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Catch Critters Safely With Net Guns
Years of experience capturing wild animals led Mike Ross to develop a gun that safely nets critters alive. First introduced to the public about 3 years ago, Ross developed it nearly a decade ago for his own wildlife capture company.
  “Our primary market is to other companies that specialize in animal capture,” says Ross. “We also sell the net guns to government agencies and ranchers. They can be used from helicopters as well from trucks.”
  Ross uses the Wildlife Capture Equipment (WCE) he sells in his own Helicopter Wildlife Services business that he operates in North and Central America, as well as southern Africa.
  To use the net gun, it is broken open like a shotgun and a blank charge goes into the barrel. Once the barrel is closed, the hammer has to be pulled back before it can be fired.
  The net is folded into a canister with four barrels. Each barrel holds a weight connected to the net by a lanyard. A simple loop technique allows the lanyard to be quickly attached or detached from the net.
  When the gun is fired, the weights are propelled forward, pulling and spreading the net to entrap the target animal. The canisters and weights come in small and large sizes, with the small size canister holding 10 and 12-ft. nets and the large size holding a 15-ft. net. Charges to propel the weights and nets are available in small, medium, heavy and extra-heavy loads. Canisters are lightweight, interchangeable and offer a quick reload. Once a canister has been fired, a net can be quickly loaded with new lanyards placed in the barrels.
  “The interchangeable canisters mean more animals netted and less time spent in the air when using high-cost helicopters,” says Ross. “Other net guns are shoulder held, but ours isn’t, thanks to lower recoil. This makes it easier to aim and fire from a moving vehicle or helicopter.”
  The WCE net gun has a pistol grip with an adjustable fore grip for left or right-handed operators.
  The nets are made from monofilament cords that are spliced rather than knotted. The net is 80 percent softer than competitive nets. Soft doesn’t mean weak, as the cords have an 850-lb. breaking strength.
  “Full-grown moose have been caught with our nets,” says Ross.
  He explains in his instructional videos that a knotless net travels faster with less drag. Once the animal is entrapped, the net spacing stays intact. Knots can slip under pressure, creating larger openings.
  Once the target animal has been caught, special capture hoods and hobbles designed by Ross help subdue it.
  The net guns start at $3,690 with the package including the launcher, 2 canisters with 2 nets, 8 weights, 3 boxes of assorted blanks, a carrying case and accessories.
  Other animal capture options can be used to deliver a wide range of tranquilizers, drugs and vaccines to animals of all sizes. Items range from blowpipes and jabsticks to CO2 rifles and pistols, pump pistols, darts and needles. Prices start at around $215.
  Ross offers a wide range of instructional videos on use of his net guns and other equipment.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Wildlife Capture, 501 W. Powell Lane, Ste. 201, Austin, Texas 78753 (ph 512 920-4757).
orders@wildlifecaptureequipment.com; www.wildlifecaptureequipment.com).


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2017 - Volume #41, Issue #6