# How to trap SQUIRRELS, for food and pelts.



## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

This is an excellent article on trapping Red Squirrels. 

http://www.trapperman.com/forum/ubb...06/Snaring_the_Western_Red_Squirr#Post1126006


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## anniew (Dec 12, 2002)

great article and photos. Thanks.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I read that one a while back , sadly not legal here 

there was another article in trappers post about ADC squirrel work where he used a 2x4 set on edge 1 1/2 inch side up at a 45* angle against trees near the house that were likely the path for making it to the roof , he used a a pair of 110 one half way up and the other 3/4 of the way up the board nails held the trap an they were anchored off at the chain so that would hang once sprung , then using fabric over the trigger and a bit of nut butter on the fabric the squirrel would be perfectly aligned to take the hit on the back of the neck with they angle of the board and the width this had the benefit of the customers seeing and almost instant kill and not the less desirable flopping about for 30 seconds 

also not legal here 


what is legal here is live trap then dispatch , I pick up walnuts when they first start falling and store them away in a bucket with a lid in the garage till few walnuts are seen under the trees , then a nut tossed to the back of the live trap brings a squirrel about every other day 

with a few traps you can get enough

on the up side they are still nice and warm when it is time to skin and it peals off easily


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## Ellendra (Jul 31, 2013)

GREENCOUNTYPETE said:


> I read that one a while back , sadly not legal here
> 
> there was another article in trappers post about ADC squirrel work where he used a 2x4 set on edge 1 1/2 inch side up at a 45* angle against trees near the house that were likely the path for making it to the roof , he used a a pair of 110 one half way up and the other 3/4 of the way up the board nails held the trap an they were anchored off at the chain so that would hang once sprung , then using fabric over the trigger and a bit of nut butter on the fabric the squirrel would be perfectly aligned to take the hit on the back of the neck with they angle of the board and the width this had the benefit of the customers seeing and almost instant kill and not the less desirable flopping about for 30 seconds
> 
> ...



Most homemade traps aren't legal in Wi, but several types of store-bought ones are. You can get a booklet on trapping regulations at the same places that carry hunting regulations, or check the DNR website.

Getting a trapping license requires taking a Trapper Education class, but I found that to be worthwhile when I took it. The instructors made their living in furs, and had tips on getting the most income and the best quality out of each fur. 

I used lethal traps on the gray squirrels in my backyard, up until my shoulder got bad enough that I couldn't set the traps anymore.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I have my Wisconsin trapping license however squirrel are not considered a fur bearer in the trapping regs provisions for taking them by trap are in the nuisance wildlife removal guide http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/wildlifehabitat/documents/nuswlguide.pdf

but snares must be at least 1/2 underwater in Wisconsin at all times 

body grip traps can not have bait or sent used near them unless enclosed 

no sight exposed bait may be used within 25 feet of a trap 

so this limits us to enclosed traps and live traps 

since some cities in Wisconsin prohibit the use of body grip traps 

live trap is the only thing legal every where in the state

and agents of landowners may only be used with written permission and only when damage is being caused 

yes I could use enclosed baited sets with body grip traps inside on my own land or when helping with damage for another

If you know of a way around these and can show it in the DNR regulations I would love to start snaring squirrel

I think part of it is that with the exception of land owners taking them on their own property , squirrel hunting is a big enough sport in Wisconsin that they don't want one trapper going in and taking a hundred squirrel over a 2-3 day period , they want to limit squirrel to the 5 a day bag limit of hunting them. 

another reason I use the live traps , is that my aunt has black squirrels on her property , she likes them because they are different so If I get a black one I have to let it go she has many squirrel and they do cause damage so i can help with traps.


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

My interest in this is not starving to death post SHTF. And the procurement of food quietly. To that end I have bought a lot of the requirement wire. And distributed it to cache sites. There are *billions *of Red Squirrels here in the Majestic Chugach National Forest.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

well if rules are out I am all in on trapping them although I would spend my first week ridding myself of all the domestic cats that would be my later competition

when I trapped many of the cats during the recent recession the rabbit population exploded 
at the time I had very few neighbors I was surrounded by foreclosures


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## Ohio Rusty (Jan 18, 2008)

When I used to live in the city, We were overrun with squirrels getting into everything. I set a large rat trap on the top of my fence 2x4 baited with peanut butter. My best in one day was 6 squirrels !! I ate well that winter and I swear I never put a dent in the squirrel population ....
Ohio Rusty ><>


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## CottageLife (Jul 20, 2009)

What type of trap are you all using for squirrels? We have some grey squirrel(s?) trying to take over our barn. We've tried a have-a-heart trap and they (or something) takes the food very quickly and doesn't trip the trap at all! I want them gone!


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> We've tried a have-a-heart trap and they (or something) takes the food very quickly and doesn't trip the trap at all!


Play with bending and lubricating the trigger mechanism so it will trip at the lightest touch.


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## CottageLife (Jul 20, 2009)

Bearfootfarm said:


> Play with bending and lubricating the trigger mechanism so it will trip at the lightest touch.


Thanks, we'll check that. This guy needs to move out of my barn, he's making a mess :bash:


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

with any trap make them work for the bait , a can wired to the top back of the trap inside makes them step on the pan to get the eats

tuning a trap can be easily done with a pop bottle with sand in it get it to the desire weight then file and adjust till that weight setts it off


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## bourbonred (Feb 27, 2008)

Can someone tell me about when to trap...thinking about diseases? I seem to remember reading to hunt after the first freeze in order to avoid rabies. If I am depending on squirrels for food, there probably won't be good medical care close.


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## farmerDale (Jan 8, 2011)

Take a pole, fasten it between two trees at chest height. Squirrels, WILL run these rails, in any decent habitat. Set your snares on the poles, several on each pole. No bait needed, cheap snare wire is all you need. They hang themselves and it is very humane.

Every evening, go collect your squirrels before the weasels, marten, fisher, ravens, magpies, or even other squirrels find them.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

bourbonred said:


> Can someone tell me about when to trap...thinking about diseases? I seem to remember reading to hunt after the first freeze in order to avoid rabies. If I am depending on squirrels for food, there probably won't be good medical care close.



if cooked fully it doesn't matter but you might want gloves for cleaning them

rabies is a virus and can't live on in cold , possums (marsupials) tend not to carry rabies at least not through a winter because they drop their body temp down into the 60s in the winter while sort of hibernating I don't think it is true hibernation 

they may have ticks and such if before the first frost


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

FarmerDale, I understand running the pole; but what are the "traps" you say to set? Any pics?

I have some huge rat traps that can be nailed to trees and baited with peanut butter. Have not tried them as yet as I've always thought one needs to wait until the fall or early spring to gather these due to disease.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

motdaugrnds said:


> FarmerDale, I understand running the pole; but what are the "traps" you say to set? Any pics?
> 
> I have some huge rat traps that can be nailed to trees and baited with peanut butter. Have not tried them as yet as I've always thought one needs to wait until the fall or early spring to gather these due to disease.


he is talking about snare wire 

it is a thin wire that has some memory to it so you can make a little loop in the end and feed back through that now you have liek a little lasso that stays open you tie off the other end so that is secured to the pole an dplace the loop so that a squirrel running across the pole will stick it's head through the loop when it tightens up it will nick him off the pole , ever seen a dog start running at you then run out of chain and the head stops but the body keeps going , yeah imagine that dog did that on a balance beam and then fell off 

you can set a snare about every 24 inches on a pole when they get caught they fall and when you go to check it looks like a line of squirrels hanging from the gallows 

that should paint a better picture in your mind 

the wire is thin like the E small string on a guitar


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## farmerDale (Jan 8, 2011)

motdaugrnds said:


> FarmerDale, I understand running the pole; but what are the "traps" you say to set? Any pics?
> 
> I have some huge rat traps that can be nailed to trees and baited with peanut butter. Have not tried them as yet as I've always thought one needs to wait until the fall or early spring to gather these due to disease.


Green country answered well for me. Regarding the rat traps and peanut butter, I would worry a fair bit about non target catches. Blue jays, whiskey jacks, and other songbirds. 

Snare wire is so cheap and so easy.


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

Pretty neat. Might have to give that a try.


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## farmerDale (Jan 8, 2011)

When I was snaring coyotes last winter, I got the kids into snaring snowshoe hare. They caught lots of them, setting the snares on their own. Taste decent. Kids liked the taste more than my and my wife.

Snaring anything is ALWAYS cheaper, and in my view, ALWAYS much easier than trapping. Humane as you can get if set up right.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

farmerdale how many uses do you get from your coyote snares ?

we have to use cable restraints here and it makes for a new cable every time they make a catch

they are only about a 1.75 each ready to go if you by them by the dozen


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## farmerDale (Jan 8, 2011)

It is a one shot deal with the snares. I buy snare making materials, and build my own. Costs me about 2 bucks a piece. When a yote is worth 80 or 100 bucks, ( I got 160 dollars for my best one), it is a small investment. Protects the sheep and makes a bit of spending money. I have a goal to catch 50 this year. Getting all revved up for fall, as the shadows get longer with each day.


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## 1OldBear (Oct 5, 2017)

I like the idea of rat traps with peanut butter. Has anyone had any experience with nailing the trap to the side of a tree? Eastern grey and fox squirrel are invasive and pest species in Oregon and I was dreaming of a burgoo . . .


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## Murby (May 24, 2016)

I just got done reading a series of books called the "Going Home - Survivalist Series"

Book 1: Going Home
Book 2: Surviving Home
3: Escaping Home
4: Forsaking Home
5: Resurrecting Home
6: Enforcing Home
7: Avenging Home 
I going to start reading "Home Invasion" next. 

Trapping squirrels was a main food source for the community and it really saved their asses... They let the responsibility fall to the kids who they taught to make the wire snare traps that worked so well. 

This was a great series of books to read and its taken me a couple months to cover them all. The realistic information and situations keep you glued to the book.... 

From cold blooded executions and shooting someone in the head who tried to hurt your family, to taking in complete strangers just because they seem like good people... next to the William R. Forstchen series starting with "One Second After", the Going Home series was top notch reading.


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## Wolf mom (Mar 8, 2005)

farmerDale said:


> Take a pole, fasten it between two trees at chest height. Squirrels, WILL run these rails, in any decent habitat. Set your snares on the poles, several on each pole. No bait needed, cheap snare wire is all you need. They hang themselves and it is very humane.
> Every evening, go collect your squirrels before the weasels, marten, fisher, ravens, magpies, or even other squirrels find them.


Love the idea. I'm overrun with grey squirrels thanks to my ancient oak tree. My concern would not be other wildlife, but the neighbor kids seeing a totem pole of dead squirrels before I could get to it. Note to self: check on legality where I live.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

The koro trap is probably the best on the market for specifically trapping squirrels. A rat trap is less than ideal, especially for fox squirrels. Number one or one and a half footholds on a running pole or on the ground will work pretty good. Punch a hole in the ground and they will come check it out in the fall.


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## 1OldBear (Oct 5, 2017)

Koro, huh? I'm going to give that a good look.


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## kruschev (Dec 7, 2017)

what's "humane" about strangling for 30 seconds or longer? I just put the bait where I can fire the .177 from the upstairs window. Get several a day and it's fun, while doing other things, like playing on net forums.


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