Lots of chipmunks here in Jersey. More than usual. Lots of squirrels, too. They are nothing but rats with fluffy tails.
When my brother and I were kids, my parents had one of those Have-A-Heart Traps up at the lake. My dad and brother would bait it and leave it outside. We caught some poor critter every day. We just let them go, rebait the thing and catch another. Wouldn't fly nowadays.
Once, we caught a red squirrel. I can't quite remember why on earth we brought the trap onto the porch (screened in), but the poor thing managed to escape. It went understandably crazy, running around trying to escape. I guess we finally opened one of the many doors to the porch and it got out, but I don't remember exactly.
Certainly not something I would like to revisit. We had a raccoon on the porch once back in 1993. No idea how it got there. No idea how it got out. Kinda scary.
nj2nh