Rat traps

[pnwmtnmn]

I would imagine that the humane society was trying to make illegal the foothold traps that have teeth on them, but as they were already illegal to use in this state why bother?  They tried to duplicate the California statute but they left out words and definitions that left our statute open to different interpretations and now we have our quagmire.

[onetrapper]

agreed

[Machias]

Actually the initiative is open to VERY little interpretation, they made it that way to dupe a uninformed general public.  The trapping associations tried repeatedly to inform the public that mole and gopher traps would be illegal and the HSUS kept say no we don't interpret it that way....they knew all along it did.

[Humptulips]

WDFW got an opinion from the Attorney Generals office on the spear traps. The gist of the opinion is that any kind of trap is a bodygripping trap and therefore illegal unless specifically exempted from the law ie;  Cage and box traps, suitcase-type live beaver traps, and common rat and mouse traps.

[onetrapper]

Thanks for the clarification

[WAPatriot]

So what is the most powerful rat trap one can buy? I am gonna make some rat floats. What are those ones from Europe. I am thinking about going with the kess big snap e rat trap

[UrbanTrapper]

I bet these would work better:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310710985115?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&fromMakeTrack=true

[Hannibal]

to be set vertically just above the water...... downfall is incidentals,,,, so choose your bait wisely  or my might be sighted for violating federal regulations,,,,.......

[Humptulips]

So what is the most powerful rat trap one can buy? I am gonna make some rat floats. What are those ones from Europe. I am thinking about going with the kess big snap e rat trap

Back when we were dealing with Steve Pozanghria we tried to get a clarification on what the Department considered to be a rat trap. We were pushing for some of the smaller Koros and #0 traps to be legal. They are or were sold as rat traps. Steve basically told us to drop the whole thing or he would see to it that the law was interpreted to mean a rat trap was only a rat trap if set for rats. We were scared off as we thought we might lose even the victor rat trap for weasels. Right now the only trap you can be 100% sure is OK is the victor rat trap or a knock off of them.
Times change and Steve is gone from Olympia. We have made some initial inquiries about restarting some talks about defining "rat traps". Maybe things will change in the future.

[Hannibal]

check the wsta page for my opion

[whitey]

If we are refering to using rat traps for furbearers (weasels, mink, ect) they are a body gripping trap, illegal.(Yep)
A rat and a mouse are not classified as furbearing, so therefore body gripping traps are still allowed on them.
A mole is considered in Washington state as a furbearer. So there for body gripping traps are illegal to use on them.
Now I must say I have never seen a product made of real mole skin. 

[whitey]

So what is the most powerful rat trap one can buy? I am gonna make some rat floats. What are those ones from Europe. I am thinking about going with the kess big snap e rat trap

Back when we were dealing with Steve Pozanghria we tried to get a clarification on what the Department considered to be a rat trap. We were pushing for some of the smaller Koros and #0 traps to be legal. They are or were sold as rat traps. Steve basically told us to drop the whole thing or he would see to it that the law was interpreted to mean a rat trap was only a rat trap if set for rats. We were scared off as we thought we might lose even the victor rat trap for weasels. Right now the only trap you can be 100% sure is OK is the victor rat trap or a knock off of them.
Times change and Steve is gone from Olympia. We have made some initial inquiries about restarting some talks about defining "rat traps". Maybe things will change in the future.

I disagree.
If its intended use is for weasels, its illegal.
It is only a rat trap if set for rats.
Other than that its a body gripping trap.
I have a great deal of time on this subject being a NWCO for many years and very busy one at that.
Just saying the people that a person could be dealing with on this matter (LEO) will more than likely ask " why are you trapping rats out here"
Just my

[Humptulips]

If we are refering to using rat traps for furbearers (weasels, mink, ect) they are a body gripping trap, illegal.(Yep)
A rat and a mouse are not classified as furbearing, so therefore body gripping traps are still allowed on them.
A mole is considered in Washington state as a furbearer. So there for body gripping traps are illegal to use on them.
Now I must say I have never seen a product made of real mole skin. 

You have a number of things wrong. This is the definition of a bodygripping trap from RCW77.15.192 
 (2) "Body-gripping trap" means a trap that grips an animal's body or body part. Body-gripping trap includes, but is not limited to, steel-jawed leghold traps, padded-jaw leghold traps, Conibear traps, neck snares, and nonstrangling foot snares. Cage and box traps, suitcase-type live beaver traps, and common rat and mouse traps are not considered body-gripping traps.

So as you can see " rat traps" are not considered bodygripping traps and therefore are legal to use.

The designation of an animal as a furbearer or not has nothing to do with the ability to use bodygripping traps. The law deals with what types of traps may be used and the word furbearer is not mentioned in the law.

And moles are not considered furbearers. They are unclassified. Incidentally gopher traps are illegal and they not a furbearer either.

The law is a little vague with the phrase "common rat and mouse traps". We interpret that to mean traps designed and sold to catch common rats and traps designed and sold to catch mice. It could also be interpreted to mean common traps for those animals and not something built one or two of. In other words you would have to be able to go buy one someplace.

If the definition  reads as you and Steve Pozanghria wish to interpret it, my question is what is a common rat. I have never been able to find that in any definitions and there are a lot of rodents people call rats, many of them pretty common here in the NW. They should have listed which ones they were talking about if that is what they meant.

Also for 15 years WDFW has allowed the use of victor rat traps for weasels. I think that pretty well establishes they consider a trap sold as a rat trap, e.g. for weasels, is a legal trap.

[whitey]

does it not grip the body?
Run what you brung.
I dont care to go tit for tat, but your not the only one that has been around this topic (Trapping).
You will talk till your blue in the face trying to sell me on the use of a rat traps on the trap line for anything other than rats.
Peace..OUT.

[WAPatriot]

to be set vertically just above the water...... downfall is incidentals,,,, so choose your bait wisely  or my might be sighted for violating federal regulations,,,,.......

Never thought to try that way I am gonna have to add that to the asernal.