Methods

All live furbearing animals taken during the open season for such species shall be released unharmed or dispatched immediately and made part of the daily bag. It is unlawful to keep such animals alive after their capture unless you have first obtained a DNR permit, license or authorization to possess the animal alive.

Note: A trapping license does not allow the possession of live wild animals obtained by trapping.

You may not:

• Set any trap for which a trapping license is required, unless a metal tag is attached to the trap. The tag must be stamped or engraved legibly with the name and address of the operator or with their customer ID number. Heavy-duty stamped tags are recommended. Note: Landowners trapping under the landowner exemption do not need to tag traps.
• Possess any trap for the purpose of catching furbearing animals other than a jawed trap, cage/box trap, enclosed trigger trap, body-grip trap, cable restraint, foot-activated cable restraint, snare or colony trap. Cage or box traps shall be constructed so that no additional animals may enter the trap after an animal has been captured until that animal is removed and the trap has been reset.
• Place any set or sprung trap, snare or cable restraint for furbearing animals during the closed season, unless conducting nuisance wildlife control work. Note: Using stakes or other devices to mark a trap site prior to the season opener is not allowed on DNR-managed lands and is not recommended on other public lands. It does not legally reserve the site for the person placing the stake or markers. Note: Cable restraints can only be used for nuisance wildlife control work during the closed season if a permit is issued by the department.
• Take or attempt to take beaver, fisher, mink, muskrat or otter by any means other than trapping or snaring. It is illegal to dispatch a fisher, mink, muskrat or otter by means of a firearm or spear. Beaver may be dispatched by firearm only if held in a trap or snare. Note: Landowners, occupants or their family members who live with the landowner or occupant may take beaver by firearm on their land. Shooting hour restrictions apply.
• Operate trap sets that permit the trapped animal to reach water except when the muskrat, mink, beaver or otter trapping season is open in the zone you are trapping in or unless using a commercially manufactured enclosed trigger trap.
• Set, place or operate more than 3 feet above the ground any trap or device designed or used to capture or kill birds.
• Use sight-exposed bait consisting of feathers, animal flesh, fur, hide or entrails within 25 feet of any trap, snare or cable restraint, except for enclosed trigger traps and cage traps. Sight-exposed bait is any bait that can be seen from above.
• Place bait or scent for furbearing animals during the closed season, except for efforts specific to nuisance wildlife control.
• Physically damage or destroy any mink den, muskrat house, muskrat feeding house or beaver dam (DNR Publication WM-007 Beaver Damage Control Guidelines). 
• Place on the ice any artificial house or den (not including weasel boxes) for the purpose of catching any furbearing animal.
• Molest or take traps, cable restraints, snares or trapped animals that belong to someone else.