Tanned Fur Project Report - Tim Caven
Tanned Fur Project of Minnesota Trappers Association
Donations to the Tanned Fur Project are off from the records set in 2009 due to the increase in raw fur prices. This is understandable; please do what you can this fall to keep this most worthwhile project moving forward. Thank you to the following MTA members and Conservation Officers for your recent donations:
Trappers:
Matt Leek - 3 beaver
Alan Golden - 30 beaver, 1 raccoon, 1 skunk
Rusty Hellickson - 2 woodchucks
Ken Carver - 11 beaver
Nancy Caven - 2 raccoon, 1 beaver, 2 muskrat, 5 ermine
Dan Thorson - 1 otter
Dave D'Aigle & Gary Meis - 8 coyote, 4 coon, 2 badger, 3 red fox, 2 grey fox, 4 otter, 10 muskrat
Gordy Hjelle - 16 beaver
Michael Von Rueden - 1 skunk, 1 badger, 1 coyote
Mike Flanagan - 1 red fox, 3 mink
Kim Varros - 2 coyote
Rob Caven - 5 coyotes, 5 raccoon, 5 muskrat, 5 beaver, 5 red fox, 5 grey fox, 5 bobcat, 5 pine marten
Bill Schmidtke - 1 red fox, 1 beaver, 1 mink
Dale Hayes - 1 raccoon
Deb Offerdahl - 2 muskrat
Toby Armstrong - 8 muskrat, 2 skunk, 4 ermine, 1 red fox, 1 grey fox, 2 coyote, 2 raccoon
Lloyd Bakkonen - 1 deer hide, 1 grey fox
Jerry Rusert - 3 skunk
Bill Ruhland - 2 raccoon, 4 skunk, 1 mink
Tom Rhonda - 1 beaver, 1 coyote, 1 muskrat, 4 raccoon
Eli Gindele - 1 muskrat
Duane Schmitz - $100 cash towards tanning bill
Jim Malone - 2 ermine
Ronald Brockamp - 10 muskrat, 2 beaver
Tim & Brent Sawatzky - 6 ermine, 1 skunk
Greg Flohr - 25 mink, 7 otter, 29 beaver, 52 raccoon, 6 opossum, 3 skunk
Ronald Rockis - 4 beaver, 1 ermine, 2 muskrat, 1 otter
Chad Johnson - 1 fisher
Allan Beavens - 2 fisher
Butch Hershberger - 2 otter
Shannon Cohrs - 4 raccoon
Angie Cohrs - 2 opossum
Caleb Cohrs - 2 badger
Felicia Cohrs - 3 raccoon
Frank Danelski - 2 otter, 1 red fox
Shawn Johnson - 2 pine marten, 3 fisher, 1 otter
Larry Swanson - 1 otter
Paul Zieroth - 5 otter
Michael Zimmerman - 3 otter
Trever Robinson - 1 deer hide
Tim Parker - 1 opossum
Ken Olson - 8 beaver, 3 coyote
Jeff Bussler - 14 skunk, 1 raccoon
Erin Caven - 2 raccoon, 2 mink, 2 muskrat, 2 beaver
Floyd Griffith - 1 grey fox
Cory Van Driel - 32 ermine
Barry DeGroot - 4 coyote, 1 red fox
Mark DeJaeghere - 14 coyote, 2 beaver, 2 badger, 2 raccoon, 2 muskrat
Chris Bushinger - 1 otter
Tim Caven - 40 bobcat, 30 grey fox, 25 raccoon, 10 beaver, 10 muskrat, 5 red fox, 5 coyote
Chris Koski - 3 otter
Richard Gullickson - 1 fisher
Steven Weston - 1 fisher
Terry McElmury & Joe Bambenek - 12 coyote, 12 badger, 6 grey fox, 1 kitt fox, 1 skunk
Eugene Devries - 1 otter
Reilly Ludwig - 1 fisher
Richard Kroschel - 2 otter
Tim Vanderhagen - 2 otter
Jeff Bengtson - 5 bobcat, 5 grey fox, 1 coyote
Ben Hunner - 1 pine marten, 1 bobcat
Dallas Erickson - 3 red fox, 1 coyote
Larry Tindall - 1 badger
Al Hultin - 1 otter, 1 fisher
Mark Melby Fur Company - 2 coyote, 2 badger, 2 red fox,
Leon Windschitl - 4 beaver
Jade & Casey Cumberland - 2 mink, 2 muskrats, 1 raccoon, 1 coyote
Dennis Zacharias - 2 beaver
Dick Lehman - 2 beaver
Conservation Officers & DNR:
Dusty Heaton - 2 otter, 1 red fox
Kip Duncan - 2 pine marten, 3 fisher, 1 otter
Andy Schmidt - 4 otter
Scott Staples - 9 otter, 23 muskrat, 1 beaver, 1 bobcat, 3 fisher
Randy Hanzal - 4 otter
Brett Grundmeier - 6 otter, 1 muskrat, 1 raccoon, 5 fisher
Redwood Falls DNR - 1 red fox
Spicer DNR - 1 otter
John Pauras - 4 otter, 2 fisher, 2 bobcat
Chris Vinton - 1 otter, 2 fisher
Greg Oldakoski - 6 fisher, 1 mink, 1 coyote
David Olsen - 3 otter, 1 bobcat
Mary Wanning - 1 otter
Andy Schmidt - 3 fisher, 1 pine marten, 2 otter, 4 muskrat
Tricia Plautz - 2 otter
As you can see by the above list many Conservation Officers are working well with the MTA. Please ask your local CO if they are on board with the MTA Tanned Fur Project. If they have any questions or concerns feel free to pass my phone number on to them, I would be most happy to explain the program to them and get them working with us. We are not going to get the number of otter, fisher, pine marten, and heavy bobcats that we need to support the project unless they come from CO's.
Every time that I stopped in at Melby Fur Company this past winter and spring I ended up feeling guilty. Mark has NEVER complained to me once in all the years that The Tanned Fur Project has used and abused him. It's got to be rough to be just cleaning up at the end of a day of skinning, scraping, and stretching and then have someone come through the door and drop off 20 carcass otter and ask that they put them up for free. I do that to Mark all the time and I'm always amazed that he doesn't just kick me out. It's very common for Mark to process 200 beaver, 50-60 otter, plus hundred of assorted other pelts free of charge each year for the MTA. The Tanned Fur Project would not exist if it wasn't for Mark & Heidi Melby's free labor as we just couldn't afford the processing bill. Please tell Mark thank you the next time you see him. Maybe sell him some fur, buy some supplies, or have Heidi make you some trap tags to try and pay them back a little for all they do for the MTA.
If I have missed anyone in the list above or spelled your name wrong please contact me. I do my best to keep accurate records but often by the time I receive your donation it has gone through several hands. Again, please correct me if I am wrong with any details.
In the past month we have been able to put pelts in the following locations:
Maplewood Nature Center
Prairie Wetlands Learning Center
Tettegouche State Park
Grand Portage State Park
Grand Rapids Regional Naturalist Office
Ashby School
West Central Area Schools
Camden State Park
Upper Sioux Agency State Park
Lake Bronson State Park
Sakatah State Park
Rice Lake State Park
Myre Big Island State Park
Minneopa State Park
Big Woods State Park
That list right there (just from the last month) will expose a tremendous amount of people to Minnesota's wild fur and many for the first time in their lives. All this while looking at a sign that says "This fur was made available though the generosity of The Minnesota Trappers Association". This is a great program folks, please support it as you're able. If you would prefer, you can always make a monetary donation like Duane Schmitz District 3 director did towards our tanning bill. Our tanning bill will run between $5,000.00 and $10,000.00 each year so every dollar donated will help.
Following is one of the many letters that we receive:
Dear Tim,
I wish to thank the Minnesota Trappers Association for your donation of beaver pelts to the Maplewood Nature Center. They will be a very useful program prop for our 4th grade program on the historical fur trade. Many children have never felt a beaver pelt before and know very little about these animals. Each year hundreds of children attend our classes and get real hands on experience. The Minnesota Trappers Association will be given credit for providing us with these wonderful pelts. Thank you again, Ann E. Hutchinson, Naturalist
If you have fur to donate we will figure out a way to get it from you to me. You can contact me directly, drop pelts off at Melby Fur Company, Cumberland's Northwest Trappers Supply, Waller Fur Company, or W&R Fur Company. You can also send pelts with the North American Fur Auction or Fur Harvesters Auction trucks and ask them to drop them off at Melby Fur Company. You also can contact your district director or co-director and they will help to make arrangements.
The top individual donor and top district will win awards at the Summer Convention in Barnum. The district competition is very close and there is still time to help push your district over the top. Thank you for all your support, see you in Barnum in July.
Tim Caven
Tanned Fur Project Coordinator
Minnesota Trapline Products
ATTN: Tim Caven7444 C.R. 27 NW
Pennock, MN 56279
Email: pellethead@tds.net
Web: www.minntrapprod.com
Telephone: 320-599-4176
Fax: 320-599-4314