Our season for most critters here is Nov 4, but most of the fur isn't prime until the third week of Nov. I'm curious, who delays their start until the fur is fully prime, and does it make much of a difference in the price you get?

ttt, Still curious.

I do, and yes it makes difference. Especially on our low quality fur.

I wait, season here has been open a week already but pelts will not be ready until later, about November 15 for the larger coons and December 15 for canines. Selling to a local buyer you may not see much of a difference but if you are skinning and sell at a NAFA or other auction were you will get graded it will make a definite difference. Of course you are also gambling on the markets, weather, harvest etc. having an impact. Overall though, selling a quality fur at auction is the way to go. Smaller coon will be denned up if you wait but the big boys will still be moving. Nothing beats going to a local auction and having the lot of fur that gets a higher than average price or even the highest price of the sale.

Yes, I wait. Our season starts on the 3rd. Coon aren't ready until 10-15th and mink/rats until the 20-25th. I see absolutely no sense in catching animals that are nearly worthless.

I see folks trapping already on here, and can't figure it out. However,when you see where their from (North).maybe it's ok there.
Then again I read where temp. doesn't play a roll in primeness,weather your talking abot fur or leather??? I don't really give a hoot when others trap. But in my opinion ,,I'm not going to string steel just to be first or get involved in the numbers thing.My two cents tells me: If I'm going to trap,skin,flesh and board a critter I'm going to try and get the most for my effort. When I read where folks say,,,"Got four Fox today,man are they Green,." Maybe someone on here can explain that to me.

ill trap canines startin oct 15th most seasons ... just to trap em ... then start trappin coon, mink, beaver, etc nov 15th

swampfox, being i live northeast ohio, i will set on opening day, which is nov.10. The weather changes really fast in these parts. Some years we can be froze out by mid dec. and the coon be holed up.I have already been out on opening day breaking ice to set rat sets.I look at this way, some fur is better than no fur.But to each is own.

Better think again on the value of these early caught furs guys...the wisdom is fur is prime for a short while. But its condition before it is fully prime has good value when compared to when it starts to go downhill later in the season. I know alot of trappers in the South that trap coyotes from mid October to end of season and do well on their fur. I also know trappers in the North that also begin trapping in mid October and again do very well on their prices. Now ideally I can say YES trapping fur when it is prime is best but adverse weather can put a end to such laid plans.
I also can say some animals don't follow the PRIMENESS time slot as we hope. So exactly when is the perfect time? Just my thoughts of trying to figure out fur prices/markets throughout my career..lol

buyer ya have no idea what ya talkin bout when it comes to furs !!! lmao

I think it just depends on where you are, what you want to accomplish, types of furbearers you target, competition, etc.

Coons are a great example. As mentioned above they will den up later in the winter. If you are a big numbers coon man and you have significant competiton, it makes sense to start a little before they are fully prime.

If you are trapping on large tracts of private land maybe you can wait.

I know fox arent fully prime that long before they begin to rub so alot of guys dont mind setting before all the fox are fully prime.

Consider all the factors and make your own decision based on your unique situation.

MChewk makes an excellent point!!


In my opinion, it is MUCH better to have fur that is a little early than it is to have fur taken too late. A red fox with slightly blue leather and good fur is going to look just fine when it is dressed. A red fox with clear leather and late caught fur is going to look scruffy when it is dressed. And I've dressed a few hundred + fox over the years.

There are also some mighty fine looking coon with blue leather.

I'm not talking about black (summer) leather - I'm talking about leather that is a light steely grey. If your buyer is docking you for slightly blue leather..........

Just my opinion!!

Nov. 10th season opens........I start around December 1st!

Nov. 10th season opens........I start around December 1st!

( But then...I know how to trap in the worst of weather).

Deadfox -

Where do you sell your fur now?

How much does he/she dock for blue leather?

What does he/she pay for red fox that are caught in January and February?

I always delay trapping until the fur is good and prime, for me it just makes the fur worth more and covers the expenses better that way.

Wissmiss hit the nail on the head.

Anybody that doesn't believe that can call up NAFA. They'll tell you straight out that early fur on critters like coon, fox, and coyote is preferable to late fur. Just because the leather is a little blue, doesn't mean a thing...if anything, it means that the fur hasn't had time to singe, rub, or get stained. In other words, the fur will be looking awesome once it's dressed.

It's my understanding that the old "blue leather is bad" reasoning came around because the old tanning methods couldn't get a good tan out of it. But like everything else in life, technology and chemistery have advanced. The modern tanning methods, solutions, ect work exceptional now and blue leather doesn't mean a thing any more.

Remember, this is blue leather...not black. Blue= OK. Black =bad. Also, this is in reference to coon, fox, and yote. Leather is still a very important step to grading items like muskrat.

Go have a talk with a NAFA rep, call them up, visit, ect if a person doesn't believe this. Or just send your "early" (october) cought coon, fox, yote up to a NAFA auction and see how you do on them. I think most folks would be very pleasently suprised.

Disclaimer: it's always best to have awesome looking fur AND leather. You'll get the most $$ for those items. To get this though it must be timed just right. The weather has to cooperate. The critters have to cooperate.

Nobodys saying to just ignore leather, but don't stress over it either.

-Skunkly-

i trap just to have fun and the $ is just extra. i have been trapping for a week sat. and alot of the coon that i have been catching look great. they have ALOT of fat and the fur looks good. i live in S.W. Wisconsin the temp. at night is around 35-40. i see no reason to wate i like to be outdoors and just enjoy being able to trap. if someone wants to see some pics. send me your email,i would post some but dont know how.

I'm sorry, but I have to agree with Chewka, ohbuyer, wis, skunkly....
I think most folks thinking they have to wait are really missing out. My early fox and coon well outsold my mid to late stuff...meaning prior to the first of the year. And, I sold to Groneys. Read the reports people. Early coon is what will be sought. If I waited until "primetime" I might have a window of 3 days of trapping, gambling with mother nature. And, not even that, but if I'm being paid top dollar for pelts harvested from beginning of season up to mid December, WHY would I wait?

If your buyer is throwing all of your blue coon in the junk pile - it might be time to look for a new buyer.

15.00 average straight through on red fox last year is not that bad - in my opinion.

Woofman, looks like you opened a can of worms with this one! My advise would be to talk to your furbuyer. They'll tell you what they want. The bottom line is that they need to make money too. If they're happy with early fur and can make money off it, fine. If they think you're better off waiting until it's fully prime, they'll probably tell you that. I don't know, but perhaps it varies by what part of the country you're in. I trap in Minnesota and personally, I wait until the fur is completely prime. I simply don't feel right about harvesting an animal until it's at it's best. Just my two cents. Best of luck on your line. Jump Trap

I always wait for the beavers to get prime.

i start here in ontario oct 15 on coon and still get some blue leather but these coon sell just fine and it seems the fur market today is based more on size than prime factor on coons

Absolutely...Prime..adios

Most buyers around the end of Nov. to Dec.
I trap right off the bat.Last year I sold coyotes the 2nd week of Nov. that were Oct. caught and got a $21.00 avg.with a top of $28.00.But I held on to a couple I caught at the same time.I sold those ones I held back in Jan. I got a $30.00 avg and a top of $40.00,same fur as the others.

Our season opens mid october,the fur isn't full prime but it's decent and actually looks better now than it will in a month.I use to work at a fur farm,mostly fox and fully prime fur is more prone to damage.The seasons open when they do because if you waited until full prime,atleast up here weather can dampen the harvest which is more detrimental than maybe losing a few bucks if you sell early.Trapping now helps insure an acceptable harvest which is needed to sustain a healthy wildlife population.If we waited a month we couldn't keep populations in check which is basically what the DNR are wanting done.We as trappers and hunters for the most part and most important part is first and foremost to keep populations in check for a healthy base to start the cycle all over again come spring.We trap for fur,but we are basically look at as a tool for wildlife management.I can see a day coming in years to come of a year round trapping season if we don't recruit new trappers to keep pop. in check.The bottomline is we're a management tool and fur comes 2nd.

Here in WI the seasons open far before the average fur bearer is "prime". Prime has many realities and perceptions.
If I would set very specific areas for more adult coons in the early part of the season I would catch a higher % of higher value pelts due to size and grade. The risk of running a heavy line early in the heavy trails is getting many YOY coon that are 1-11 in grade and L or XL in size. These coons are $7-$11 on recent auctions. The late Oct. 3xxl-4xxl are well over $20 and not much below the price for later caught adult coons. Those YOY may go up $5-$10 by waiting 3-4 weeks. The issue is that well over 60% of the coon harvest in WI is completed in the first 4 weeks of the season, so waiting gets you better fur but lots fewer pelts and more issues in running your lines.
I know that I give up a better average by trapping coons earlier, but I get more and I am considerably more efficient in running my lines the last 10 days of Oct then the middle of November. My choice are to trap more selectively early. Typically in WI the season opens for coon about the middle of October, I used to wait until the first weekend of November to set out my coon line. My area has doubled since I started earlier and my catch has tripled. I am more efficient and have less expenses per coon even with the lower average price.
Our coons are naturally heavier than many areas and that may be a factor for us that is not the same for more central areas.

Bryce

Very well said!!!!!

I get so fired up...it's hard to wait!!! But still, it's better to wait 'till the fur is better.Here in Pa. 'coon and fox come in 10/20 but the fur quality is a joke. I don't bust on those who trap early but it's better to let the fur prime up.I never got much for blue 'coons and flat foxes.
Don't harvest vegatables 'til they are ripe??Don't trap early fur.

Great debate here. I'm going to contact some of the more experienced Connecticut trappers in the CTA and see what they say about what the furbuyers want. In reality I have six different places to trap and it won't be easy to hit more than one of them at a time because of the driving distances and my real job. One of these is a public spot that I may trap early anyway before the firearm deer hunters show up Nov 15. I'd just as soon not be getting in their way or vice versa.

Jump Trap, thanks and good luck to you too.

That's another good point,we only have 3-4 weeks before deer season and by the time it's over and things have settled down it's Dec.,which makes for harder trapping weather wise ie; frozen solid ground,ice,snow,etc..May as well get while the gettings good.

I look at fur and leather primeness as two different things,the fur is prime and looking good before the leather is fully prime,so you need to decide,are you selling fur or leather? I've never seen a coon leather coat,but seen some fur out ones and the leather is covered by a liner.

Where does the "junk fur pile" go? If your buyer is doing you the favor of getting rid of it for you,what's he selling it for?

The dates I mentioned above in my first post were given to me by a very large fur buyer, plus I've had enough experience as a fur buyer to know the difference between black and blue leather. And average buying is just that, it is an average. If you have 3 piles of pelts, junk, blue and prime and the buyer gives you one an average price they took in consideration the worth of each pile. If the trapper waited a week or so there would have been less in the junk pile so the average would have been higher.