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.

I had a chipmunk that was digging a hole next to my house, kicking little landscaping rocks into my grass, etc... and it kept making a mess so I decided it was time to deal with it. I picked this trap because the brand seemed to have a good reputation, and the size of the trap seemed ideal for something like a chipmunk. I saw some other fancier, larger traps have doors on both sides while this only has one door... so wasn't sure if it would be sufficient or not. Fortunately for me (not the chipmunks), it has been great. The trap comes packaged in a nice looking retail display box, which is nothing special, but did a sufficient job keeping everything intact during shipping. Having never used a trap like this before, I found the process of setting the trap slightly confusing for a few minutes. I didn't think the instructions were great, but watched a video online, and then it just made sense. Now I find it extremely easy to set it, and don't have to think about it at all. Anyway when I went to set the trap, I figured I'd put some nuts inside to attract the chipmunk. I actually was setting the trap with the chipmunk sitting 10 feet away watching me. I set it, stepped away, and literally within 30 seconds the chipmunk was inside and had been captured. It was shocking to me how easy it was. After that, I set the trap out with more food, and caught another chipmunk right away. Then I decided to skip putting food in the trap, and over 3 weeks I've caught 15 chipmunks. I never knew there were so many near my house, it was pretty shocking. Overall I am very pleased with this trap. It's performed very well for what I needed it for.

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