Trapping

[Smoky]

:) EeeeHaw! I never get to be first! OK, is anyone trapping in Tennessee? How about snares? Prices have not been the best for a few years, anyone looking for alternative markets besides the regular fur buyers, like buckskinner groups, re-enactors etc?

[oldnndway]

I used to trap a lot about 20 years ago + -

We got good prices for furs back then (especially considering we in the south and the hides aren't as prime here as up north)

I've got $75 for bobcat, 35 for grey fox and 45 for reds, as high as 25 to 30 for a big coon...even used to get $2.00 for possum (and it was worth it then to skin them for that)

Nowadays hide prices aren't a glimmer of what they were then , at least not down here.

Have an acquaintance that has (or had) a fur house...couple of years back he got some market started with China but it never panned out as well as he had hoped so he gave it up.

I would expect that if a fellow showed up at a rendezvous or some other re-enactor thing he could unload a string of nicely tanned hides (but that's just what I would figure)

[Smoky]

You can always de-hair, de-grease the possum hides and dry them. They sell at the above mentioned functions as "rawhide". I just use wood ashes for that and then put them on the garden where they were headed anyway (along with the hair). As long as it's turned under, it rots eventually.
You could cut the rawhide in strips, sort of an added-value thing.

[Uncle_Alvah]

One nice surprize in fur prices are muskrats.

Populations are way down from a few years back, countrywide. Louisiana used to produce hides in the millions, now down to the 100 thousands.......

Nice 'rats now are fetching $7 and change.

If someone has a good spot(lots of rats, no competition) they're like money in the bank. Cheapest trap going, easy to skin/flesh/strech, you can save traveling around because they live in colonys, whats not to like?????

[Smoky]

Yup!

[Smoky]

Well, my intention in mentioning other trapping websites was to spread information. I didn't mean everybody should go there and stay. :)

[Smoky]

Down at the bottom of this page
http://www.snareshop.com/cgi-bin/snareshop/catalog.html?cat=Fur%20Handling
there is a good list of stretcher board sixes, if you wanna make your own.
The rest of that site is good too.

[kyhillbilly]

well i dont trap in tenn but im close to you. i havent got to trap much because of health problems in my family and i havent got to run my normal trapline but i put a few sets out while i took a week of of work, trapped real close to where i live and i managed to catch 12 coons not great but it will have to do. have scouted out some new areas that i think will be productive in the future

[Smoky]

KY: Good deal, coons can be nice pelts Do you sell to a regular "fur buyer" like the ones that come around or you have a better plan? Just nosy, lol. ::)

[kyhillbilly]

smokey im going to sell them at the annual ky fur takers auction they have a decent amount of buyers come in and they bid on your pelts you can take it or leave it but i wouldnt mind finding a local buyer for maybe next year as hopefully my time will allow me to trap more than i have been ,

[tnriverman35]

Use to trap when I was a kid and love to learn more about tanning and trapping in TN. I live here in Paris, Tn., in the middle region.
Smokey, do you know of the rule's and law's of trapping here in Tn? Any info would be appreciated.
I have two young boy's I would like to teach ,(as well as me learning again!!...LOL), they are 5 and 7 now. But they are wanting to learn thing's such as hunting, and fishing now this year.
Well as I said," Thank's for all the info in advance."

[Smoky]

Riverman, go to TWRA website, it's all there. I mean the rules in TN. What kind of traps are you going to use?
http://www.state.tn.us/twra/