Been visited by mink. at what point do i get a live trap

[aprophet]

Quote:
a little bit of weasel musk helps when catching mink they are in the same family along with otter and skunk and they compete for the same food most good mink lures have a little bit weasel glands in them it is kina a territorial thing. For the OP you might try goggling weasel box the top two results are pretty good if you are using it for mink you would need to build it a little larger instead of a 2" entrance you would need 3 " - 3 1/2" instead of of using a snap rat trap you would need at least a number 1 long spring etc. when you catch a mink and it sprays it is a smell you will not forget it is not as bad as a skunk but it is a smell to remember

 

[jmc]

Quote:
So you never got him in the trap then????

 

[redhen]

Quote:
So you never got him in the trap then????

Nope.. we eventually cornered him inside the run..(around 3 pm.. that was when he always came around..so we were ready when we saw him slink into our yard...).. and we wacked him with a shovel... he still got away... but he never came back.. (we think he must have gotten injured from the shovel... which does kinda make me feel bad...i hate to think of anything suffering....but...)

But no.. he never went near the traps..we had 2 or even maybe 3 different size ones with different bait out all around the coop...

 

[jmc]

r-hen, thanks, never got him even with trap..........geez..........now i remember your earlier post about the shovel............


been almost a week and not even a footprint. i may forego the trap.

must admit i'm not even certain it was a mink, but going by what little tracks he left and the tird he left. but i never saw anything...................

 

[jmc]

well i splurged and now have three different sized havaharts. weasel size, rabbit/mink sized, and coon/armadillo sized. all that remains is the fox size; and i'm gonna wait on that one. just fyi, the model numbers i have are: 0745, 1078, and 1079.

but still no more signs of the mink (?) or.........that came by almost two weeks ago.................

 

[cindy99]

We just bought a live trap a couple of days ago. $25.00 for a 2-pack at Tractor Supply Co. On the first night we caught a opossum! I subscribed to this post - curious to see if you will catch anything! Good luck.

 

[Ohhhdear]

Earlier this summer I was sitting in my kitchen with the windows open and heard a horrendous squawking from the girls. When I got outside and looked over the deck into the chicken yard, there was a mom black footed weasel and 3 kits about 6 feet from my coop. She was urging the little ones to chase the chickens! I let out a rebel yell (same one I use to scare a year's growth out of squirrels on my birdfeeders) and the weasels took off running through the woods.
We put out two live traps that night, baited with fresh liver. That's what the Ag department's paper said to bait with and my father-in-law has the printout taped inside his kitchen cabinet door. Unfortunately, all we ever caught were three of my curious, very unhappy chickens and a chipmunk in the smaller trap. So we enclosed the chicken yard with poultry fencing, but I still have the smallest live trap set.

 

[The Yakima Kid]

Helpful hint: don't leave food out for raccoons and other wild animals as a "peace offering". All it teaches them is that your property offers free groceries. You really don't want to attract skunks, weasels, and raccoons during the rabies season - which is actually Spring and again in Fall in the places where I have lived.

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
google weasel box they work well it is hard to keep the bait from drying out , the fresher you can keep the bait the better the results some times a little anise oil ,castor or muskrat musk will help

 

[CarolAnn]

As soon as I can I'm getting one of the Havahart traps from our Orscheln store. The one size they have will do what I might be needing. Big enough to trap a opossum, raccoon or skunk. When you might be dealing with skunks you want a trap that's NOT tall enough to allow the skunk to raise it's tail. They have to raise that tail high to spray. I've caught two skunks in those traps and was told to use a sheet held in front of my body when approaching a skunk in a live trap. If they can't see you they won't spray. It worked for me both times. I captured 5 opossums that same season. They were eating my cat's food at night. Hubby relocated them all but now that I have chickens any caught will be dispatched. They may look like they just waddle along at a slow and easy opossum pace but they can practically beat you back to the house when they want to move. LOL Really!

Get a trap to have it handy for when you need it, because eventually you will.