What do you all do to keep from catching deer in your hog traps? I have a rooter door trap that I set open with a trip wire. The hogs don’t ever enter the trap by pushing the door open but freely enter when I tie it back. Unfortunately so do the deer.

Been there, done that........... I had caught a few does in this type trap before but was really surprised to see this 8 point buck in the trap opening day of 2012. The door swings up from the bottom and is hinged at about 24". I really didn't think they would get on their knees to go in the trap but obviously he did. The weird thing is the feeder is right behind him. That particular season, the hogs ran all the deer away from the feeders constantly and ignored the traps. The deer adapted and started raiding this trap and the bigger teardrop trap on this same place. In the big trap, they will just jump over the top of it when the corn is gone. I quit using this trap after catching this buck, it got pretty western getting him out. I sent this picture to the Game Warden that morning with the caption "Got me an 8 point this morning!"

caught a heifer once

That much energy in that small space could get real interesting real quick. I bet it was western to get him out.

Yep, I caught a doe earlier this year. Was able to free her, but she had beaten herself up pretty good trying to get out, and then it got worse once I showed. Hope she survived, but not confident in that.

Like many traps, mine is fully enclosed, and think it probably better to have an open top for just this reason. Since catching the doe, I have been souring my bait corn in diesel. Seems to keep pulling hogs, and no more deer ...yet.

Caught a few over the years but after I started piling really thorny brush in front of the catch door about 20 yrs ago, I stopped catching deer. Hogs will root the brush out of the way to get into the trap but the brush keeps the deer out.

I used stx's brush idea, it works best. I tried barbed wire across the opening, but in order to leave enough opening for a pig to get in the deer would also push through. It did keep the cows out.
We tried attaching a rope to the door so we could pull the trap open from a distance. That worked okay but deer always seemed to jack up rope.

This picture was the most unique experience that I ever had. This doe did the typical freak-out when walked up, then she put her head through the hog panel and got stuck. I just knew she was about to break her neck, but she just stood there motionless. I opened the door and walked around and folded her ears back and helped get her head back through the hole. She turned and trotted off.

heard about that, so got rid of mine. a large open top trap tis way ta go...

This is the best way. I have had 8 pigs at a time in this trap with them jumping and climbing and they could not get out with the double upper rail. They just fall right back in the trap. I made this trap after I watched a group of pigs walk all around the cage trap that I had, eating corn around it and as far as they could reach their head inside with out stepping into the trap.
The big door makes it more attractive for pigs to go in. It is four pieces and stacks up in the bed of a truck like plywood. They u-bolt together at the corners.
I caught three cows in it once.

I like the open pen idea. A deer can jump out of that but as others have pointed out they can beat themselves up pretty good in a 4x4x8 full cage trap.
I talked to a guy that regularly traps and sells hogs about the issue, he said he pours a little diesel fuel on the corn and the deer leave it alone but the hogs seem to love it. I don’t want a hazmat team condemning my hog trap. lol

I love Simple Searcher's trap !! I wish I had half a dozen like that with those big doors ! I catch a deer ever now and then and they can sure get worked up in there in a hurry. I just prop open the door and walk away, as they can get pretty banged up if you stay close, trying to get them out.

Having an open top is best. If that's not an option, and it isn't for a portable box trap, here's what I did:

I tied a piece of fence wire across the opening about six inches below the top. I tied another piece at the same height just behind the door. The idea is that the buck's antlers will hit the wire and they'll back out. Since I did that several years ago I haven't caught any buck, and the number of does has also increased. Not that I was catching a bunch, but I'd get one every other year. In the past five years I've only caught one doe, no bucks.

Use an open top trap...the deer will jump out. It is a disheartening site to walk up to a hog trap and find a deer that has crippled itself or broke it's neck. Also, a rooter type trigger helps. I see deer in my trap all the time and they don't trip it.

What does a rooter type trigger look like? I was using a trip wire 6” off the ground at the back of the trap.

I will try and get a photo....it is hard to explain.

That would be great, thanks.

I use to catch deer in my trap started spraying the door all the way around with wd-40 have not caught another deer in my trap since. Caught lots of pigs. I have also put diesel on the corn at the door way only pigs seem to go in.

Thanks for the advise bigdave.

Good luck that's what has worked for me.

After the third doe I cut the top out of mine with bolt cutters.

I quit using my trap altogether. I caught 4 doe and no hogs.

Buddy on the lease just had one in his recently. His BIL uses his trap and forgot to put the t-post across the opening to help keep the deer from getting in. It was a mature buck too. I was checking my cams and had that buck on camera with a busted up nose.

I've got a couple videos of releases from hog traps with pissed off deer. I'm lucky I haven't gotten an arm broken or kicked in the face.

They do go ballistic when you approach the trap and bag off the walls until you get the gate open.

That's what we are doing this weekend to our old traps. Started building Circle or "6" pen traps instead of the normal hog traps to keep the deer from getting trapped.

I’m assuming those that are cutting the tops off aren’t doing this on 4x4x8 traps. If you do the big hogs will climb out. This would only be a good option on a circle pen.

I caught a little buck in my hog trap once. Once! that's all it took. I felt terrible for that little guy. He busted his nose all up trying to get out.

I sprayed my trap door and frame with WD40 as suggested by bigdave, deer ate all the corn scattered around the trap but didn’t touch the corn inside. The pile of corn in the trap sat for three days with deer visiting the area both morning and evening each day.
No hogs yet but I expect that will change once the wheat starts sprouting in the surrounding fields.

Now add (a little bit) of diesel to the corn in the trap. Diesel will act as an attractive to the hogs.
You can put the diesel at the front of the trap just inside the door and then some at the back of the trap.
It does not take much at all; about a measuring cup worth.(1/2 in front and 1/2 in back) Good luck

I built traps for a living and one of my big sellers was a "deer proof" trap. A 4x8 with open top but with a rail around the top, hogs have short legs and can not escape over that rail but deer, turkeys, exotics were able to jump out.

That sounds like it may work. I watched a hog literally climb out of an open top trap and on a different day a pen made of hog panels. Looked like a human sticking its legs in the holes of the panels and climbing right out. Wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it. Also had a big boar bust out of the top of my trap that had a top but wasn't bolted together very tightly. Couldn't believe it made it out but I'm guessing he did the same thing and climbed out once he busted the top off.

I caught up with him the next weekend though. Guess he thought he could get out again.

Would love more info on how you built that trap Simple!

I have a 7 panel, 4ft tall, electric gated, open top pen. I have hogs go in; I set the gate they eat everything lay down for a while get up walk over and climb out. People say once a hog has been in a trap they wont go back in WRONG I caught the same hog 2 nights in a row and he climbed out both nights. Now my trap is a large 7 panel pen. 4ft tall is not tall enough on an open top pen if a large trap. I seen plenty of hogs climb out of a 4ft panel. I have pipe on top blocking all corners and they go right over in the middle of a straight panel. Now a 150 pound pig I have not had one make it over yet, they get 3/4 of the way up in the corners and the pipe puts them back in. Put the diesel and wd40 and deer wont go in. Problem solved

Nice Trap

Big Dave, your advise on spraying WD 40 around the door worked very well. Deer fed around the trap all week, but none went inside the trap. I caught a nice Sow in the trap on the 4th day it was set. I’ll refresh to WD 40 when I rebait the trap. Thanks for the advise.

We have the standard 4X4X8' trap. Caught deer, put rebar down low and still caught deer. Finally we took all the trip wire etc off, laid the trap on it's side where gravity kept the door closed. We just bait through the upside and put a rock under the door to hold it up a few inches. The pigs just push their way in but we have never caught another deer since then.The heard the pigs push on the door the tighter it closes. When we aren't there we bungee the door open.

Thanks, that is what has worked for me and many others I have shared with. You might try the diesel on the corn. I was hesitant at the start to try diesel, but it works great, a splash at the front and at the back of the trap
works as an attractant.
The smell stays for a good while. I will ware gloves or use a bottle of scent away to spray down where I touch the trap with my hands for cover scent. Good luck and keep catching them hogs.