Beo

Setting Snares
To set a snare, the looped end of the snare is suspended over a trail or path that the animal is expected to use. The animal enters the snare, sticking its head through the loop, and through its for-ward progress draws the snare down on itself. It should be noted, that not all animals are snared by catching them around the neck. You will be more successful snaring some animals like raccoon and beaver if the snare cinches up on their body somewhere behind one or both of their front legs. These animals both have a short, rounded head and a great deal of manual dexterity with their front feet. Using their front paws, these animals can often slip a snare off over their head. Other animals, most notably canines, have along tapered head that is very wide just behind their ears. When a snare closes on their neck it is very unlikely they will be able to slip out of it or remove it. In this case, it is better to snare these animals by the neck. There are two major considerations in setting a snare to target a specific animal — the size of the loop and the distance from the bottom of the loop to the ground. In making these determinations you must consider the size of the animal, the height of the animal’s head above the ground (generally determined by the length of its legs) and whether it is best to catch the animal by the neck or by the body. For an animal you want to snare by the neck, the snare loop should be just large enough to admit the animal’s head. The snare should be positioned so that the bottom of the loop strikes the animal’s chest at the base of the neck after its head goes through the loop. To snare an animal by the body, you need a loop big enough to admit the front portion of the animal’s body. The loop must be low enough to the ground so that the animal can step through it, but high enough to strike the animal’s chest after the animal steps through the snare.
Avoiding Deer and Livestock
While your snares will be set to take furbearing animals, the possibility exists that larger animals, like deer or live stock could get tangled up in your snare. This usually happens when the animal is walking along and gets its foot through the snare loop. Some of the state regulations are designed to deal with this problem. In some states snares, or any other trapping devices, cannot be set in paths commonly used by humans or domestic animals. This means snares cannot be set in active livestock trails. In regards to deer, some snares must employ one of two features. One option is to install a stop on the cable that prevents the loop from closing past a diameter of 2-1/2 inches. This would allow a deer to shake the snare off its foot. The other option is to use a lock or lock system that will break away from the snare cable at 350 pounds or less. This would allow a deer to break the lock as it pulls against the snare. These state regulations are designed to minimize the potential for detaining a large animal in your snare. Still the best way to avoid deer and livestock is to avoid setting your snares where these animals are likely to be encountered. You should not set snares within the confines of a pasture where livestock is present. Deer are free roaming, wild animals, but you can take measures to avoid catching them in your snares. Do not set snares on trails that show frequent or heavy use by deer .There are other instances when you may want to set a snare on a trail that is not regularly used by deer, but still the possibility exists that a deer might take that trail. In this case, you can construct the set to make the deer avoid your snare. The best way to do this is to place a pole over your snare. The pole should be about the size of your wrist or larger. You can place the pole horizontally over your snare and support it on each end. This gives the appearance of the goal posts on a football field. With the pole just above the snare, the deer will jump or step over the pole, while the target animal will go under the pole and into the snare. Another option is to use a “leaning” pole to steer the deer away from your snare. This is best accomplished where the trail passes close to a tree and the snare is fastened to the tree. Here, you can lean a pole against the tree at an angle with the snare between the pole and the tree. A deer will walk around the outside of the pole and avoid the snare. Make sure there is room on the outside of the pole for the deer to detour around it. In each of these cases, the pole should be propped up so that it will not fall down easily. However, the pole should not be wired or permanently fastened in place because it could create an entanglement situation for the animal. The animal should be able to knock the pole over if it gets the snare around it.

Wow this took a while to write up so I help this helps all those who want to learn snaring and the use of snares, there are others on here that are as good or better at snaring and telling you how to use and set snares.
Beo,