Imbra Traps and Mink?

[john b 38]

my breath is bated............

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

:realmad: :realmad: :realmad: :realmad: :realmad: b*****ds!!!!! Trap's been trashed!!!

 

 

I know Exactly what's happened: Yesterday, Pat - who owns the area - had the Bailers in. Outside contractors who own and bring the machinery. Yet these still tend to be local guys, countrymen, obviously. And they were working in the field next to the one I'd set beside. They were there when I passed by, checking this set, yesterday.

 

" Who's that guy over by the stream, Pat? Know him? ".

 

'Oh yes. That's my neighbour. Ditch Sh*tter. He's got a trap down on that girder bridge. Helping get rid of the mink here abouts'.

 

:realmad: And that's all she f***ing wrote! WHY????? What is Wrong with these idiots?! If they'd just wanted to steal the trap, for a trophy, curiosity or even to use it on their own land, I could understand that. But they've not. They'd wrenched the bloody Coni' out of the tunnel. Pulled the ring off the clip and then tossed the tunnel into the stream! (Thank F*** they did! That's the most expensive and valued bit of it ~ those production job Cubbies don't come cheap!) No sign of the Coni. Of course I fished about, with a stick, in the stream. It's so choked even a wall brick couldn't sink out of sight in it. Coni's been stolen.

 

You wait till I see Pat! He's begging me to do a BIG job for him. I don't bloody think so! NOT if he can't keep 'his' mens hands off my bloody traps!

 

I'm absolutley bloody furious!!! :realmad:

[john b 38]

bugger.

 

Are you sure it was them though ? As you said I'd have thought any one with an country background would have just had the lot away - for himself or his mates.

 

 

Could there be someone mink watching ? or whatever it would be called. We had a chap round by us, university professor, who was studying mink and we suspected that he'd released some near the pens so that they'd have a good food supply to get established.

 

Need to hide your traps a bit better mate - particularly for a while as they'll be looking for more. Try building a few 'dummy' ones and see what happens.

 

JB

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

No. There's no one gets down here, mate. I know because I can see a lot of the land from here and, obviously, I can track people as well as animals. I'd soon know if anyone was stalking me or my sets.

 

I'll have a word with Pat tonight. He's usually around. Only, as I say, he's onto me to carry out a big operation for him. If I go for it, I'd have a whole lot of expensive steel down. And all concentrated in one place. My offer was that he pays for the traps and I'll put them to use for him. Be a damned awkward situation if I went out to find That lot lifted!

 

Never mind. I have more Coni's knocking about the place here. Looking on the bright side; The idiots left me that valuable Cubby and it'll prove a Very salutory lesson for Pat the Naieve! In future he'll be as tight lipped about where I do what I do as I tend to be.

 

Worst bit of all, you know; A Coni, to the inexperianced, can be a bugger to 'undo'. Almost makes me wonder if they took the trap because they simply couldn't pull the mink out of it!

 

In fact, now I think of it, there's one reason even a local countryman would like to make off with a nice, dead mink: The local Gun Club. They have to produce so many head of dead vermin each year. Obviously, being the kiddie to fetch them the requisette heads and tails would bring one brownie points and kudos .....

 

If I find out it was That scenario? I'll find the b*stard and give him a bloody good talking to! Then I'll buy him a drink, just for his sheer cheek!

[pegandgun 52]

Those pipes are perfect places to set well made mink snares,you couldnt fail.Couldnt be arsed carying all those big useless traps around when a few snares would do a better job and theres no weight to cary.Plus if you loose one the loss is minimul

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

My thoughts too, Phil. But, as we speak, rusty old iron is all I have on site

 

Of course, if I had a few snares and some instructions, I'd crack on and duplicate those and hit this land like a ton of bricks. But that would be down to the will of The Grand Master himself!

 

And what would a man like Mr Waters be doing, talking to a lowly soul like me? :whistle:

 

 

Keep watching!

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

Spoke to Pat tonight, mate. Seems like the only way whoever could have located that damn trap was if there was a f***ing mink in it!

 

He was there, with the lads, doing the baleing and swears none of them went down that end. Nor did he mention the set, because he never knew it was there himself. Starting to sound a lot like some bugger out for a spot of shooting happened on the arse end of my catch, sticking out from the vegetation, and took it to hand in to the gun club! :realmad:

 

Work it out, Millet; You or I might know how to release a catch from a 'Magnum. But some twat who finds a nice mink stuck fast in one of those things? Ripped the trap off the Cubbie. Ditched the 'worthless' cage, see? Shoved mink and trap into his bag to take home and get to work on the trap with a bloody hack saw!

 

Pat reckons they were working till dusk. Probably spooked the mink and it bolted straight into the cubbie. Happened before. Gutted? Moi? You bet your bottom dollar I am!!! :realmad:

 

Anyway, I've taken advice. I'll soon be doing it another way and hope to get amongst the buggers. But don't expect me to try to pull off a P&G! I was Guesting here when he did that, with that buck mink! I have Never been so totally impressed! Any dick can try to catch a target for a twelve month, then pop up waving the photo's and claim the kudos. What P&G did? Takes ..... well ... simply the mark of a man who Knows he knows what he knows! Only the Very Best can be That casual. I'd been a No 1 fan since reading his first posts. But That simply wiped me out! Never before seen such a thing, in Any forum. I had to go and lay down!

 

For my own, humble part here; All I'm doing is trying to share my own efforts with who ever may be interested. I've never caught a mink before in my life. Due, in large part, because I simply never had them available before. Now the sods are everywhere and I'm having a go. I'm showing you every thing I try, just so maybe others can then find, with me, what works and what doesn't. I'm experimenting and publicising the results here ~ Even if the results are day after day of empty bloody traps!

 

Still, I'm having the time of my life trying. And I genuinely do peer at each trap, every day, with the rising hope that ..... No? Oh well. Maybe that one over there ....? Other things I can trap till the cows come home. That's just 'work' and borders on the 'boring'. " Been there. Done that " situation. Nothing new. It's the Learning and fine tuning that excites me. Don't you find ....?

[Guest moomin300uk]

hope you get it...... enjoyable read the highs and lows of trapping great stuff never done it before but i fancy a go now... all the best happy hunting

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

  Ditch_Shitter said:

 

 

 

:realmad: That has just become This!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

And That ~ aside from a couple more tufts of it ~ is all I found left of my bloody set!!!!! :realmad:

 

 

 

Ok. I'm obviously simply far too enraged to speak sense further on this issue right now. My mind's boiling with schoolboyish thoughts of dreadful vengeance, wreaked with the intelligance and treachery of an old man! Naturally, as my blood cools, the intelligance will kick in and I'll realise how stupid such fantasys are ..... Unless I bide my time and adopt extreme treachery Some b*stard could well end up in Sligo General, if I do. Rest assured!

 

Debrief then: Bloody Hare, obviously - sadly. Ours are smaller than the huge, British brutes. So it wouldn't have suffered in that Juby. It would have hit that pan and lights out PDQ.

 

Next consideration is though; Why did it hit the pan in the first place??? Hares don't make a habit of going 'down holes', unless they're being pursued. Maybe it had a mink up it's arse and was desperate? Maybe some jack the lad around here has a dog ....? That's a consideration that would tie in nicely with the shadowy figure who went along that stream side, the other day, and yet fired no shots to alert Pat - or I - to his presence.

 

Either way, it's hit that trap between about 20:00 last night and 15:00 today. And something or someone has helped themselves to it - trap 'n all. Are we beginning to see a Patern emerge here???

 

Badger? 'Obviously'. Only I checked. My old eyes can't seem to make out any badger prints in that soft patch of mud it all went off on. Yet I have no difficulty discerning them else where round abouts. Like, yes, we have badgers. Loads of them. But I can generally tell where they go and what they get up to.

 

'Johny Sneekums', as the North American Trappers know this guy? Well; You tell me.

 

I just can't get the feeling off the back of my neck that Some b*stard's sitting up there, on the high ground, watching me go my rounds. Laughing!

 

Ok. I'm off into town. I'll no doubt have chilled out and thought this through by the time I get back. And I'll most probably have decided, by then, that I'm lifting my traps. However, as an aside thought; I can afford to lose the bloody lot, if the situation warrents it. I suspect I'll slow down yet. I have some slightly 'off' hunks of meat in the freezer. I might as well sling one down where that trap was. Johnny won't want it. Billy would. Then we'll see.

 

I'll say no more for now

[woodga 170]

:11: you want to write a book snare the mink or body grip them its not rocket science if peg can do it any one can GOOD HUNTING ALL WOODGA :ph34r:

[Phil Lloyd 10,738]

  woodga said:

:11: you want to write a book snare the mink or body grip them its not rocket science if peg can do it any one can GOOD HUNTING ALL WOODGA :ph34r:

 

:11: :11: @ Woodga,...

 

However,..someone is having some fun,.and maybe living the dream

And why not,.eh...

Actually,.in common with most of the weasel family,..Mink are a doddle to catch,..they exhibit no trap shyness and more importantly,.they are fecking nosey We had several thousand to mop up 'darn sarf' after the antis liberated the feckers...it was emotional....

Any way,.keep at it Ditchshitter,..and remember,.a trap and snare has endless patience....

 

Kind regards,.CHALKWARREN....

Edited July 25, 2006 by CHALKWARREN

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

  Beelzebub said:

ditch shitter why have you put a pic of some badger hair near a strange shaped hole in the ground...?... a short answer will do.. .

M

 

 

Can't fault you on that one - looking at the photo I started doubting myself! I went back for another look. Hare. PM me the address of a pub you can visit and I'll send the stuff there in a plain envelope. Take my word for it: Hare

 

 

Anyway, just got home. Chilled as a can of the Big G. First trap was Johnny. This one? Brother Bill. I'll be slinging some meat down there presently. It'll likely be gone in the morning.

 

 

Phil and Woodga? You keep showing is the massive hauls, from experts like yourselves. Me? I'll keep trying to give encouragement to guys like myself: By proving - how ever long windedly - that it Can and Does go to rat sh*t, sometimes. And, when I catch a mink I can show publicly (*Cough!*, Phil) it'll show the others that perseverance and sheer bloody mindedness Can overcome inexperiance

 

Though, f*** knows; Rate I'm going, I'm fast becoming a Very Experienced Failure at picking up the chinned guys!

 

Early days at these buggers yet. You'll see! :whistle:

[Guest wickidweasel]

Only had the opportunity to have a bash at mink once myself caught two younguns in a cage trap didn't have it in me to kill em so i thought i would keep them, Lesson i learnt they make shite pets twice as hard to catch a second time and cost me a packet to cheer up the kids after their ducks went missing :whistle:

ended up sending them Here.

Keep up the posts Ditch Shitter its been an interesting and enjoyable read

[Phil Lloyd 10,738]

Edited July 26, 2006 by CHALKWARREN

[Guest wickidweasel]

  CHALKWARREN said:

Er,.your mixing me up with other folk Ditchshitter...

I never show 'massive hauls' ...in fact,..I rarely show feck all....

its always deleted before i get there