My homemade rat trap isn't working...

[Nette]

I made Cyngbaeld's rat trap that was described in an earlier post:

Brad, To make a 55 gal mouse trap start with a drum that has the top taken off. Drill 2 holes 180* apart about an inch or so below the top rim. Take a tin can with both top and bottom cut out. String the tin can on a piece of wire and thread the ends thru the two holes, leaving some slack so the can is suspended in the center of the drum's opening. Make a ramp up to the lip of the drum so the mice can run up it. Fill the drum about half way with water. Smear peanut butter on the tin can. The mice will run up and jump onto the can, which then dumps them in the water where they drown.

Made it Saturday, and so far it hasn't worked. It looks like it should work. Maybe my rats don't like peanut butter. Has anyone actually had any success with one of these?

[uncle Will in In.]

Maybe it needs a tiny speck of peanut butter along the route up to the can. Can a mouse hop onto the can from the board with out jumping very far?

[Cabin Fever]

I'm really upset with the one I made too. For some reason, it never seems to work during the winter.

Actually, the traps that I've seen are made with 5 gallon pails (not 55-gal. drums) and the can is put over a small diameter wood dowel (not a wire). The mice can walk on a wood dowel....I don't think they can walk on a wire to get to the peanut butter can unless they're circus mice.

[Nette]

I was right proud of my ramp. I used an old wooden water ski. I put a small nail at the tip and bent it so as to make a hook. It hooked on pretty securely to the top of the barrel. It doesn't look like they would have to be great athlete's to get from the top of the barrel to the can. I think I will try the suggestion of baiting the ramp...

[Meg Z]

>>>>>>>>>I used an old wooden water ski.<<<<<<<<<

That thing wouldn't be waxed, would it? And therefore slippery? Maybe if you made sure it was rough enough for traction, it would work better. Even mice need to have something to grip with those toes...although not much!

Just a thought.
Meg

[Nette]

It's an ancient water ski! I don't think traction is the problem, but I have some traction tape that's like sandpaper that I could stick on there just in case! Any more ideas to make it more inviting? Maybe I should have used a beer can instead of a green bean can. :no:

[Cabin Fever]

Like I implied in my earlier post, the idea is that the mouse walks to the rotating can via a wooden dowel. I don't think that any self-respecting mouse is gonna "jump" over water to get to the peanut butter.

[Cyngbaeld]

Sure hope you get it working soon. It's an old old invention. Not my own. I've known people to catch mega numbers of mice and rats with them. You do need to make sure there isn't much else for them to eat around so they will be more drawn to the pb.