Utah Trappers Association December 2008 Report

President — Kevin Peacock, P.O. Box 522, Orangeville, UT 84537; phone: 435-884-4382

Vice President — Ronnie Hunt, P.O. Box 65, Teasdale, UT 84773

Secretary — Paul Jarvis, P.O. Box 571, Santaquin, UT 84655; phone: 801-754-3739

Treasurer — Leroy Loftus, 1465 E Hwy 119, Richfield, UT 84701; phone: 435-896-8913

Public Relations — Sanford Randall, P.O. Box 252, Monticello, UT 84535; phone: 435-587-2776

Membership Options:
• Individual membership including subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $20
• Family membership with subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $30
• Junior (under 16) with subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $8
• Senior membership with subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $15

Complete membership application on first page of
association section and send dues to:
UTA, Secretary
Paul Jarvis,
PO Box 571, Santaquin, UT 84655

VICE PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Greetings Utah Trappers,

Well, our trapping season is here, hope everyone has a chance to get out and enjoy the great outdoors and catch some prime winter fur. Stan Basset told me something once, he said it’s great just to get out, and then if I catch something, it’s a bonus.

There’s probably not too many of us that will get rich or famous trapping so we might as well enjoy it all we can. Our fur sale will be Feb. 14 to 15 at the Juab Fair Grounds. Remember to have your fur fleshed, stretched and dried properly. The way fur is handled makes a big difference in its value. We are working on a few minor improvements for our fur sale.

Please be aware of places where dogs and people are visiting regularly and trap accordingly. We do not need any incidents if we can prevent them.

Till next time, take care and Happy Trapping.

— Ronnie Hunt

FUR SALE REPORT

Trapping season is upon us and with all trapping seasons there are fur sales. This year, the Utah Trappers Association fur sale will be held on  Feb. 13, 14 and 15 in Nephi, Utah. Currently, we have a two-day sale planned with the auction dates on Saturday and Sunday.

We strongly recommend that you try to check your fur in on Friday. We will try to check in fur as soon as we get set up and ready to enter the lots in the computer. If you have attended a Utah fur sale in the past, then you already have a pretty good idea of what goes on. If you haven’t ever attended  a Utah  fur sale, there will be an information booth to help you and to answer any questions.

I want to stress some very important items to help the fur sale go smoothly and to help you realize the maximum return for your pelts. Please remember that this is your sale and it is run on total volunteer help. If we have a lot of help, then it makes the workload  much easier on all volunteers. So, how do you help? Simply call myself or one of the UTA officers and we will give you an assignment.

Personally, I have done this for a lot of years, and I have seen thousands and thousands of pelts come through the sale. I have gained a wealth of  knowledge about what to do with your fur and what not to do with your fur. You too can learn about the dos and dont’s about fur if you volunteer to help out. It is a wonderful learning experience plus it turns out to be just a good time. And as you get older and older it seems that good times are harder to come by. Grab them while you can.

It is important to let me know what fur you are bringing in. Buyers want to have a general idea on the totals that they can expect to bid on. If they do not know what to plan on, there is a good chance that they may not plan on bidding on some of your fur because they may not have a market for it. However, if they know that there is a certain amount of a certain species the they can find a market for it and you the trapper will receive more for your pelts than you would have had they not known that they were in the sale. If I  know what you have, I will let the buyers know about your specific pelts and then they can and will plan accordingly.

The UTA only charges a 4 percent commission. This is to help the fur harvester get as much back as possible. The 4 percent can be maintained if and only if there is adequate help so that we don’t have to hire it out. This is a good deal for the trapper. But please remember that the volunteers are doing the best that they can so please be patient and considerate of their feelings. They are there to help and sometimes the workload can be quite heavy. Remember our motto: TRAPPERS HELPING TRAPPERS.

This year we will be having a buyer for wet fur and animals in the carcass. These will not be run through the sale due to spoilage and smell. If you want to sell wet fur or carcass animals, please contact me prior to the sale so that I can make arrangements for them. This is sometimes a really shallow market, but if I know ahead of time I will try to get it sold for you. This really works out good if you do not want to skin and put up your pelts. Many times in the past, trappers have gotten more for their unfinished pelts than their finished pelts. Markets open up all the time for wet fur and carcass animals however, sometimes they may want only a few animals. So, if I know what you have in advance, I can get a buyer for you.

As with last year, if you sell wet fur, you will not pay the commission, but the buyer will pay it. Good taxidermy quality animals are wanted. If you have ones with good feet etc., you will be able to sell them usually at a pretty good price.

I hope that you have a good season and I look forward to seeing you at the fur sale. If you have any questions about the fur sale, wet fur or just want to talk trapping feel free to give me a call at 435-245-4508.

Best of luck.
— Stan Bassett

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