Folks,

I know this has been a topic before, but with the colder weather setting up shop, thought I'd bring it to the top. Those up north of course has the true winter, while those of us in the south can have less harsh conditions that keep our wildlife moving more.

I'm sure many will mention hunting and fur trapping. Along the lines of your nwco business, what do you do during the winter months that changes from
the warmer seasons and what do you do that thinks ahead toward spring or allows you to keep making income during the winter.

In my case winter months allow me some time to focus on building some relationships with new entities, doing some public forums like HOA meetings and others to expand our customer base and focusing on species that stay active or even increase in visibility during the winter months.

Equipment maintenance and upgrade is on my list for this year, along with taking inventory and deciding what should go that is just not being used
in my business model. Only wish I lived closer to the midwest so I could have a chance of selling off the large part of my live trap inventory.

Will be doing some blog writing and working on some other projects to get more internet exposure in my area and seeing what has worked and what hasn't in regard to advertising.

Heading out today to talk to some school kids about bats and white-nose syndrome as well, then this weekend working a booth at the festival of cranes at the national wildlife refuge just south of me.

What do you folks do?

Justin

1 Stay busy with mice and squirrels

2 Hunt, trap and vacation

3 Buy a forclosed home in the fall and fix it up during the winter and rent it in the spring

I like that list Tom!

I lived through #3 while in Oregon we bought and "flipped" a house, but it nearly landed on us and we narrowly escaped what could have been an ugly
deal! I liked renovating though, living in it wasn't fun, but buying one and working on it, I'd do for a living, find it a great learning experience and a growing experience, also can make for positive cash flow either through sale or rental.

Justin

This one for this winter will be my 3rd. It is working out great!

I stay busy during the winter. Travel to Alabama to do contract predator work. Then I fur trap like crazy. taking my boy to So. Illinois to tap after Christmas. then Back up there to trap with my Minny-soda buddys for a week. Flying squirrels pick up in January. I don't get a break till April. Then another in July it dies in July for me.

I fur trap all winter east and west. My guys work the little work we get in the winter months. We go like bandits for 7 months with work all over the place. Then I welcome the slack time to do what I do.

If I were young, in NM, pondering what to do off season.......I would offer security services to those who might think they need such a service. Yur region has the demand. It is up to you to find the best way to ID the market. Scared/angry people with money will spend said money. I would get information before getting credentials and arms. Are you entrepenurial?

Phil,

Are you talking private security?

Good question, Justin. When it was just me, I really looked forward to some less than 70 hour weeks in the months of December and January. We saved a few bucks during the really good months so that we could relax a little.

Now, we spend our time trying to come up with work for our help, who it seems, have no idea of what saving is. We have exactly what bluebill has; squirrels and pest control. I have been busting my butt lately to keep them in bait boxes so that December won't be so bad. We will lay them off in shifts, if necessary. ( I've got to be honest; if I had made the kind of money that they do, when I was their age, I would have loved the whole winter off )

What off season?

What off season?

No off season in sunny San Diego. My neighbors work a 9-5 and still never see my truck.

Off season ain't that the summer time . Hope we get a nice winter . Major bummer we couldn't get them rats last year from no ice .

Around here there is scant little ADC work to start with. Too many folks deal with critter problems themselves and the rest don't want to pay for someone else to do it.

I do plumbing repair and light construction. ADC is just a side business.

Also, I have a paid beaver line to run for the next 5 months and spare time will be consumed with hunting and my own fur trapping.

I think a good question to tie in to this one would be, when is the slow season for your area? For ADC work, of course.

I'm guessing that for most of the country that has a defined winter, from about mid november to february the call volume will drop. You lose snakes and bees, and pick up mice and a few squirrels. If you have any home maintenance skills at all, and if you prove that you are not a drug addict and show up and do the work you say you are going to do, you should have plenty of winter projects.

i go sit in florida until the weather warms up some...

Yes, for wealthy people with illegal immigration/ drug smuggler fears.

Ron J. spends his off season making duplicate posts here.

July and April are dead for me. It's kinda strange Mike McMillam in Knoxville can be covered with work but I will be slow. Then he will slow down and in the mountains I'm like a cat in a litter box. Like right now. I'm super busy and he slowed down.

"I'm like a cat in a litter box"

This is not something I have ever heard before, and created some disturbing images in what is left of my mind. Do you drop a deuce in the sandbox then cover it up?

It usually goes, "busier that a cat covering up fecal matter". Don't ask us to quantify shaking. It involves force feeding a dog peach seeds and waiting. Hope this helps in terms of appalachian translation.

Ice fish...

I like to keep trapping in the off season and that means fur trapping but I still use my cages and other WCO tools.

Even though there are obvious differences, I think any trapping I do will help make me a better WCO. Especially when it comes to coyote and beaver.

Once January and February set in I work on my brochures. Sitting at the computer is much more pleasant than braving zero degree temps and multiple feet of snow.

What is this "ice" thing you speak of?

That would be the stare your wife gives you when you ask her to identify a tick!

Oh that stare. We have mutual stares. We also have mutual ..... never mind.

Well Justin, up until this year I would winterize or do trashouts on foreclosed properties - both commercial and residential. However, like anything else the low-ballers have taken that over and I have refused to compete with them on an already low price. I normally charged $125 and up for winterizations within a 30 mile radius and now others are doing it for $65 INCLUDING materials! (This doesn't even take into account the number of forwarding companies that screw you out of your money) I also did commercial site inspections but most of the vendors have been cutting costs and look for ways to do chargebacks and leave you with nothing for your work. I had been with some of these clients for over 5 years and it just proves there is no loyalty. It's all about the lowest price not the quality of work. I just dumped my last client about 10 days ago that owed me a small bill of $51.00 since June.

Hunt, hunt, and more hunting. All waterfowl hunting, as my friend says it's always in season some where!
I also fish a good bit too. In the evenings I like to play chess and spend time with family!

Sunday.....Fox NFL Sunday, Four Football Games, Revenge, The Mentalist, and Dexter.

Monday.....Bones, Monday Night Football, Castle, and Hawaii Five-O.

Tuesday....NCIS, NCIS Los Angeles, Rizzoli and Isles, and Vegas.

Wednesday..CSI; Los Vegas, Criminal Minds, Law & Order Special Victims,

Thursdays..Person Of Interest, Elementary.

Friday.....CSI New York, Blue Bloods* (Best Show On TV)

P.S. Except for Sunday, if you record all the shows and fast forward thru commercials, you can watch all these shows in around two and a half hours a night. ( And you get one night off ) I haven't watched a show in real time for a least 15 years.

Geez, Wink, you sure do like the crime shows..are ya learnin' anything?
The original Five-O is one of my all-time faves; Jack Lord's Steve McGarret was as stiff as a 2x4, but the show had a certain charm.
It's a darn shame Red Green is no longer on; that show had more laffs per dollar spent in production costs than anything!

You are absolutely right Dave. What killed them was the new format. The original filming was the best. Some of the stuff they came up with was incredible. I am never without my ducktape.

New format -y'mean on The Red Green Show? I don't know...all I remember is that there was a season in which Harold was absent. Haven't been any new episodes for 6-7 years now, eh?