Can you even buy those old A-frames anymore? That's all we used to use back in the day, and now you don't even see them in stores. I suppose if you look hard enough they will turn up.

DD

[Brownie77]

I can not find them, but loved them when I was a kid, but have lsot them over the years.