We had an otter attack at our cabin a few weeks ago. It involved my 12 year old cousin and 2 of her friends. Here is a link to one of the stories.  http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2014/08/13/otter-attacks-mpls-girl-in-western-wisconsin/

We have talked to the Sheriff and the local DNR.  The Sheriff said that his dept. doesn't deal with problem animals unless their is an immediate threat and has no interest of getting involved.  He said contact the DNR.  The conservation officer that my uncle talked to said that they were not going to do anything, but we could deal with it if it it came back just "be careful".

We have deployed live traps, but have not caught anything but a raccoon that was released without incident. Body gripping traps are not safe up there We are using sardines as a bait.  We have seen the one otter that did the attack multiple times but, there were people on the lake and shooting it with the shotgun was not an option at the time.  It is much larger then the other 2 that are there so identifying the problem is not hard. On the other hand, if one of the other otters gets in the trap they are done. None of the kids want to ski/swim or get near the lake. Our family owns a large part of the lake on our bay and the neighbors are all on the same page.  These things have got to go.

The lake is a recreational lake that is busy during the weekends so most of the time that we are up there shooting is not an option.  We are only going to use a shotgun if the opportunity presents it self.  A rifle would be to dangerous shooting across the water.

Here is my question.  What would be a better bait?  We have one trap on the dock and one by the shore.  Is there a better place to put one? Any hints, tricks or tips would help.

FYI- The DNR said if it came back it was alright to take it out.  I won't be driving around the lake in the boat with a gun stalking it.

Might try tuna. Or try catching a fish in the lake and use it

Did the DNR give you permission to trap out of season? You can use body grippers under water, You'd probably have better luck than a cage trap.

Otters have big ranges, it may take 2-3 weeks for him to come back.


You should try and get in contact with a local trapper if you want to be successful....

Double tap

Find entrance to den.
Put body grip trap over entrance
Profit!

SSS