How to Make a Homemade Automatic Cat Trap

Domesticated cats have been a part of life for centuries. These small felines have been loved and hated over the years and can be very difficult to catch. Some traps can harm or kill the animals by using spring loaded jaws to trap the legs. More humane traps allow the cat to walk inside a cage with a door that closes behind it. A homemade cat trap can be made simply and designed to be automatic.

Things You'll Need

  • 20-gallon plastic storage container
  • Electric drill
  • 1/2-inch drill bit
  • String
  • 8-inch-long stick
  • Small cat toy
  • Small can of tuna
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Instructions

    • 1

      Turn the plastic storage container upside down and drill two holes in the bottom using the electric drill and 1/2-inch drill bit. The first hole should be 3 inches from one of the short sides of the container, and the second hole should be 3 1/2 inches from the short side. When complete, there should be two holes, side by side on one end of the bottom of the container.

    • 2

      Thread the piece of string from the inside of the container, through one of the holes and then back in through the second hole.

    • 3

      Tie one end of the string to the small cat toy. Tie the other end of the string to the end of the stick.

    • 4

      Dip the cat toy in the tuna ensuring the juice is on the toy. Prop the container on the long side, using the stick to hold it up. The end of the stick with the string should be near the ground and the cat toy should be hanging from near the top of the inside of the container. The mechanism should work when the cat enters underneath the open side of the container and pulls the cat toy, which pulls the string and the stick, thus dropping the container safely and automatically over the cat.