How to Set: Havahart® Medium 1-Door Trap Model #1078 for Skunks, Rabbits & Squirrels

Learn how to set the Havahart® Medium 1-Door Trap Model #1078. This trap is best used for the trapping of squirrels, skunks, rabbits and other similar sized animals.

The medium 1-door trap is great for the first time trapper and trusted by animal control officers and professional trappers alike. It was designed for both safety and durability to ensure a safe catch for both animal and it's trapper. The rust resistant wire mesh and steel reinforcements of the trap allow for a longer trap lifespan than that of competitor traps.

Video Tags:
★ How to set a skunk trap
★ Trapping skunks
★ Trapping skunks in live trap

[ccdogpark]

This video was made in 2013 before the Havahart model 1083 "easy set" trap was being made.
The 1083 is a much better squirrel trap. If you just bought a 1078 I would return it for a 1083 #
The Havahart # 1083 is not being stocked at any of the Lowes or Home Depots near me for some
crazy reason, so you probably have to order them online. It should cost approx $35 plus shipping. #

I set my plastic saw-tooth Tomcat mouse traps traps outside because if you have mice inside, that probably means you have 10 times as many outside. I found this out by accident recently when I was leaving my squirrel traps out overnight and noticed the bait was gone in the morning. Squirrels and birds are not active at night and I realized it had to be mice taking the bait. The trick to baiting traps is to spread the peanut butter in a thin layer across the entire platform. Don't just put a glob of peanut butter in the center. Don't let it get old. If it is laying around for more than a week it loses the odor and you should replace it with fresh PB. I like to put 2 traps inside of a Havahart model # 1083 squirrel trap at night. Mice are not very active (outside) during the day. Leaving outside traps set during daylight is a waste of time.  Leaving squirrel traps set at night is also a waste of time #

I reconfigure my # 1083 squirrel traps every morning for their intended purpose and then I put the plastic mouse traps back inside the 1083 at night. The reason I use the TomCats  inside the squirrel trap is to protect other wildlife like birds from setting them off in the early AM before I wake up. Outside mice traps could also hurt other wildlife or dogs etc. #

I place 2 plastic mousetraps inside each squirrel trap and some nights I catch a mouse inside each trap even though they are in very close proximity to each other. I have caught 24 mice the first month I began doing this. I had no idea there were so many mice in our suburban neighborhood !! I thought that only catching an occasional mouse inside the garage meant we were free of mice. The relatively new Havahart # 1083 "easy set" trap is the best squirrel trap by a wide margin. I only use my other older traps to catch mice now.  # #

I hope this advice helps someone.

Bill Z
Delaware County, PA

[ccdogpark]

I have used the Havahart EZ-set # 1083 to dispose of 300 grey squirrels since
June 2014. The 1-door EZ-set traps save me time in 3 different ways:
1) They are much easier and faster to set.
2) they are also much easier to bait because you just put the bait behind the
trigger plate, instead of trying to balance the bait on top of the trigger plate.
3) I don't have any false alarms any more because the 1083 is NEVER set off
by small birds. It takes a 1 pound animal to set off the 1083 and almost all
grey squirrels weigh at least 1 pound. That is important if you are not home
to keep checking your traps. You will never catch a squirrel, if the trap is closed
for hours with a small bird inside.
I used to use a 1030 for grey squirrels but since I bought 2 of the EZ set traps
I stopped using my older traps

Home Depot and Lowes do not stock the 1083 but I was able to get them
online for about $35 via Amazon
WRZ
Delaware County, PA

[lyndahudson]

You didn't mention catching chipmonks is the holes to big? Let me know please

[ARCSTREAMS]

that latch on the door is it suppose to be spring loaded, because on mine it does not work after the door comes down the latch is not locking the door and the animal can simply push its way out, perhaps im missing a part or not doing it right

[ccdogpark]

The only problem with these "live traps" is that in the hot summer months,
people working normal jobs would probably put the trap out in the early AM
and return to check the trap 8 hours later (depending on whether the animal
being trapped is nocturnal or not). Doing that would cause the animal
to suffer a slow torturous death. I am retired and I make sure to check my traps
at the very least, every 2 hours, which is easy since they are at the base of my bird
feeders and I can see them from our screened-in porch.
Grey squirrels are only active during the day and when it is extremely hot,
they tend to stay in their nests; so I take my squirrel traps back to the garage
when it is over 80 degrees out. Thus most of June, July and August they are only
set from about 6:00 AM to 10:00 AM and I still caught 23 grey squirrels in June
with 2 Havahart model 1083 EZ-set traps. The 1083 is the best trap for grey
squirrels by a wide margin.
WRZ
Delaware County, PA