I have a chipmunk job coming up soon. Was going to use snap traps. Which bait should I use?

There is no selective chipmunk bait that I've ever used, which is why I stay away from snap traps.

I've been having problems with chipmuck's raiding my coon cages of the bait. I use pelletized fish food soaked in molasses and they eat it up. If you had the time an accurate .177 is the best medicine for chipmuck's. I've also wired soda caps to the pans (to hold the bait) of zero's and #1 long spring to catch rats and chipmuck's.

Snap traps will work, but they can also cause additional issues with non-targets, especially with birds.

Instead, I'd recommend using either the Sherman or Safeguard 3 x 3 x 10 metal traps. These are very species specific and take additional problem rodents like voles. You can set them in mulch beds and cover them or put them inline with the building on the travel pathways. You can even place them inside of coon traps to catch the "raiders" and have an additional attraction for the coon with the noise.

You can get the Sherman traps from Tomahawk at www.livetrap.com or from Sherman and the Safeguard traps from WCS at www.shopWCS.com.

The traps eric mentioned are great. If your going to use snap traps I would use weasal boxes or bait boxes that hold a snap trap or rodenticides. It keeps the birds out. On target makes a chipmonk lure then practically any seed will attract them. If you add an odor or catch a chipmonk I would anchor the trap and its container as coons will either get caught in the rat trap and carrry it off to pull out or run off with it like a lunch box to never be seen again.

I put a rat trap in a box with a cover on it. Sort of like a weasel box. I put sun flower seed inside. That way you do not have to worry about bird, sqrs, dogs, cats etc. The action is out of sight of the public. I screw the trap to the bottom of the box. I use the rat trap with the yellow pan. Make sure the seed do not get under the pan. Also make sure the box it hi enough for the dog to fly up when tripped.

Going backwards, if you're going to use a rat trap, Everet has the right idea. We do something similar in Protecta Bait Boxes.

Eric Arnold just embarrassed the heck out of me. As the world's greatest chipmunk trapper, I'm supposed to know stuff like that!

Brooker's vacation did him a world of good. As one of the readers said, "His posts are world class, since he's been back!"