My Office Today
- Thread starter Rally
- Start date
Rick H
Well-Known Member
Warning, Thread Drift:
Many moons ago my city was trying to save a few dollars by not calling in animal wardens for after hours animal complaints....instead they would send police officers with no nets, no tranquilizer guns, and no means of transporting animals....but it made perfect sense to the city fathers.
One midnight shift I was dispatched to a kindly old lady's house where she and her daughter were being terrified by a squirrel that had come down the chimney woke up and was wreaking havoc on her basement. I walked down the stairs and sure enough this terrified fox squirrel was running frantic laps around and around her basement....as I got there he made a trip across the full canning jars breaking a half dozen of them as they were knocked to the floor.....the woman supplied me with a broom and and cardboard box....I got very lucky and caught the miscreant mid air and thought I had done him in. The woman thanked me, and feeling pretty smug about my skills with a broom against flying fox squirrels, I put the thing in the cardboard box...he was pretty scruffy looking covered in soot and assorted canned vegetable and fruit juices gained during his reign of terror. I bid my leave and headed to the station with the supposed dead animal on the front seat next to me.....wondering exactly what I should best do with it to show my displeasure at being sent on that sort of run. About a 1/2 mile from the station the box started shaking, evidently I had just stunned the filthy critter and he was awakening. A plan was formed....
When I got to the station the LT. was out of his office, out eating breakfast, or drumming up more animal control business for us...hmmmmmmm. I set the box upside down with the top merely folded holding it closed by the weight of the box and its occupant....gently and then closed the door behind me.
I didn't get very far from the station when I got a frantic call to return. Seems the boss returned, picked up the box, releasing the scared squirrel who immediately crawled up and over the Lt's shirt...(did I say our Lt's wear white uniform shirts) before starting to make laps around the Boss's office. The whole desk crew was laughing, the Lt's face was as red as his hair....and I had to catch the damn thing a second time.
I was on the Boss's sh** list for a while, but he didn't keep a grudge. More importantly he never sent me on an animal run like that ever again.
Its things like this that make one a legend around the shop....even at my retirement some 20 years later...some wit drew a cartoon depicting the battle with the "dead" squirrel.
Wasn't as much fun as the bats and tennis rackets.....but that is another story entirely.
Many moons ago my city was trying to save a few dollars by not calling in animal wardens for after hours animal complaints....instead they would send police officers with no nets, no tranquilizer guns, and no means of transporting animals....but it made perfect sense to the city fathers.
One midnight shift I was dispatched to a kindly old lady's house where she and her daughter were being terrified by a squirrel that had come down the chimney woke up and was wreaking havoc on her basement. I walked down the stairs and sure enough this terrified fox squirrel was running frantic laps around and around her basement....as I got there he made a trip across the full canning jars breaking a half dozen of them as they were knocked to the floor.....the woman supplied me with a broom and and cardboard box....I got very lucky and caught the miscreant mid air and thought I had done him in. The woman thanked me, and feeling pretty smug about my skills with a broom against flying fox squirrels, I put the thing in the cardboard box...he was pretty scruffy looking covered in soot and assorted canned vegetable and fruit juices gained during his reign of terror. I bid my leave and headed to the station with the supposed dead animal on the front seat next to me.....wondering exactly what I should best do with it to show my displeasure at being sent on that sort of run. About a 1/2 mile from the station the box started shaking, evidently I had just stunned the filthy critter and he was awakening. A plan was formed....
When I got to the station the LT. was out of his office, out eating breakfast, or drumming up more animal control business for us...hmmmmmmm. I set the box upside down with the top merely folded holding it closed by the weight of the box and its occupant....gently and then closed the door behind me.
I didn't get very far from the station when I got a frantic call to return. Seems the boss returned, picked up the box, releasing the scared squirrel who immediately crawled up and over the Lt's shirt...(did I say our Lt's wear white uniform shirts) before starting to make laps around the Boss's office. The whole desk crew was laughing, the Lt's face was as red as his hair....and I had to catch the damn thing a second time.
I was on the Boss's sh** list for a while, but he didn't keep a grudge. More importantly he never sent me on an animal run like that ever again.
Its things like this that make one a legend around the shop....even at my retirement some 20 years later...some wit drew a cartoon depicting the battle with the "dead" squirrel.
Wasn't as much fun as the bats and tennis rackets.....but that is another story entirely.
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Rally
NC Minnesota
RBHarter,
Never had a live swan in my kitchen, and I'm betting it didn't involve the breakage of your wife's family china, or you wouldn't be posting here!! LOL
But, I can give a first hand account of what an impression a "dead" pheasant running around in a basement, makes on the mind of a 9 year old boy. Not sure if it has the most to do with the noise the pheasant was making jumping around in the small area between a wall and a house furnace, the new words I learned from my Dad, who was on the floor trying to get it, or the humor in watching my step mother swat at it with a broom, hitting my Dad about every third swing. LOL
Rick,
I've got one like that involves a section chief and a baby rattler(decapitated). Yep, it was worth it!
Never had a live swan in my kitchen, and I'm betting it didn't involve the breakage of your wife's family china, or you wouldn't be posting here!! LOL
But, I can give a first hand account of what an impression a "dead" pheasant running around in a basement, makes on the mind of a 9 year old boy. Not sure if it has the most to do with the noise the pheasant was making jumping around in the small area between a wall and a house furnace, the new words I learned from my Dad, who was on the floor trying to get it, or the humor in watching my step mother swat at it with a broom, hitting my Dad about every third swing. LOL
Rick,
I've got one like that involves a section chief and a baby rattler(decapitated). Yep, it was worth it!
Kevin Stenberg
Well-Known Member
I put a dead Woodie in the kitchen freezer to save for the Taxidermist. Imagine her surprise when she opened the freezer and the duck looked at her. The wife wasn't too happy with the duck do-do all over her frozen food.
Rally
NC Minnesota
Yep Kevin, those women have no sense of humor when it comes to their freezers. They think everything wrapped in freezer paper is suppose to be edible, and that doesn't include beaver castors! LOL
Ran the line early today to beat the heat, home by noon. One beaver at the creek that runs through the farm. Even the beaver don't like this heat.
Ran the line early today to beat the heat, home by noon. One beaver at the creek that runs through the farm. Even the beaver don't like this heat.
Rally
NC Minnesota
Ran the traps again today. Two beaver, opposite ends of the size spectrum. Little pup at the first stop ( didn't take pic), and finally got the alpha female at the creek running through the farm. Take a close look at her right front foot, or lack there of. This is not uncommon, usually on private land, where the landowner has attempted to trap to solve their own water problems. Usually caused by too small a trap used, or anchored in too shallow of water, with no drowning system. Beaver are a strong animal and their front feet are easily twisted off in a poorly made set. Need the correct style, size, and drowning system to get them out in deep water fast as possible. Usually see this scenario play out when the water gets so high it affects county or state highways/ roadways, and the state/ county agrees to pay for the removal. The landowners seldom admit when asked if they had attempted to remove them, because they don't know for sure if it is legal or not, which it is on their own land.
Those are beaver castors laying on her chest, which I remove and use as an ingredient in making my beaver lure. They are also used as a flavor enhancer in vanilla ice cream, and used in many top end perfumes and musks'.
Those are beaver castors laying on her chest, which I remove and use as an ingredient in making my beaver lure. They are also used as a flavor enhancer in vanilla ice cream, and used in many top end perfumes and musks'.
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Ian
Notorious member
I know you've been over this before with us, but I was never clear on exactly how your drowning sticks work, or what instinct/reaction of the beaver the system exploits. Been wondering again ever since you noted that the swan had enough of a snorkle system to survive the drowning mechanism in 3' of water. Please enlighten?
I was 8-10 found a green snake in the yard, picked up and put in pocked - couldn't find it. Mom used G.D.'s colored maid (took care of the house when G.M. had TB - mom hired her as charity) . Well guess who found it when changing bed sheets. ~60 yrs old Kora came screaming down the stairs yelling 'get a knife, there's a snake in the house'. Then the time she found a 1911 looking bb pistol under the matress? Or Mom would have to get up at dawn and throw a cover over bro's roster cage in the back yard.
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Rally
NC Minnesota
Here you go Ian,
The rods are ten feet long, made of 1/2 fiberglass with a special exterior finish that is real hard, one end is ground to a point. Here is what the tops look like, with attached hardware.
With a trap attached.
With a snare attached.
Pointed end (Deep water end) with drowning lock stop.
Sorry this took so long Ian, but I had it written once and almost finished and hit the ctrl button somehow?????
Any way. LOL
The rods come white in color, sharpened on one end to a point, square cut on the other end. I make all the hardware and paint them black.
The top end, has a double loop for the stake, next piece down is the drowning lock. Loops on the top is where the stake goes to keep it anchored at the trap set location. I use T-bar stakes (30") because I have a better handhold and can twist them when pulling to break suction in mud. Each trap/snare has a piece of flat stock and cable attached to the snare/trap to make the connection from trap/snare to the drowning rod, and can be attached or detached easily and also gives the trap/snare another swivel point. Drowning rod has a stop screw in the rod to stop the drowning lock about a foot from the bottom.
In use, I find a location I want to set(dam break set, castor mound set, spot beaver is going to shore etc), I push the pointed end of the rod into the bottom in a minimum of three feet of water when set. The angle of the rod varies with angle of bottom and water depth at site. I want the bottom end to be pushed into mud at least a foot, so the beaver can't pull it out when it gets there. I push/ adjust the top end until it is about a foot from where I want to place my trap/snare, and under water when set and anchored. When the trap/snare is set, I put a T-bar stake through one loop at the top of the drowning rod and push it into the bottom until it just clears the bottom.
When the beaver realizes it is caught, it instinctively dives for deep water. The drowning lock is L-shaped and only allows the beaver to go down the rod to deeper water. If the beaver tries to go back to the bank or at a right angle to the rod, the drowning lock cams on the rod and won't allow the beaver to any direction but down, into deeper water, away from predators and into cooler water. The reason I want a minimum of three foot of water at the deep end is that a beaver caught by either front or rear foot can't get back to the surface to breath, unlike a long neck swan with a seven foot wing span. LOL Also works well for Otter, Mink, Nutria, and Muskrats.
Top picture is an early prototype, second pic is the updated version.
The rods are ten feet long, made of 1/2 fiberglass with a special exterior finish that is real hard, one end is ground to a point. Here is what the tops look like, with attached hardware.
With a trap attached.
With a snare attached.
Pointed end (Deep water end) with drowning lock stop.
Sorry this took so long Ian, but I had it written once and almost finished and hit the ctrl button somehow?????
Any way. LOL
The rods come white in color, sharpened on one end to a point, square cut on the other end. I make all the hardware and paint them black.
The top end, has a double loop for the stake, next piece down is the drowning lock. Loops on the top is where the stake goes to keep it anchored at the trap set location. I use T-bar stakes (30") because I have a better handhold and can twist them when pulling to break suction in mud. Each trap/snare has a piece of flat stock and cable attached to the snare/trap to make the connection from trap/snare to the drowning rod, and can be attached or detached easily and also gives the trap/snare another swivel point. Drowning rod has a stop screw in the rod to stop the drowning lock about a foot from the bottom.
In use, I find a location I want to set(dam break set, castor mound set, spot beaver is going to shore etc), I push the pointed end of the rod into the bottom in a minimum of three feet of water when set. The angle of the rod varies with angle of bottom and water depth at site. I want the bottom end to be pushed into mud at least a foot, so the beaver can't pull it out when it gets there. I push/ adjust the top end until it is about a foot from where I want to place my trap/snare, and under water when set and anchored. When the trap/snare is set, I put a T-bar stake through one loop at the top of the drowning rod and push it into the bottom until it just clears the bottom.
When the beaver realizes it is caught, it instinctively dives for deep water. The drowning lock is L-shaped and only allows the beaver to go down the rod to deeper water. If the beaver tries to go back to the bank or at a right angle to the rod, the drowning lock cams on the rod and won't allow the beaver to any direction but down, into deeper water, away from predators and into cooler water. The reason I want a minimum of three foot of water at the deep end is that a beaver caught by either front or rear foot can't get back to the surface to breath, unlike a long neck swan with a seven foot wing span. LOL Also works well for Otter, Mink, Nutria, and Muskrats.
Top picture is an early prototype, second pic is the updated version.
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Rally
NC Minnesota
Yep, one way trip. Trick is to make sure there is enough water to drown them. Not a problem here, but can be with a gently sloping pond.
Sorry about that, but typed it once and hit the ctrl button when I was just about done. Posting pictures from my phone and typing on puter.
Sorry about that, but typed it once and hit the ctrl button when I was just about done. Posting pictures from my phone and typing on puter.
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CWLONGSHOT
Well-Known Member
Very jealous Rally... Keep fightin the good fight!!
CW
CW
trapper9260
Active Member
Rally I had miss this post of yours . Nice to see you still at it . I still got my footholds to dye and wax . got my bodygrips done and have enough snares for the up coming season. As for what was posted about putting things in the freezer , I had put 10gals of catfish in the bath tube from out fishing at night and put some water for the fish to clean in the morning , When I got up I had hear one of my sisters yell ,found out she was going to take a bath and seen the fish. It was funny . My dad had said he did not seen that many for a long time since he was a kid. I done it 2 times that year. Still funny to think of it .
Rally
NC Minnesota
Hey Paul. Wondered where you'd been. Just finished waxing a bunch of my summer traps. The 14 jump in the picture above has just been waxed. I have also been trying to trap coyotes at a friends farm. They took a liking to his geese so he lowered his electric fence and shocked them some. I set traps two days later and haven't caught a thing since! Seems the fence made them look for another food source. He gave me a quart of honey and some beeswax so far. His wife thinks the geese are her children. A sisters sole purpose for being on earth is to tease them.
Ran the traps today, no beaver,no repairs. I'm going to pull the dams and traps day after tomorrow. Wife road along today and made us a picnic lunch. Good day.
Ran the traps today, no beaver,no repairs. I'm going to pull the dams and traps day after tomorrow. Wife road along today and made us a picnic lunch. Good day.
trapper9260
Active Member
I been working on for my barn is down and been pick at take it apart for some of the wood to save on it and doing things around the house. It is hard to trap the coyotes at this time of the year for there young and for how they are with the heat . Yes it sound like the fence made them think it over . until they think they are hungry enough might try again but they learn fast. I will wait till it cools down some before I dye and wax my footholds. Good to hear that your wife went with you. make a day of it . nice to hear from you .
Rally
NC Minnesota
Pulled the traps today and tore out three dams. We got 2.5 inches of rain last night (finally) so things were kinda soft. Was worried about making tracks in the hayfield, so gave the landowner a call. He said go ahead and I stayed on the ridge to get there, no problems. Got to the dam and there was more downstream than there had been due to the rain. Below the dam is a meandering meadow, surrounded by hayfields, then goes under county road to the south, and back through the same landowners pasture/ land. I was worried about dumping this much water into the surrounding hayfields at once., so called the landowner again. He said let it rip because he just cut the hay. Still uneasy, because the landowner hasn’t really looked at how much water is behind the dam, so called the county highways foreman, whom I work for, and advised him what I was dealing with. Told him I was sure it would flood the field if I took the whole dam out now. Told him I wanted to just knock the top 18” or so off and come back in a couple days to take the rest out, he said it was my call. So, we took off the top 18” of the dam and called it a day. I’m always leery of marsh/ meadow type dams, because they are made of chunks of floating bog and Willow switches, with some larger sticks but rarely any clay. What that translates to is they often wash out once I get the brush/sticks cleaned out on the lower side. On the upstream side is loose sediment/ loon poop to slow the water coming over the top, but if I dig them too deep , they stand a good chance of washing out, all at once, sending a wave of water to the next obstruction, which most often is a roadbed. Just wise to lower the water slowly.
I had some help today, my youngest son Brandon, whom is a Boilermaker by trade, but laid off because of COVID restrictions until n ext
Monday. Checking in with one of his lady friends. Oh to be 26 again!
Looking upstream from dam.
looking downstream from dam.
Back there in a couple days to take out the rest of the dam.
I had some help today, my youngest son Brandon, whom is a Boilermaker by trade, but laid off because of COVID restrictions until n ext
Monday. Checking in with one of his lady friends. Oh to be 26 again!
Looking upstream from dam.
looking downstream from dam.
Back there in a couple days to take out the rest of the dam.
trapper9260
Active Member
Your work is cut out good for you this time, for how it sounds. Good you had your son help