What is good bait for a live trap

[MissChick@dee]

I use canned cat food. And MRROO is RIGHT! I had a friend who really thought it through before he trapped a skunk got a 55 gal drum filled it just right with water to put skunk and trap inside. Draped the trap with a heavy tarp. Set the trap away from his home. Once he got the skunk he Poked the tarp so the skunk would spray (use up all his stinking stuff). We all thought WOW great idea. It all goes good until it doesn’t I guess. The skunk had justa’ One Good Spray left in him. Got my friend got it in the face as he turned the trap upside down into the drum. Funny stuff right there!

 

[OhZark Biddies]

Talk about a dilemma! Are you SURE you want to live-trap a SKUNK! You may NEVER get the smell out of your coop ...

I had that thought too.

There are special skunk traps that are made out of large round PVC pipes, that enclose the stinker so that it doesn't spray you.


But if it were me, and I had a brother that was wise in the ways of skunk handling... I'd be calling him...

Just stand back and take video as he's skunk wrangling in case it all goes pear shaped.

 

[MROO]

Yes that is why I did not set the trap in the first place but my brother has acaditly trapped a skunk before so he kinda no we how to let one go but I am scared of the smell going in my coop and I can't put wire under the ground I hope it won't be too bad lol

My yard stays wet a good part of the year, so I opted not to use wire under the ground too. Even galvanized stuff weakens after a while. Instead, I dug a narrow trench right up against the edge of my coop and run. It's about 6" wide and 10" deep. I filled it with dry concrete mix and used a hose to add water, mixing it right in the trench. Instant barrier! There's one spot that I didn't get all the way up against the base, but I covered that with a couple of 24" patio blocks that meet in the middle. If anything digs under those, they're going to end up with a serious headache when they drop!
As a bonus, now that everything has settled, I'm putting up a slightly raised flower bed around the edges. I can plant chicken-friendly, fly-repelling goodies all around it, next year!

 

[Biddybot]

I'll second the cheap canned cat food as being the best bait for raccoons (and skunks)...trapped a whole raccoon family, mom plus four youngsters, just last month using this. And I do mean cheap...stinky fish-based stuff, if possible.

If you even think you may catch a skunk, set the trap where you could slip a big rubbermaid type tub over the whole trap if necessary. I've caught two skunks in big Havahart type wire traps and they were plenty tall enough for a skunk to raise its tail and spray. However, skunks typically sleep during the day and I was able to sneak up and drop the tub in both cases while the occupants were snoozing...you probably could too, but be careful! Obviously! Once the tub's down and the skunk is in the dark, you should be safe. Skunks do NOT want to gas themselves in a small enclosed space. As long as you don't terrify the animal by banging on the tub or something, it's unlikely that they'll spray. Carefully work a big piece of plywood or something similar under the trap and tub after that if you want to drag it away to a more convenient spot or just work around it until you're ready to deal with the trapped skunk. Personally, I did mine in by slipping under some more bait, this time laced with warfarin. No, I don't like using poison, but it was the best one for this sort of situation and neither skunk sprayed as it died. Good luck. I hope your culprit is just a raccoon. They're pretty easy to deal with in my experience...and they can't resist that darn stinky cat food!

 

[chickenmama109]

Thank you everyone I really hope it don't spray the only trap I have is a small one and it's big enough for it to get to but will it spray when the door closes

 

[chickenmama109]

This is one of the holes it has made do you think a skunk would fit this is the outside of the coop

and this is on the inside

 

[townchicks]

Could be a skunk with that size hole, or rats, maybe possum. You wouldn't always smell skunk. Have you considered an electric wire?

 

[MROO]

This is one of the holes it has made do you think a skunk would fit this is the outside of the coopView attachment 1495823 and this is on the inside View attachment 1495825

Oh Yeah! They're flexible, like cats and coons. If their head fits, the rest will follow!

 

[chickenmama109]

Thanks do you think it will spray when the trap closes

 

[chickenmama109]

Could be a skunk with that size hole, or rats, maybe possum. You wouldn't always smell skunk. Have you considered an electric wire?

Thanks no I have not ever heard of them