2011 - Volume #35, Issue #4, Page #31
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Box Traps Light Up When Critters Caught
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When MacInnis and his wife, Bonnie, moved to their rural Prince Edward Island home, they discovered they had plenty of skunk, raccoon and squirrel neighbors. To eradicate skunks from his buildings, MacInnis built a small 8 by 12 by 12-in. box trap out of rough lumber. The back solid wall is glass so it appears the animal can walk right through. A baited ramp activates a wire that releases a door to fall down, which also turns on a flashlight bulb energized by two D batteries.
The light creates a glow on a nearby building, which MacInnis can see from his house.
"I like to know right away, because if the animal is in the trap too long, it will just chew it up," he explains.
When something is caught, he simply picks the trap up by its handles, loads it in his pickup and drives to a public area about 10 miles away to release it.
He doesn't have any trouble with skunks spraying because the box is too small for them to lift their tails.
MacInnis also made two other trap sizes. A bigger one is for raccoons and a smaller one catches squirrels and other small rodents. When he discovered that some squirrels were smart enough to eat his bait, then lift the door and leave, he added a metal lock that falls down when the door falls.
He uses a variety of baits, including brownies and cooked chicken for skunks and peanut butter on bread for squirrels.
The trap has been very effective and MacInnis has made traps for neighbors.
Last year he trapped several skunks, about a dozen raccoons and numerous squirrels, chipmunks and even mice.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, John MacInnis, RR 1, Montague P.E., Canada C0A 1R0 (ph 902 962-2312).
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