RE: what kind of traps work best
I agree with pesky. 110's are great for muskrats as well as mink and have had some luck using no. 1 1/2 jumps set on floats or by placing them behind the grates on drainage culverts. Check your laws! Michigan just put a bunch of new changes in, including the use of snares! Rats are fun to trap because they're so predictable. find a run in the bottom of a ditch and stake a 110 in the middle of it about every 20 feet or so. I once took 84 in a half mile stretch of one ditch in less than a month, with only twelve traps! Good luck and have fun.