Rabbit snares

upnorth

upnorth

Joined
Nov 25, 2006
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I'm thinking about setting up some wire snares for bunnies this weekend or next. Anyone put some out yet? It's been years since I last set out, I wonder if the hares are on the upswing or decline. I guess I'll find out. :) You have to get them before the ravens see them and peck the eyes out, and generally scruff them up.
 
there are more rabbits and cats in the caribou interior of bc, then i have seen in years. rabbits everywhere. too bad i don't eat them, they would be some good bow hunting.
 
That's one thing I wish I could show my boys! Used to have a snare line when I was a kid in northern MN, checked it every day after I got off the bus from school. One or two showshoe hares a day until mom said "enough".

Don't have any hares here in Indiana...

J-
 
Rabbits up the yin yang around here....but it's illegal to snare em except in survival circumstances.
 
I don't do a lot of trapping... just for practice once in a while. These fork snares are great. I walk the trail, taking note of busy rabbit runs. Back at camp, I do all the work, then smoke them by the fire to mask the scent. Then I walk back down the trail and stick them in the snow across the run and tie off the end to a bush/tree. This limits the amount of time I'm in the trapping area.

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Yes... but I try to avoid foodsources for funnelling. Grazing slows them down and they are more likely to stumble upon a piece with your scent. I will drop bait (blackberry stalks/hawthorn twigs/fir buds) about 2ft from either side of the snare. They'll stop, graze... then jump through the "hole" to get the next meal. You want them to look past the snare, not at it. Also when I bait, I never hold the foodsource... I will hold a larger piece and chop off bits with my knife, then toss the piece I was holding away from the area. The whole time I do this, I try not to step around too much... if you can keep a single set of footprints down the trail... the animals (2 and 4 legged) won't think much of it. If I flag a snare... it is always about 10 yards away from the location of the snare itself.
 
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Good to know man. I am definitely going to apply this to my meager trap making skills.
 
Yes, please post more set pictures, Rick.

We have snowshoe hare here, but I can't snare them, so I settle for the .22.
 
I'm afraid I don't have any setup pics....

Here is a drawing I made to illustrate how to make and place them...

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Thanks Rick,

I was thinking that you could also set them upside down, with the single end going into the snow, reminiscent of how Coote sets up a couple of snares.

Doc
 
Yes you could.... Though, I find that this way guides them through the snare loop. I would also be afraid that the upright "V" wouldn't offer the same protection for the snare.... fox, deer, coyotes and other critters would be able to knock it around some... even falling plant matter would be captured in the "V". This way is much more selective, IMO.

Rick
 
Rick,
What gauge wire do you use? Besides the smoke from the fire do you "prep" the wire that you use for trapping - say like boiling it or leaving it outdoors for a length of time.

PS This goes under the title of another great tip from Rick! Thanks again for posting.
 
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