Choosing the best lure is a toughie! It all depends. And what works one day possibly won’t the next. As they say “tools used too often go blunt”.

That said, there are a few lures with a long history of consistently attracting predators. For more information check out Predator Free NZ.

Attracting rats

Peanut butter A long-standing favourite and the mainstay of hundreds of reserve trapping groups and backyard trappers. Most say smooth is better than chunky. Some say premium brands (such as Pic’s) work better than your cheapo brands with added non-peanut oils. Try mixing in some oats for a change. Peanut butter can often be taken by insects, sometimes overnight. Reapply as often as is convenient.

Chocolate Some claim success with chocolate buttons. White chocolate apparently gets the tick from your average rat.

Cheese The old mousetrap favourite. Quickly goes off in the heat.

Attracting possums

Peanut butter Reasonably effective and handy, especially if you’ve got a trapline combining possum traps with rat traps, which you’ll probably bait with peanut butter as well.

Apple and cinnamon A slice of apple often works a treat, especially with a dusting of ground cinnamon.

Citrus peel Orange and lemon peel can be good in Trapinator and Timms traps. Make sure you remove all the flesh (the acids corrode the trap parts) and keep the pieces of peel small so that they don’t prevent the trap mechanism working.

Carrots Yep, they work too. Try them with a smear of Vegemite.

Corflute with lure Predator Free Franklin have had success using Timms traps loaded with a chew card impregnated with a long-life bait (such as Connovation Smooth or Possum Dough). They often get repeat catches using one chew card.

Attracting stoats

Stoats are the wily customers who prefer catching live animals, so the better you can mimic that more likely you are to catch your stoat. But they’re suckers for fresh meat. Most of all, mix it up. If you’re not catching with your current lure, try something else.

Dried rabbit meat The staple of reserve trapping groups, this easy-to-handle compressed meat (such as the Erayz brand), come in chunks you tear off and leave in your trap. Easy to use but probably not as appealing as fresh meat.

Eggs Eggs act as a visual lure in DOC200 traps, and some people find that a ping pong ball or golf ball work almost as well as a real egg. If using a hen’s egg as lure, prick (with a pin) the top of the egg – to let the smell out – making sure the hole is upwards! Farm eggs (rather than washed store bought eggs) likely retain more chicken smells and are more appealing.

Fresh meat Fresh dripping meat is better than jerky. If you have a fresh dead rat, stick it in one of your stoat traps. They love it. But consider how frequently you can revisit the trap. Meat will it go off quickly in summer when it is best to use bigger chunks which don’t go off as quickly? People have also had good results with venison and rabbit meat.

Guts Some (admittedly not in suburban settings) advocate smearing the guts of something recently dead all around your DOC200 to really get the stoat salivating.

Egg mayonnaise Apparently it works well. Some advocate for organic mayo only.

Sardines Some have had success with tinned sardines.

Earth Scuff up the trap entrance each time you visit. The smell of freshly turned earth can be an attractant.