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Adultᐁᐦ ᐊᑯᑖᑲᓄᐎᐦᒡ ᓂᒀᑲᓐ
ᐋᐦ ᑖᐱᐦᑳᓂᐎᒡ
Rabbit Snaring Activity
I often went with my grandmother, who taught me how to set snares, hunt ptarmigan, and muskrat.
I was taught to use string for setting snares since we didn’t have snare wire at the time. My grandmother would talk about finding something to rub on the string to remove the human scent before setting the snares.
There were thousands of rabbits in our backyard, and we used to set snares, always bringing home at least three or four.
There were so many rabbits then that we had rabbit and dumplings daily
I used to think that eating rabbit ears were a real treat—they were crunchy! We also ate the kidneys and other internal organs.
We would find a bendable branch, anchor it down, and when a rabbit went through the snare, the branch would snap back up, leaving the rabbit hanging in the air.
– Janie Pachanos
Setting rabbit snares depended on how many nights or how far one had to travel on their winter journey.
Snares were set along trails in deeper snow. Their placement also depended on need and available time. Was there enough time to set up the snares? Was there a need for food or broth for the journey?
Packing lightly was always best. If travelers knew they would have time to set up snares along the way, they would pack less food.
Sometimes, people set up snares near their destination so they could check them the next day.
– Eddie Pashagumeskum
I don’t know if anyone will understand or believe us... but when I’m out on the land, I remember everything that has happened to me.
One morning, my wife said, “Matthew, look at this—a piece off a pine tree, ᐅᔅᒋᔅᒃ, lying on the ground.” I went out and walked around, and that’s when I saw rabbit tracks. That became our main source of food that winter.
There are different kinds of snares, ᓇᐧᑳᑲᓐᐦ. Some are made using snare wire, ᓇᐧᑳᑲᓂᔮᐲ. When I went hunting with an elder, we didn’t have any snare wire. Instead, the elder used a sling made from a piece of string called ᐧᐁᐸᐦᐋᔥᐧᑳᓐ. You can even catch a partridge using that kind of sling.
Sometimes things don’t go right when trapping, or even when hunting for moose. Where we lived, it was a black spruce area, ᐁᐦ ᐄᓈᐦᑎᑯᔥᑳᒡ.
– Mattew Ottereys
You can feed the rabbits and cut down small trees to encourage them to stay in the area where you’re setting your snares.
They like to eat small birch trees—ᐅᔥᐧᑳᐦᔕᐦ, small pine trees—ᐅᒫᔅᒋᔅ, and even pine—ᐅᔅᒋᔅᒃ.
When talking about snares—ᓇᐧᑳᑲᓐᐦ—and setting them—ᐊᑯᑖᔨᓐ—the first thing you need to do is find a rabbit trail, where the rabbit runs: ᐧᐋᐳᔓᒣᐤ. In the summer, you do the same. That’s where you’ll set your snares.
This was known long ago. In the summer, it’s as if the rabbits just blew in—ᐱᒫᔔ—or flew into the area—ᐯᑕᔔ.
– Coom Matoush
In the winter, when setting snares—ᐊᑯᑖᔨᓐ—the snares, ᓇᐧᑳᑲᓐᐦ, are left out overnight.
When setting many snares and catching a lot of rabbits, the hunter would often leave the rabbits along the trail and come back to collect them on the way home. The rabbits were carried on the hunter’s back in a packsack, since toboggans weren’t available at the time.
Eventually, my father made a toboggan—ᐧᐋᔅᐸᑕᐦᐄᑲᓄᐧᐃᐦᒡ—for us, and we used it to pull our rabbits.
– Evadney Petawabano
Most of the time, snare wire—ᓇᐧᑳᑲᓂᔮᐲ—was used. But I’ve also seen a sling made from a piece of string called ᐧᐁᐸᐦᐋᔥᐧᑳᓐ. With that kind of snare, other animals weren’t able to eat the catch.