Culture of Fur

The culture of natural, free-range harvest fur is a practice that goes back centuries. See what a current harvester has to say about how it has impacted him and his family.

“My love for trapping began when I was a young boy. My father liked to trap, so I would tag along, watch what he was doing, and ask lots of questions. I’m sure at times I was more of a pain, falling in the water, venturing off, and getting cold but it’s what got me started. About the time high school started my best friend and I had a decent size coon trap line. We would get up before school to check our traps on his father’s three-wheeler. After school and our job working on the local dairy farm, we would flesh and stretch our catches of the day. As young teenagers it taught us discipline, time management, and workmanship. We learned quickly the better-quality fur we put up the better the price was. My dad would always send them to the fur auction for us. The hard work and dedication paid off a few times with a couple “top lot” trapper awards. In about year 2005-2006 the highest price we got for one of our coons was $35.00. The most we trapped in one year while attending school and working was 55 coons. after high school, Tyler and I went to college together. We would come home on the weekends. Some of our other friends like to trap also. With that being said, we thought it would be a good idea to have a competition, who could trap the most coon, and the largest coon. During the week while we were at school, my girlfriend, now wife, would check our traps for us. It was a team effort and we won the competition. 

Fast forward ten years, I married my high school sweetheart, and we have two beautiful daughters. The past ten years I have worked my regular job plus help a friend grain farm. With having children it’s time to slow down a bit and show and teach my daughters how to trap. Last year was the first year getting back into trapping. Needless to say, my daughter Laken seemed to have a great interest in it. So, it’s a family affair, my wife, my daughter, and myself. It gets us outdoor together and has given us a family bond. I take pride in showing and teaching my daughter the passion I have for trapping. My daughter’s favorite animal to trap is muskrat. She loves how soft their fur is. What I enjoy most is listening to her tell other people about her trapping experiences. When I think she is not listening, she really is. She enjoys telling me which lure to use for each set and where she thinks I should set a trap. When anyone comes to visit at our house, she tries to get anyone willing to smell lures that she can. While out trapping she is just not learning about the ropes of trapping but looking for animal droppings, their tracks, to looking at the trees and their leaves. There is nothing that makes this father prouder than to see the interest my family has for one of my passions. I looked forward to the trapping season ahead with my family.” - Dustin