Above is beaver number 400 I took yesterday in our cage traps, this one taken in a 12x12x36 swim through, wire trigger cage trap under the ice.  The video is on face book and YouTube.  This was a pair of beaver at a lake location caught in the “front door.”

For those who might consider an unpowered type beaver trap, though they can work, they are not  without drawbacks.  An unpowered trap can more easily get jammed with sticks etc. and allow an escape.  Do to the nature of these traps with doors that close in the opposite direction, that type of traps must be made longer, much longer, usually 48 inch long compared to the above trap at only 36 inches long.  If you have ever carried a 48 inch trap, you will recognize the difference between them and a 36.  Recently we have made traps as short as 32 and 33 inches that show a lot of promise.   These traps are but two thirds as long as the 48, much easier to carry and easier to place.