Experiences With The #110 Conibear Trap

By Louis Doran

I first got into trapping believe it or not by finding some of Buckshot's videos in a box when we moved into our new house in Mayville, Michigan. Watching them got me hooked on trapping. I could not wait until I had saved enough money to buy some traps. Well things worked out OK but not as I had planned. My dad bought me two #110 conibears from a hardware store.

I couldn’t wait to set them for something. As it turned out my neighbor, Mike Yens, had some problems with rats digging and burrowing in the nice, fine sand under the foundations of his barn. We set the two #110 conibears in front of the rat holes expecting them to be waiting there the following day. The next day came and went with no rats, heck, a whole week went by with no rats, so we resorted to D-Con.

My next experience with the #110 was in our woods behind are house. I set the trap a foot and a half from a birch log and in-between the trap and the log I placed some shelled corn. On the sides between the conibear and the log I shoved 18-inch sticks into the ground so the only way to the corn was through the #110. It was an unusually warm October and I did not remember to check my trap the next day until the afternoon. I don’t know what I expected but I know what was in the trap wasn’t it. Whacked in the trap, limp as could be expected, was a dead, fat, foot long red Squirrel cheeks bulging because of the corn stuffed into them. I was still excited because I had finally caught something in my trap.

My third incident with one of my conibears was near a swamp. I had found a small hole about 3-4 inches in diameter. I didn’t know who or what it belonged to so I decided to find out with my #110. I made a trail of shelled corn going into the hole a couple inches away. After this I placed my set trap over the hole, went home and waited until the next day. After I got my chores done I went outside to check my trap. To my surprise a limped  sad, scrawny looking young possum. He looked at me in a tired and defeated look as if to say, "Ok already, I give up.

Well that was my story. Hope you enjoyed it, and that it will be good enough for Young Trappers Tales.