Whether you live in the suburbs or out in the sticks, squirrels are a fact of life. For the most part, they’re fun to watch as they carry on their own little drama up and down the trees in the fall.
On occasion, they can become a real problem, destroying crops and taking up residence in the wall of your house for the winter. Once they become a problem, it’s time to break out the squirrel traps.
For the past 6 years, we’ve lived in relative harmony with our squirrels. We had an avid hunter cat that kept their population in check, and he’d bring in 2-3 a week.
He seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of squirrels to hunt and eat, and he never bothered with kitty kibble. Well, one night he took to hunting a fisher cat and bit off more than he could chew, and I’m sad to say my hunter cat is no more.
The next year, the squirrels came back with a vengeance. A big grey squirrel stripped every plum tree bare overnight and stole at least 10 gallons of fruit.
I was willing to take that crop loss and move on until they took up residence in my wall the following week. A massive pile of insulation torn out of the house and a big hole in my wall is more than I’m willing to take.
Another few days later, a red squirrel claimed our attached greenhouse as his own. He stands on the supports near the roof and loudly displays when we come near, guarding his territory inside our house!
I’m pretty sure this little territorial demon is the same one that’s eating the side of the house, but I can’t exactly whip out a pellet gun in my own greenhouse.
That night I went on Amazon and combed through reviews for squirrel traps. After over an hour of reading reviews, I decided on three different traps to test out.
We have a healthy population and dozens of squirrels, so I don’t think 3 traps is overkill by any means. We caught our first squirrel in less than 24 hours, and the squirrel harvest continues even now.
In the process, we’ve learned a lot about what makes a good squirrel trap. Some of the original batch of squirrel traps were returned without catching a single squirrel, and we’ve since ordered more from a different manufacturer. We’ll continue trialing them until the population reaches a more sustainable level (and we catch that one that’s living in the walls).
Squirrel Trap Bait
I’ve tried a number of squirrel trap baits, but the best one so far is peanut butter. A trail of peanuts leading into the trap, with a smear of peanut butter on the trap trip draws them in. I’ve also taken peanut butter and rolled it in peanuts to make a ball of peanut-coated peanut butter, which they seem to come for within hours.
The problem is, in many of the traps they can steal the bait without setting off the trip. Squirrels are light, and it takes quite a bit to trip an animal trap.
Havahart Two Door Small Animal Trap
One of the smallest Havahart traps available, the two-door small animal trap says it’s designed for catching squirrels, chipmunks, rats and weasels. The squirrels seem to be very comfortable around it. They have no problem stealing the bait every few days, unfortunately without setting off the trap trip mechanism.
Because this trap has two doors, the trap needs to set off both doors at the same time.
That means that it’s quite difficult to set, and you have to get multiple levers entangled in each other to set it properly.
Since the bait’s been stolen about a dozen times, I’ve read more instructions on this trap. Just about everyone that reviewed this trap positively did so with caveats. They had to heavily modify it to make it work, including drilling through the top of the trap so they could wire a piece of corn cob to the ceiling above the trip.
They then greased the trip mechanism and bent the trip bars to make it a true hair-trigger that the wind would sometimes set off. Using all those modifications, and taking about 20 minutes to set the trap each time, wiring in the bait and hair triggering it, they caught a squirrel every 3 or 4 times it was baited.
That’s not good enough for my book, and as it is there’s no way an animal as light as a squirrel can set off this trap. This one was returned without having caught a single squirrel.
Havahart One Door Small Animal Trap
The Havahart extra small one-door small animal trap didn’t fare any better. We set this one up on a flat section of our roof, just below the squirrel’s hole in the wall.
You can see all the insulation that’s collected next to it as the squirrel continues to excavate our walls. There’s a huge mass of peanut butter behind the trap trip, and more peanut butter smeared on the trip itself.
The squirrel walks right over the trip again and again and takes the peanut butter ball.
Again, there are reviews specifying some pretty extreme modifications like using chopsticks around the sides to prevent the squirrel from climbing the sides of the trap to steal the bait without stepping on the trap, wiring in the bait, and greasing the heck out of everything.
They also all mention the need to modify the trigger mechanism. It’s a simple hook that’s pretty well attached to the top of the trap, and it takes a lot of force to trip the trap. Again, it’d take a pretty fat squirrel to set this thing off, and even our well-fed squirrels haven’t set it off once.
I’ve since checked back in, and they’ve completely redesigned the trip mechanism and door for their squirrel trap. The new version, the Havaheart 0745 squirrel trap has nearly 2000 five-star reviews and I’m considering trialing that version in my next round.
Nonetheless, both Havahart traps I tried were useless for squirrels. I regularly use their medium-sized animal trap for raccoons breaking into the chicken coop or groundhogs in the garden and it works great.
There’s nothing wrong with the Havahart design in general, provided the animal is large enough to set the trap. For squirrel traps, their design just doesn’t work.
So what does work?
The Best Squirrel Trap
The best squirrel trap I’ve tried to date is squirrelinator from rugged ranch products. There is no “trip” on this squirrel trap, just a one-way door that squirrels walk through and can’t get out.
I set a trail of peanuts into the trap and then sprinkled some all around inside and out of it. The squirrel finds the door, pushes through and then is trapped without any complicated mechanism.
Setting the trap takes about 2 seconds, simply set it on the ground and toss a handful of peanuts in its general direction. Though I tried to set it in our greenhouse to catch our extra-special house guest, he didn’t buy it in the artificial surroundings.
I’ve found it works best placed on the ground in a more natural environment. I put it on the floor of the woods about 50 feet from the house, and it catches at least one squirrel a day.
Occasionally, I’ve gone out to check the squirrelinator and found the bait missing. That left me wondering if a raccoon had come along and reached through the top of the trap to steal the bait. While that’s a possibility, it’d be easy enough to fix by putting a board over the top of the trap.
I eventually found that it wasn’t a raccoon, but the young baby squirrels just out of the nest. When they “fledge” they’re almost as big as a full-sized squirrel, but not quite. At one point, I saw from a distance that the trap had caught one, and when I picked up the trap the little squirrel dove through the side wire.
I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it, literally 2 feet in front of my face. It wasn’t easy for him, he had to squirm and another millimeter bigger and he wouldn’t have made it.
All around, it’s a great squirrel trap and very easy to set. It won’t catch the smallest juvenile red squirrels, but it does a great job with both adult red and grey squirrels.
The next two traps I’m hoping to trial are this tube trap that should work for the smallest squirrels and this small rodent trap that has a much more reasonable trigger mechanism. Reviewers say that mice set it off, and the cage is large enough to hold squirrels but has very tiny mesh, so I’m hopeful that it will work with the smallest ones.
Once you’ve caught a squirrel, they’ll make a tasty meal. Sure, you could release them somewhere else in the neighborhood to plague your neighbors, or you could quickly clean and gut a squirrel and cook it up like you would a rabbit.
caroline gerardo
I’ve had squirrels that kill my smaller chickens and their young. I like your idea of eating them, never release them to plague someone else and the native area ones usually kill the invader
TnT
Greetings — Good reading here but I don’t think eating a squirrel is a good idea due to the diseases of any animal in the wild. Respectfully submitted.
Ashley Adamant
Fair enough. There is a robust squirrel hunting tradition all over this country, including here in Vermont and they’re quite common, especially for beginning hunters. They’re not that different than wild rabbit or deer. That said, we’re very rural out here, and in a more urban environment, I’d be more worried about what they’d gotten into and less likely to put them on the table. Less disease, and more contaminants, chemicals, or heavy metals. That’s just me personally though.
Yaspar
No diseases in breeding barns, feed lots or monster slaughterhouses though. Right?
Mark Cogley
You sound dumb
Chris
I had a significant squirrel problem and one of the nay traps I tried was the small rodent trap that you refernce near the end of the article. The trap itself caught many squirrels, but since the trap was made of aluminum, if you left the animal for just a little while (say if you couldn’t regularly check the trap a few times during the day), the squirrels could chew through it. I had one almost escape that way.
Ashley Adamant
Interesting! They have pretty good teeth, so it makes sense they could chew their way out through aluminum if given a bit of time. Thanks so much for sharing your experience.
Terry
Hi Ashley ,found your site interesting as I also trap squirrels to keep my fruit trees from being stripped ,have done quit a bit of research on the subject of trapping and found a couple traps that have worked well for me ,one being the Kania Trap #2000 which is a kill trap and is made in British Columbia and is very popular with nut farmers in that country as I’m sure it is here as well .it is a bit pricy but well worth it because of it’s effectiveness ,the squirrels seem to stand in line to enter this tram and it kills very quickly . the second trap I always have set is made by Tru catch located in the Dakotas and make all different size traps that are very well made out of heavy gage wire mesh and powder coated so they are well protected from adverse weather but the one I use for squirrels is called The Tuffy 24 Kitten trap and I have caught small raccoons and opossum which were released as not being the target animal but have caught a few rats in it which surprised me ,pretty sensitive. am always interested in hearing others experience with squirrel traps it’s a full time job as you know. Terry
Ashley Adamant
Thanks Terry! I hadn’t heard of any of those, but I’m going to try them out. We’re planting a few hundred hazelnuts this year and that’ll really increase our squirrel rangling duties. I’m glad to have a few more recommendations!
Mark
The picture of the trip mechanism on the Havahart 1025 trap shows it is set incorrectly. The straight wire should be outside the bent wire, under the U-shaped loop in the other wire. Otherwise, it will be harder to set, and could keep it from closing when tripped. Worse than that, the two 90 degree bends, one from trip pin, one from door control wire, appear to be interlocked in a way that would keep it from triggering, which seems consistent with your problem with the trap. The wires need to be tweaked to make the trip mechanism work properly.
You can also use it as a one door trap, with the straight wire moved out from under the bent wire. So you have that options as well.
I have two 1025s, and my issue is the traps are too sensitive. Very small birds set them off. Since I monitor and it is a live trap, they get released none the worse for wear. I recently modified my traps by filling better flats on the wires to make them less sensitive, and they are not trapping small birds anymore.
I also have a couple 1077s. They are easier to set, and not quite as hair trigger as the 1025s. But they still catch squirrels easily. Of course, the bent wire trigger mechanism can vary a lot, leaving one trap hair trigger and one that hardly triggers at all. I would guess, with a little wire bending, your 1077 could be made to function.
Anyway,
Good luck.
Ashley Adamant
Thanks so much!
Holt
Use sunflower seeds as bait
Bruce
The Trap Maker in California makes versions of the Squirrelinator that are a big improvement in design and durability. He sells 8 versions depending upon the use.
http://thetrapmaker.com/wordpress/shop/
Riesah
Thanks so much for the discussion on squirrels. I’ve looked all over to figure out how to make the TenderTrap one work. I have one that could be used for local cats, raccoons and that size animal. The smaller one is, as you say, difficult, because the trip doesn’t seem to work and the bait is gone. I got one squirrel the first time I used it but have been unsuccessful since. I live in a town with many black and some gray versions; neighbours feed them peanuts and they come into my hugelkultured garden to bury them and bite off the heads of my young plants. I wish there were a diagram showing exactly how to have the wires going right. I don’t plan to eat them or release them as they are smart critters who find their way back “home” even when driven into the wild for 3 hours’ time. Any suggestions would be welcome.
David Foy
The two-door Havahart works 100% for me. I smear a teaspoon of peanut butter on each side of the paddle that triggers the doors. I’ve watched several times. Mr. Squirrel licks the near peanut butter off, then steps over to the other side of the paddle to get the bait there and that’s all it takes. I did see one incredibly fast athletic little squirrel actually jump backwards out of the trap the split-second it was triggered, but only one. I’ve never found the trap still set and empty of bait, nor sprung but empty of squirrel.
Riesah Prock
Could you please include a photo and the product number for this trap.
Bob Busch
I have the two-door Havahart trap. It is my favorite. The trap mechanism needs to be set correctly. As someone else has noted, the one in your photo is not. I have unintentionally caught birds and frequently possums. They are released unharmed. Animals will occasionally set it off from the outside when they reach in from the outside. The top side has a metal plate, but the sides do not. I have attached metal hardware cloth (screen) to the sides of the cage in the area of the trip/paddle. This is to help prevent those accidental closings of the trap from the outside. Like you, I find peanut butter to be the best bait. I buy the Chunky kind. In spite of my success with the two-door Havahart trap, I might try the trap that you like the best. I have even built my own traps, with little success. I have the one-door Havahart trap and I have yet to catch a squirrel in it. In my opinion, the two-door one is superior to the single door trap.
bob cypher
My squirrelinator trap is an utter failure. first time, I baited it with peanut butter and caught a squirrel ( in my attic) Since then, although I set it in the exact same place with the same bait, The bait is gone, no squirrel. Im quite dissatisfied, and would like some thoughts
Admin
Like I said in the post when that happened with my squirrelinator, it turned out to be a baby squirrel that still fit through the side of the trap. Not sure if that’s what’s going on with yours though, it could be a mouse.
Clyde
All you folks with the “Squirrelinator” traps, All you would have to do, is go to the nearest Hardware Store and get some screen, called “Hardware Cloth” it’s 1/2inch squares, wrap your “Squirrelinator” it that, AND NOTHING IS GOING TO GET-AWAY, short of a SNAKE, and a Small one at that. Hope this helps
Kyle
This is a great article. We are a wildlife removal company in Grand Rapids MI. I linked your article to one of my inner pages, because I found it so useful and true.
Ashley Adamant
Awesome, thanks!
Bonnie J Bloom
I have good luck on trapping adult squirrels with the groundhog-sized trap, but you have to set a brick on the trip plate until it almost wants to go off, but not quite. Bait goes just past the trip plate. Deactivate at night so as not not trap possums and raccoons.
Administrator
Thanks for sharing!
Jeannette
How do you kill them after you get them in the trap if you don’t have gun?
Administrator
Here is a trap that traps and kills that another reader shared. You can check it out and see if it might work for you. https://www.kania.net/2000.htm
Matthew Yang
I made a live tube trap. You seal the cardboard mailing tube with a cardboard circle that fits tightly. Add another circle that is tight fitting but losely attkached with tape. Take plastic food rapping and rap a a solid bait. Seal the rapping and put tape. Drop to bottom and press the tape against the tube with a stick. Put rubber band on tube and staple to circles. Strap tube to a thick abd long narrow rectangle and have some cardboard stick past the loose circle. Take a branch and cu it to be the fiameter of the tube. Open the loose circle by its tape hinge, place stick against cardboard perpendicularly and push it under the door. Set on fence and check normally. You should try this as it has solid walls. I think you should make a few snd them to your squirrel places along with your other traps. I caught 10 squirrels the first week. I also like the baits and ideas you gave me!
Thanks,
Your new fan,
Matthew
Matthew Yang
The trap I talked about, it is solid. There is no side wire. The little juvenile squirrels also get trapped. I recommend also putting cardboard rectangles on the squirrelinator. It blocks the squirrels from escaping.
Matthew Yang
I made a live tube trap. It was solid. I think you could make your squirrelinator escape proof by putting cardboard pieces on sides. Setting takes just 1 min. Pull the rubberband up and put a piece of stick up perpendicular. Attach the bait to the back. You can use this for your greenhouse guest and for guarding little corners against walls and tiny spaces to ensure squirrels from messing with your house. You can put it in your walls to catch your wall squirrel. You can also put it on the fence or in trees to stop more squirrels from entering your walls and house. I recommend it. It caught 10 squirrels over the week.
Matthew Yang
That tube trap I made was artemis 3. Even if it caught 10 squirrels the first week. Most of the time, the trap works once and then the bait is stolen once. Since the trap is light only dumb juvenile squirrels get trapped. The big ones lift the trap and dump the bait, birdseed, out into a heap. Yesterday, I made a trap called Artemis 4. It is a snap trap and was tested 3 times. It worked all 3 times and now its our comercial guard for our chipmunk feeder, wires, fences, and guavas. You put some bait into a metal glasses case and then put a rubber band on the case, parellel with the hinge. Put a the width of the case to hold it open. Put it in an area you want to guard. Put a trail of the bait leading the squirrel from its comercial trafic to your trap. The trap eill grab thr swuirrel eith its jaws and crush it. This may catch the juvenile squirrels. Or make a rectangular prism tube with cardboard or get a huge paper tube snd attach it inside. This will take away all the squirrels. Repeat this with all the other spare cases. The exposed ones are artemis 4. The tubed ones are called artemis 5. I use artemis four.
Gord
Hello. This is a terrific, helpful article. The best I have ever found online!
I have a single-door Havahart and live in an urban area. The first week I was trapping several squirrels a day. Since then, squirrels go past the cage and pay it no mind. Is it possible they sense something is wrong now that other squirrels have been trapped there? Does it matter it I change the bait more often?
Darn squirrels are stripping every bush on the property. Thanks!!!.
Administrator
That is very strange indeed. Maybe you could try a different kind of bait or change the location of the trap. Maybe even remove it for a day or two and then set it back out. Let me know how it goes.
Gord Fogel
Thanks very much. I’ll give these suggestions a try 🙂
Administrator
You’re very welcome.
Radboy Magee
I found you have to modify the 2 door Havahart trap. Remove the trigger bar for the second door and wire it open. Next use hardware cloth to enclose the open end. With only one way in and out it will catch squirrels and rats most every time. I was getting some (especially squirrels) who were desperate enough to squeeze under the remaining door. For that I fashioned a thin piece of wood inside, across the bottom, near the opening. They chew it, but can’t get past it. I don’t eat them, but the gators love em.
To Gord. When you get a cautious squirrel, try wiring the door open for a couple days. Once they get used to a free lunch set it again and it’s lights out.
Allison
You know, the two-door Hav-a-Hart trap can be set using just one door. It’s the same as the mouse trap that has two doors. You can set one door open and put the peanut butter item down by the shut door and for sure the trap will be tripped the they go that far in for the food.
Ed
I have 2 Haveaheart traps, the 2-door version (1025) and the 1-door version (1083). I’ve caught hundreds (literally) of squirrels in the 1 door trap, to the point where I suspect I need to do a little repair work on it to strengthen the trip lever. The 2-door model has proven too small for many squirrels, having the trip plate in the middle of the cage. The squirrel enters, starts to eat, trips the lever, but his ass is still in the door. They simply back out quickly. The trap must be large enough for the animal to fit inside completely before the door closes. As for bait, I use sunflower seeds and they love ’em. If I want to add a little spice, I’ll put a very small dab of peanut butter in a bottle cap, press a few sunflower seeds into it, and it prevents the mess of having PB smeared all over the interior of the cage. On my little 2-door model, I used double-stick tape to attach the bottle cap to the trip plate. They seem to come deeper into the trap when they have to work harder for the food. The 1025 also works pretty well for rats (if you have squirrels, you likely have rats, too). Lastly, I picked up an inexpensive WIFI camera and trained it on the trap in the attic. Every so often, I check the trap to check for any guests. I even went so far as to add a memory card, so I can go back and watch the little monster incarcerate himself. All of these animals are relocated to a large park a few miles from my house, unlikely they will ever find their way back here. I put the squirrels into a grove of nice little acorn-bearing oaks, and drop the rats in the middle of a huge field of soccer fields, where hawks and an occasional eagle keep watch. If they make it back to the woods, then so be it.
AL
Squirrelenator is a Chinese knockoff of a superior product made in USA called Black Fox squirrel trap. Black Fox is heavier duty and has 1 inch by 1 inch holes.. Catches wood rats too. Smaller squirrels can go through the holes in Squirrelenator. Black Fox gets them all. Google up Black Fox squirrel trap.
Administrator
Thanks for sharing.
SSS Pinterest
Great insights on squirrel traps! I appreciate the detailed pros and cons section. It really helped me decide which trap would work best in my backyard. Thanks for sharing!
Administrator
You’re very welcome. So glad it was helpful for you.