Lake Beavers

I have two Beaver jobs at present both in man made lakes. Both have houses around them (human). Neither have significant streams flowing into them. One is maybe 4 acres and the other closer to 100. Both of the lakes are very "sensitive" for using anything but cage traps. Neither have any standing timber at all. On the smaller lake I found a few bank dens that I think are active but haven't yet secured permission to trap anywhere but in the customer's yard. I kayaked around the larger lake today and found no bank dens. Some areas were difficult to approach because of overhanging limbs. I'm sure there are bank dens there. On the larger lake they had cut a large Bradford pear a few days ago and I set 2 cages there and caught a 30 lb beaver last night. I regrouped those traps today and feel pretty good about the setup.

I guess I'm asking for general advice for summer time trapping in man made lakes for bank den beavers. Appreciate it!

Boats are great tools and cage traps can be placed over den entrances.
I have good luck with dobbins beaver +

Caught 3 beavers on these 2 jobs the last 2 days. Think I've kayaked the big lake again today and nearly certain they are denning under a couple of old concrete docks. Gotta get permission to trap around these docks.

I tried live trapping down on an ADC job near a creek that had notice able slides as they came out of the water there was a flat I set the live trap on, also put castor in the very back with a few new chiseld limbs, they flat ignored it and went around it, i sanded inthe floor mesh also , this cage trap is VERY BIG bout 4ft long x 2ft opening i wasnt crowding them i still couldnt catch any with live trap.

Did you have the trap covered or debris around where the approaching beaver could not get close to the bait unless he goes in the trap?

They will smell from the out side and not go in, if their curiosity is satisfied, just like a bobcat or fox.

What could have happened. If you were using a standard pan trigger, depending as to location of the pan inside the cage, the beaver may have come in up to the front edge of the pan leaned over and smelled lure and not put front feet down on pan, turned and left. I have video showing how that can happen or how they react that way. The pan may have needed a thin piece of plywood on top of it to fire when the beaver was a little further from the pan than he would be if you had not done that.

Sometimes if you just caught a bobcat or other predator in the trap and the trap smells of him or another smell they don,t like, they will not enter.

If it is a very hot day when the trap is set, if on land, the heat will cause the smells inside the cage trap to be more pronounced affecting how the animal responds.

The customers dog may have come up and marked his territory on your trap. The same dog that was harassing them.

Setting in water, with any trap, even if it is just a few inches of water, helps to make the set more effective.

I explained in my last several demos at the NTA how to make a pan trigger more effective for beaver, to allow one to make the best use of what he had on hand.

Thanks Kirk all makes sense now,maybe what happened.