WIRE AND TWINE SNARE.
Various are the ways being studied for the capture of the fox and
other shy animals, says J. H. Shufelt, of Canada. Most every trapper
has a particular method of his own. Years ago trappers thought it was
necessary to set in water in order to be successful in catching
foxes, but after a closer acquaintance with the ways of the fox, it
was found that they were easily caught in a steel trap on dry land in
many ways. At the present time the trapper has found a less expensive
way of catching them with the snare. This method has many advantages,
and when properly set is a sure thing. It takes in most of those old
sly ones that have been nipped by steel traps, etc.
The method shown here is only one of the many ways of the snare.
Owing to the peculiar fastening of the snare, a powerful spring pole
or weight can be used with a lighter wire. I use a copper or brass
wire 1 gauge, with a foot or more slack between fastenings, which
gives the spring pole a chance to instantly take advantage of the fox
as soon as caught, when he will be caught up to the staple (which
should be high enough from the ground so the fox will swing clear)
and choked.
I set my snares in paths where weeds or grass grow each side to hide
the snare. The loop should be seven inches in diameter, ten inches
from the ground. It is as well before trapping to get the fox to
traveling a path by leaving some good scent along the path. This can
be done by boring a three-fourths hole downward in a tree near the
path and pour the scent in, which will last a long time. If the same
care is used in setting snares as is used in trapping, I think the
snare will catch more. They work well in cold weather, and some fine
catches can be made after a snowfall with the snare. Then the fur
will be good and prime.
[Illustration: WIRE OR TWINE SNARE.]
A--Spring pole.
B--Staple.
C--Two small nails driven in tree. (Three inch nail head, end down,
with snare looped at each end with a foot of slack between. As soon
as the D--three inch nail is pulled down, it will slip past the nail
at top end, when spring pole will instantly take up the slack, also
the fox, to staple and does its work.)
E--Slack line or wire.
F--Loop should be 7 inches in diameter and bottom of loop ten inches
from the ground.
Remarks--The nails should be driven above staple so it will pull
straight down to release the snare fastening.
* * *
I may state that I learned all the best ways of setting traps for fox
long ago from an old trapper, says A. H. Sutherland, of Nova Scotia.
But I never bothered setting a trap for a fox in my life, for the
reason that I can catch them with snares on bare ground much easier
and cheaper than with traps. But on snow if I could get fox to take
bait, I would try poison on him. I may add that the snare is good for
other animals besides the fox, such as coon, skunk and wild cat.
Go to a hardware store and get some rabbit wire and put about five
strands of it together, and twist it just enough so that it will stay
together nicely. Have a small loop on both ends and run one end
through the other so as to make a noose of it. Next get some good
twine, put a piece about 10 or 12 inches in length into the loop on
the end of the snare, that is, the end that is going to be fastened.
Now find a path in an old clearing or in the woods, and select a
place where you think best to set your snare. Cut a stake about 2
feet long and 1 1/2 inches through, have a limb on the butt end of it
almost 3/4 inch in length. Sharpen the small end of the stake and
drive it in the ground, leaving about 10 or 12 inches above ground;
then cut a nice little pole about an inch and a half at the butt end
and sharpen it, trim off at about an inch at the top end and fasten
your snare, or at least take your pole in both hands and force the
butt end into the ground till it will be good and firm.
Now bend down your pole and fasten your snare to it, and put the end
of the pole under the catch on the stake. Be sure to drive your stake
close enough to the path so as to have your snare light about the
center of the path and the lower side of the snare about 8 inches
from the ground. It is best to have them high enough so the fox
cannot jump over them. Of course a man must use good judgment at
setting snares just the same as he would in setting traps.
Another good place is a brush fence. Find holes under it where the
fox will be going through, put your snare there, and if there are any
going you will have some of them. Next find a good stream in the
woods or anywhere frequented by foxes, and if you find good trees
that fall across the stream have a good sharp axe and give a good
slash or two of the axe about the middle of the tree, or at least
above the middle of the brook. As I was going to say, give a good
slash or two of the axe lengthwise of the tree and make a wedge shape
stake and drive it into the tree, and then fasten your snare to a
spring pole. If you prefer, you could bore an auger hole in the log
and drive your pin in that way, and fasten the snare to the pin about
10 or 12 inches from the log so that the snare will hang downwards,
it will do better. Be sure and have the lower side of snare 7 or 8
inches from the log.
[Illustration: THE WIRE LOOP.]
Now there is another kind of brass or copper wire that one strand
will be enough to hold a fox. If you find that they are cutting your
snares put little rollers of wood in the snare boring a hole
lengthwise with a 3/8 bit, and have the roller almost 5 inches long
and say an inch in diameter. Put that on snare so it will run down to
the side of his neck, and he will keep biting at it.
I get No. 14 brass wire (mind, you must temper the wire) that I find
the hardest part of the game. Cut your wire about 34 or 36 inches
long, make it into rings round, put in a good hot fire for three or
four minutes, or until red. Be very careful and not let it lie on
coal, handle very carefully; don't strike against anything while hot,
as it will break like glass, but if you have it tempered you cannot
break it. I have caught three foxes in the same snare, says Larry
Burns, of Canada.
You must make your snare just the same as a rabbit snare, only make a
loop about six inches around. Find when the fox passes under a fence
or on a cow path, in winter, find where they make a habit of going.
Set your snare in such places or around old carrion in bushes, cedar
is best, use weeds rolled round your snare, don't use too many as
they will notice. Use a green stick to hold your snare fast, You wire
about a foot from large end. Always stand up the stick just the same
as growing. The stick should be 1 1/2 inches thick. Be careful and
make as few foot marks as possible and stand on one side of your
snare. While setting don't spit tobacco juice near snare.
* * *
A great many foxes have been caught in this country by the plan of
the drawing outlined, writes J. C. Hunter, of Canada. A--the snare,
should be made of rabbit wire, four or five strands twisted together.
Should be long enough to make a loop about seven inches in diameter
when set. Bottom side of snare should be about six inches from the
ground. E--is a little stick, sharp at one end and split at the
other, to stick in the ground and slip bottom of snare in split end,
to hold snare steady.
[Illustration: SPRING POLE SNARE.]
B--is catch to hold down spring pole. C--is stake. D--is spring pole.
Some bend down a sapling for a spring pole, but we think the best way
is to cut and trim up a small pole about ten feet long; fasten the
big end under a root and bend it down over a crotch, stake or small
tree. Snare should be set on a summer sheep path, where it goes
through the bushes.
Stake might be driven down a foot or more back from the path, where a
branch of an evergreen bush would hang over it so as to hide it and a
string long enough from stake or trigger to snare to allow snare to
rest over path.
Of course, in making this set you will have to use care and your own
ingenuity to a great extent, to suit the requirements of the
surroundings. Another way is to find a log, tree or pole that lies
across a brook that is too wide for a fox to jump from one bank to
the other. Set snare on log, but in this case, bottom side of snare
should be only about four inches from log, as a fox will carry his
nose lower while crossing a stream on a log. If the log is near the
water, a spring pole should be used; if the log is high up from the
water, fasten snare to log by driving in a wooden pin in the side of
the log, and when the fox gets in snare he will tear around, fall off
of log and hang all right.
* * *
The following is said to be the manner in which they snare foxes in
New Brunswick: Early in the season they go into the woods in some
favorable locality and build a fence. This place is similar to what
would be constructed for partridge snaring, only of course with layer
brush, leaving a narrow opening sufficiently wide for the passage of
a fox, fixing everything just as they wish it to be later on when
ready for business, and having a spring pole at such a distance that
it can be utilized when wanted.
Take a dead hen or some kind of meat, place it in a jar, so that it
gets well tainted; that when the right time comes place the noose in
place at the opening made in the fence, fasten to the spring pole,
sprinkle a little of this tainted bait about, and await results.
[Illustration: THE RUNAWAY SNARE SET.]
In going and coming, wooden shoes or clogs are worn, so that the fox
will not get the scent of the party setting the trap.
An animal in coming down the path passes its body or neck through the
loop made of stout insulated wire; in passing it steps on the trip
stick which settles with the animal's weight, releasing the trigger,
which in turn releases the stay-wire and jerks the loop around the
animal; the spring pole onto which the stay-wire is attached lifts
your game up into the air, choking it to death and placing it out of
reach of other animals that would otherwise destroy your fur. A small
notch cut in the stay crotch where the end of the trip stick rests
will insure the trigger to be released. This will hold the trip stick
firm at the end, making it move only at the end where the animal
stops.
New and valuable methods are continually being published in the
Hunter-Trader-Trapper, an illustrated monthly magazine, of Columbus,
Ohio.