Some friends set traps on our farm Saturday. When checking the traps Sunday they had a coon and 2 gray foxes, one of which almost all of it had been eaten presumably by coyotes. Another trap was completely gone, maybe a big yote yanked it out?
For you trappers, how common is it for a coyote to eat a fox in a trap?

I've never had anything killed in a trap but it's not uncommon, just means you have a lot yotes. They'll eventually wipe out most of the fox once they get established.

Sorry to here about the trap. It happened to me a couple times my first year, luckily it was a couple of coons and they hung up close by. If using stakes, double stake driving the stakes at an angle to each other. I use shock springs that prevent a solid pull. I typcally use super stake earh anchors welded on a chain, nothing is going to pull those. For coon I either pretangle a drag on 8 feet of chain, or cable the trap off around a small tree. I will drive a single stake through hard ground on my dogproofs if the situation warrants it.

Make sure to post up some pics.

This past weekend my cousin shot a fox while deer hunting. He didn't want to get his scent everywhere so he left it lay and was going to get it after his evening hunt. When he went to get the fox it was almost gone. He had seen a bald eagle near the fox and didn't think much about it. I told him they were scavengers and that is probably what ate his fox. It is the first time he has seen eagles on that farm so was surprised. If you have eagles in the area they can eat the dead animals, don't know if they would kill a live fox in a trap or not. Since you have yotes around it is more likely that a yote got it.

Vic

I've had fox and coyotes killed by coyotes in traps.......but never eaten.

I agree with double staking traps. I lost a coyote once in a set for fox that pulled the stake. The farmer saw it. I wasn't to proud of that. From that day on a total equipment revamp was in order.

Coyotes are higher off the ground than fox. They "pump" the trap when caught.

hello, my uncle had a dog eating out of a trap one night. coyotes will eat anything they can find. so if its in the trap and coyotes are in the area. they will eat it.