Multi-trap for Gray Squirrels in Central Maine

Posted January 20, 2017

Using a Multi-trap for Gray Squirrels in Central Maine

A multi trap is a type of cage trap can be used to catch and remove squirrels.

Multi traps go by several names: Colony trap, one-way door trap, multiple catch trap, or repeating trap.

With these kinds of traps there is no trigger and pan mechanism to close the door. Instead, the door is often free floating and able to swing freely. The squirrel or other animal can push the door open and the door closes behind them. After the door is closed the critter is trapped inside the cage.

These kinds of traps can be very effective in certain situations.

-A large flange or cage can be used to encase a hole in a building “forcing” the squirrels to go where we want. This is really effective if you have only one or two holes in a home, such as with squirrels.

-A repeating trap can allow you to capture many squirrels in the same trap. This reduces time and costs involved with regular cage traps that only catch one individual at time.

These traps are generally not always effective though in these situations:

-Openly on the ground with bait or lure. Getting an animal to put forth energy to push against a metal door when there is no incentive is not a reliable way to capture squirrels or other animals.

-If the entry points from squirrels on a building are so numerous that “forcing” is not practical.

We Tried The Ineffective Techniques recently in Central Maine

During a job recently we used a multi-trap for gray squirrels. We often use repeating traps for squirrel jobs. However on this particular job the squirrels had opened so many holes in the soffits that the home looked liked swiss cheese. There was no place to attach a colony trap with any kind of measurable success.

Trapping on this job was conducted at the same time that the exclusion happened. During the process we had one location on the building where the gray squirrels would go to everyday to eat nuts and seeds. We were short on traps and decided to set the multi-trap right on the ground beside the other traps. It was heavily baited and lured and set in the best position we could find.

It worked!

The squirrels actually went through the extra trouble of working the one way door until they found their way inside. Much of the success could only be attributed the the strong attraction of other squirrels and food. You just never know what may work though, and animals will always surprise you. While we didn’t capture any more with the repeating trap, we were able to capture and remove 8 more gray squirrels and secure the home using our other trusted methods. It’s always nice when a small test works out.