Dint know possums could do that

[Wolfdog91]

Boy I love putting trail cams on my traps when testing lol, always learn something new. Anyway I've always made my cages out of 2"x4x 10ga horse pannel. Personally I prefer cutting and welding together panels then dealing with bending and hog ringing 14ga wire. Super easy to weld in my trigger rods and mechanisms as well.Not to mention the crap is about bullet proof. Heck I had one fall out the bed of the truck doing down the road goin 55 one day. Picked it up dusted it off and was good to go. Only deal is small critters like civiet skunks , squirrels, pack rats can get in and out and not be held ,but honestly I could care less about them because most of the time I'm after coon possum ,striped skunks grey fox ect so I've never really had problems with holding them. Can't tell you how many possums I've held in these cages over the last few years . But lately I've been build double door traps to be used in trails and the like . Just plop it in blend it a little critter tries to walk though hits a wire trigger or pan and boom caught. Deal is I've been having more triggered traps with no catch in these then anything elese which I though was weird because with the single doors it it was down 9/10 times there was a catch. Well stared running cameras on my latest one and caught a door drop and escape all in one ! Honestly was just thinking the traps where too short and they where hitting critters on the back and letting them back out or it was squirrels but nope, apparently an average sized possum ! And again I've caught and held ALOT OF THEM. Actually have close two three hours of footage of one trying to get out of another cage till it jaut gave up and went to sleep. I honestly had no clue they where like rats in the fact if they can get their head though they can get their whole body. Raised a few and never saw this but idk many this one is special ?:bigsmyl2:

https://youtu.be/5kGEkg_KgFM

[HWooldridge]

I’ve trapped a lot of varmints over the years but I generally either use a leg trap or make my live traps out of rabbit wire so I rarely miss one. However, I’m always amazed how much damage a big raccoon can cause - I’ve seen them tear stuff all to pieces. We lost three chickens in one night a couple months ago because a coon first tore the door off the coop then went through a layer of chicken wire. They have a lot of power in those small bodies.

[contender1]

I trap for a living,, (animal damage control,) and deal with a lot of critters.
Not a big surprise to me to see this.
Your trap is well built,, but the size of the openings is "too big" for holding some critters.
Possums can & will squeeze through some small openings. That would be my guess as to how it got out. It MIGHT have wiggled the door up,, but generally it's coons that can do that.

I have a few tricks that can make things very efficient. People pay for results,, not empty traps. :D

[gwpercle]

Enjoyed the heck out of your video ... watched it twice !

My thought is the small possum did squeeze through ... his body hasn't reached big possum proportions yet , wont be long though and he will be too fat to get through . He wanted to get back in and get the bait ...but couldn't find the way back .

I really enjoy your trapping videos ... More Please !
Gary

[farmerjim]

Great video.
Do your gates lock down when they drop?

[SSGOldfart]

Thanks Good luck catching that one lol:brokenima

[Isaac]

Animals are amazing beings!

I really enjoy your videos. Thanks for sharing.

[JoeJames]

That's a mighty fancy possum cage. We used to make rabbit gums made out of 1x6 boards.

[bedbugbilly]

Great video . . . really enjoyed it!

Years ago, my older brother's elderly next door neighbor had a woodchuck in his back yard in town that was causing issues - so the neighbor borrowed a live trap from the DNR. A few days later, he brought it to me to fix, somewhat embarrassed (he shouldn't have been). The live trap was a well made wood one - very solid and it utilized "hardware cloth" (welded wire with about 3/8" square openings. We always kept rolls of it in stock at the lumberyard and sold it by the lineal foot to put over gable vents, etc. The trap had a lock down door that dropped down once the critter got inside, went for the bait and tripped the trigger - a very solid trap. Anyway, he evidently caught the woodchuck sometime during the night because when he went out in the morning to check the trap, it was sprung, the door was down tight . . . BUT . . . the hardware cloth screen for the door had a very large perfect circle hole in the center of the panel. Evidently, once trapped, the woodchuck worked huis snout on the door panel until he broke some of they welds and then proceeded to keep at it until he had formed a hole large enough to get his body through. I fixed it for the fellow and he gave the trap back to the DNR and a neighbor finally got the woody with a rifle.

On the farm, I had four commercially made live traps that zI used to get woodchucks, possums, raccoons and an occasional skunk. One time I ever caught a large snapping turtle in one who happened to venture into it. All I know is that I tried different baits, etc. until I found something they liked . . . but they all were tough little critters to deal with . . . . and I was always amazed at how some could snatch the bait and yet not get caught . . . and the openings were much smaller than the 2 X 4 openings of your traps. At times, my efforts became pretty frustrating and to the point that it got "personal" between me and the critter . . . but it was always a good learning experience for me as to how creative and determined the critter could be and I always gained more respect for how they made their way in the world. I usually won most times but then I didn't have the heart to shoot then. I had access to an area that was miles away where I could relocate them and they wouldn't be around buildings, fields, etc. to cause an issue and the guy that owned the property where I relocated them to didn't have an issue with it.

Thanks for sharing . . . admire what you do!

[Wolfdog91]

Well thank for all the kind words ! Hard to believe so many folks enjoy watching these little trail cam vids ! Anyhow here's part two, think I'll bring one of my other cages out and catch the little fella soni can give him a treat for helping me with all the footage :D


https://youtu.be/H8vUTuC_9ts

[Wolfdog91]

I’ve trapped a lot of varmints over the years but I generally either use a leg trap or make my live traps out of rabbit wire so I rarely miss one. However, I’m always amazed how much damage a big raccoon can cause - I’ve seen them tear stuff all to pieces. We lost three chickens in one night a couple months ago because a coon first tore the door off the coop then went through a layer of chicken wire. They have a lot of power in those small bodies.

Yep main reason I use horse pannel they destroy most everything under HIGH QUALITY 14ga

[contender1]

Another fun video.

As I've mentioned,, I trap for a living, year round, and often have to remove smaller species, as well as juvies from homes.

Coons, as mentioned can be quite destructive. The cages that WolfDog has made are sturdy & less prone to damage. But the size of the openings,, as we all see allow some critters to escape. All of my cages do not have openings that big. Remember, I'm paid to remove all critters,,, including smaller ones or juvies.

I use a few different brands of commercially available cage traps. HOWEVER, due to the potential damages a coon can cause,, I modify my cages to prevent losses,, damages & insure I'm effective in my job.
And I use baits that will catch coons, skunks, & possums easily,, yet dogs & cats never bother to fool with. (Ok, over the last 20 years of doing this,, I have caught a total of (3) cats. (1) was feral, and the other two were used to cages/carriers & were actually casual about the whole affair.)
Remember,, I get paid for results,, and catching Fido or Fluffy is NOT a good way to insure happy customers & stay in business.

I'll not reveal all my secrets,, but if anybody here is having issues with problem critters,, I promise to answer PM's with tips & helpful suggestions to avoid frustrations, & damages.

WolfDog,, you & I need to converse a bit.