What?
Trapping Benefits Me?
Clean water
Safe environment
Affordable food
Wildlife managed
Most of the water used in America is managed in a system of reservoirs for storage. The cleanest and safest water depends upon integrating reservoir management and water treatment.
Of utmost concern is the control of beavers in water storage systems because beavers often host the giardia parasite and deposit giardia cysts in the water with their stools. Giardia cysts are so small they cannot effectively be filtered with the result that water consumers may be exposed to ingestion, with resulting infection and severe diarrhea for weeks or months.
Due to this threat to water contamination, reservoirs must be monitored continually to discover the presence of beavers. Trapping is the best solution for this problem as the beavers can be removed entirely. We all want and deserve clean water. It is essential to health.
It is a fact we share our environment with a variety of wild species. As more wild animals live in urban environments, more negative interactions occur with attacks against pets and the spread of diseases such as rabies, leptospirosis, tularemia, and bubonic plague.
Coyotes and foxes commonly live in urban environments today from coast to coast. They can become brazen, attacking and killing pets. Where trapping is severely restricted, coyotes have been known to aggressively attack children and adults.
Urban populations of skunks, opossums, raccoons, foxes and coyotes have learned to share foods and water left outside for pets, which increases the spread of diseases.
Dikes and dams are threatened with digging behaviors of muskrats, nutrias and beavers. Overly abundant raccoons often seek refuge in home attics, and even cause fires by chewing on electrical wires.
Livestock losses due to predators are significant. According to statistics compiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, predators cost American producers more than 71 million dollars annually.
Coyotes account for 65% of all cattle predatory losses and 61% of sheep. Excessive predation can bankrupt producers, and certainly adds costs to the public for meat products.
Other wild animals damage crops too. Raccoons can have a devastating impact upon sweet corn production, berry crops, melons and fruit trees. Beavers cause havoc in irrigation ditches, flooding crops, roads, hay fields and killing valuable timber. As emergency situations occur with wildlife problems on farms and ranches, trapping is often the quickest and best solution.
The key to living in harmony with wildlife is to understand the species and manage their populations for their own health and stability. Because many species are very prolific, appropriate harvests are often required.
One reason some wildlife species are invading cities and towns is because there are too many of their own kind in outlying areas. That is a result of inadequate harvesting. When adequate harvests occur in rural areas, there is no need or incentive for wild animals to relocate in cities and towns.
The fact is all wildlife interacts and is codependent with predator-prey relationships. Keeping healthy balances requires lethal controls at times. There are simply no viable alternatives for proper wildlife management other than wise and appropriate harvests by trappers using modem traps!
It is certain our environment is ever-changing. That should give us pause to consider whether changes in our wildlife management programs are needed or best.
Q. Why don't we just let nature take her course without interference?
A. We can, but that is predictably disastrous. Wildlife that is not managed booms and busts due to stresses from habitat destruction, malnutrition, rapid spread of diseases, and mass die-off s. That is natural but abusive treatment. Regulated harvests with traps are essential to healthy wildlife.
Q. Who pays to research and manage our abundant wildlife for the common good?
A. State and federal wildlife agencies constantly monitor wildlife populations with surveys, research projects, license sales and trapper and fur buyer reports, etc. This research and subsequent management is funded with millions of dollars annually paid by sportsmen and women willingly paying excise taxes and license fees to properly manage wildlife for the benefit and enjoyment of all.
The Montana Trappers Association is a non-profit organization of concerned and active conservationists who promote proper management of Montana's furbearers, who develop proper predator control, maintain a positive public image and help perpetuate quality habitat.
