Havahart 1026 Small 1-Door Humane Live Catch and Release Animal Trap for Squirrels, s, Chipmunks, and Small Animals

Loved this trap. Caught the little fella before he entirely destroyed my engine compartment in my new F150. Let him go on the other side of the river. . . WOW, was he happy to go. So no injuries or apparent trauma.

These traps WORK. They are humane and do NOT harm the intruding animal. A little tricky to set up but once you get the hang of it, they are quick to deploy and do what they are meant to do: safely trap a small intruder without doing it any harm. Great value.

I'm not sure why a company that claims to have been making traps for over 80 years would engineer such a problematic trip mechanism into this trap. As others have noted, it's very difficult to get just the right set so that it will stay open, but trip when required. Being a clever guy, I overcame the problem with a toothpick, or sliver of wood, but why should I have to modify the mechanism? In any event, the first squirrel was caught day 1, so the trap works when set up well. I filled a plastic bottlecap with peanut butter and double-sided taped it to the trip tray, preventing any possibility of a grab and dash from the squirrel. I gave 4 stars because my expectation was that at this price point, I would likely have to accommodate some kind of deficiency and in the end, to do so was fairly straightforward.

I have 2 traps like this. The older one works great. This design, which is newer, gave me fits. It is harder to set because there is a rod that comes off (my other trap had it attached), and the opening is so small that I have trouble getting my arm in there far enough to set the bait. Trying to manage both of those at the same time was a challenge for me. Then when I compare how many "critters" I catch with this one vs. the older design, there is no comparison- the older one is better. I got so frustrated with this one , I eventually threw it away.

Bought to handle a stoat.. caught many rats as well