Foxes eating trapped gophers

What are you all doing about foxes digging out and eating the gophers caught in traps? If it wasn't for the fact the owner still pays me for what is left in the traps I would be quite upset. My biggest concern is the possibility of the fox running off with the trap. That and the hole left when it is dug out. The rancher whose 50 acre field I am trapping says not to worry but I feel it's like a slap in the face. But I have nabbed 129 the last 20 days and have covered only about 15 acres so far. Also my way of trapping is I will cover the whole area then go back over the same field again picking up strays. I do it this way to keep from having the problem of trap shy gophers. He thinks I will still be here next Christmas. Well time will tell.

Can't stop them from eating them but all of my gopher traps have cable on them and are staked down to avoid loss.

I've used hardware cloth staked over the hole to prevent dogs from digging up traps. Worked good for that purpose, but I imagine a fox is going to be much more persistent than a toy poodle.

It'd be quite a bit more work with the volume of traps you are setting, too.

Just a thought anyways.

Is the fox following any pattern? If it is a real problem, take a dead gopher and dig a hole and put the gopher in it and put a foot hole trap on top of it. I would make it look different to get its attention. Look for where he is entering the field. Not a sure thing but will make you feel better. Good luck!

What he said.

Ditto! Even a simple stake has kept coyote and fox from walking off with mine after digging them up.