1 - Will your trap test fire?

If your traps not firing, you’re never going to catch a rat. Some of our trap kits come with a cardboard Pi-rat, especially made for you to test fire your trap. If you didn’t receive a Pi-rat, you can use a stick from the garden to test your trap.

Carefully use the stick to activate the trigger inside, keeping fingers well away at all times. Never use your finger! The trigger is incredibly powerful and will cause damage to your finger. If your trap isn’t firing, get in touch at hello@goodnature.co.nz or call us on 0800 628 874 and we can help you out. 

2 - Did you use Detector Cards?

A critical, but often missed step is using detector cards. Rats will not be feeding where you’ve spotted them, as they’re exposed and vulnerable to predators like your cat! By placing a variety of rodent detector cards around the site, you’ll know exactly where they’re comfortable eating.

If you didn’t use cards, they’re available here, and still worth using even after you’ve had a trap set up.

3 - When did you last change your lure and CO₂?

Our traps are designed to last in the wild (or your backyard) for six months, without being reset. We’ve designed a slow release lure, which constantly extrudes from the lure bag and eventually runs out. If you haven’t changed your APP (Automatic Paste Pump) in the last six months, this will be inhibiting the attractiveness of the trap. APPs are available here.

Our CO₂ canisters have pressure for 24 humane kills if installed correctly. Just like keeping your oil topped up in your car, keeping CO₂ and Lure up to date is critical for the continued success of your trap. If your CO₂ has sat inactive for over six months it’s time to replace. You can find them here.

4 - Where is your trap located?

Often it’s not until we see a photo of the trap that we can tell it’s in the wrong spot for catching pests. Positions too high, or low, near a competing food source or ares that are too exposed will inhibit the success of your trap.

For the best locations, check out this blog and follow the instructions provided. 

5 - Does your trap have a counter or Chirp?

If you’re traps not counting, you won’t know if it’s catching! Because scavenging is so common, it’s really common not to see any bodies under a trap. We’ve got a quick video about scavenging here.

If your trap has a counter, but it's not registering any kills it may be attached incorrectly. Check out this video for how to correctly install a counter. 

We recommend the Chirp kit for all our customers. It’s a Bluetooth device which records how many kills you have, connecting with your smart phone via the Chirp App. You can learn more about Chirp here.

6 - Is your trap set up correctly?

It’s important you follow our install instructions when setting up your trap. Check out this video to make sure your setup is looking the same. If it’s not, get in touch and we can help out.

Watch the video here

7 - Is the CO₂ screwed in correctly?

When the CO₂ canister is screwed in, you hear a short hiss as the gas is released. Screw the gas canister in until it is hand tight. Making sure it’s well screwed in should mitigate your chances of experiencing small leaks.

8 - Are there other food sources?

Rats are incredibly smart, and will always look for the safest and easiest food source. This means your trap needs to be the most appealing food available to lure them in. Competing food sources are sometimes difficult to remove, but a little clean up will mean your traps performance is far more effective. One of our customers, Melissa experienced this with her compost bin, you can check it out here.

9 - Is your ALP activated?

Every now and then we hear of customers who don’t know the 10cent piece is a gift for them! This must be removed in order for the circuit to complete, and the ALP to work. You can thank us later.

10 - Have you been pre-feeding?

As mentioned above, rats will need to be tempted into the trap for success. Pre-feeding will encourage the rats to seek out more, and eventually lead them to seeking out the trap. To begin with, you can dab some of the lure around the trap for rats to get a taste of.

If you’ve completed these steps, and still aren’t seeing any results please don’t worry. We love helping customers to achieve trapping success, so we’re more than willing to help you out. You can email us at hello@goodnature.co.nz or call us on 0800 628 874. 

Happy trapping!