Heritage Large Fowl - Phase II

[lualshannon]

Does anyone on here have any good tips for trapping weasels? I have one that NEEDS to go. Killed 21 Brahmas (between three nights and three coops) so far and, now I have no more breeding stock left. We built this little wooden box things last night and baited them with chicken heads and juice but, nothing, yet. Tips?

I have been working on putting more wire around every spot on these coops to ensure nothing can get back in. I also put a motion censored light on the front of one in hopes that if something new comes it will hopefully get scared off. New locks are being put in place as well. Ones that will keep raccoons out. Plus some at the bottoms of my doors on the one coop because they don't seal as tight as they would need to, to keep a weasel out.

I am sorry to hear about your weasel problem, and my heart goes out to your chickens that were killed.

A friend of mine had similar weasel problem, and they lost almost the whole flock. They rented weasel traps from Wildlife Rescue center which helped eradicate the whole weasel population which was attacking their chickens. Also, animal shelters will have them for rent as well. The rental fee is very small, definitely much cheaper than buying. The traps had a secure wire compartment to put a live bird to lure them in to the cage. No, they will not be able to reach through the wires to harm the bait bird. Chicken parts is good bait too, but, they much prefer the live one.

When we set traps, always wear gloves, and rub the cage with weeds to cover any human smell. They have excellent sence of scent.

In our area, we have couple of Rat Terrier keepers who come to the property to get rid of the rats and other predators which are smaller than wolves. I witnessed these dogs in action which was an unforgettable experience.

Lual

 

[neopolitancrazy]

Killed 21 Brahmas (between three nights and three coops) so far and, now I have no more breeding stock left.

I have been working on putting more wire around every spot on these coops to ensure nothing can get back in.

I am so sorry for your losses, that really hurts.
As far as wire, I recommend hardware cloth rather than poultry netting, it is much sturdier, harder for predators to rip open.
Best wishes,
Angela

 

[gjensen]

Does anyone on here have any good tips for trapping weasels? I have one that NEEDS to go. Killed 21 Brahmas (between three nights and three coops) so far and, now I have no more breeding stock left. We built this little wooden box things last night and baited them with chicken heads and juice but, nothing, yet. Tips?

I have been working on putting more wire around every spot on these coops to ensure nothing can get back in. I also put a motion censored light on the front of one in hopes that if something new comes it will hopefully get scared off. New locks are being put in place as well. Ones that will keep raccoons out. Plus some at the bottoms of my doors on the one coop because they don't seal as tight as they would need to, to keep a weasel out.

That is a big hit. Weasels can slip through tiny openings.

I have never had to deal with them, so I do not have any practical experience to share. I would concentrate on securing the pens as you already are. Be certain, and double certain. You will sleep better at night once you are confident absolutely nothing can get it.

As mentioned, my dogs are helpful, though a weasel might get by mine. A raccoon would not. A good dog is helpful, and a poor dog is just more feed.

 

[brahmabreeder]

So far, I have not been able to catch him. We have the traps set, but nothing. Some reason it did not go in last night. I could clearly see it walked right up to it, but not in. I may try rubbing it down with a "chicken rag" in case human or dog smells scared it off. I also moved the one trap because the weasel went under my gray coop, so if it comes back tomorrow hopefully it will decide to pop on it. I might try opening the pop door on that coop and putting the rat trap in the door. Last time it dug under into the shavings and the bait bird lost, but this time I'll make sure to move all the shaving out of the way so the trap rests directly on the floor. Last time we also used the big trap, not my idea

.

On the bright side; I have managed to find some lights to replace them! Should be getting them soonish.

 

[Lacy Blues]

I'm thinking they could dig through dirt too and you would lose another bait bird. Perhaps get some hardware that will secure the trap to the frame of the chicken door so he cannot get passed it but has to go into the trap to get to the bait.

That is plumber's strap tape. I use a pair of metal cutters and cut it across at one big hole, skip a big hole and cut it again at the next big hole. I take this piece and bend it in half and then run a screw through the two small holes that should line up with each other. You can cut several of these from a roll like above and slip them around the edge of the trap in at least 4 places (corners) and screw them to the wood frame of your chicken door. As long as there is no space above or below the trap, he will not get passed it but have to go in.

Good luck catching and ridding yourself of those varmints!

 

[brahmabreeder]

Good idea ! I haven't gone out there yet today to check the two original traps. Didn't have time to put the other one up yesterday.

Does anyone know if they can chew through wood? That's what the base of two of my coops are, the other two are concrete. I'm thinking in the summer I might try adding hardware cloth around the perimeter of these coops and down into the dirt. If anything it should help control the mice/rats.

 

[Lacy Blues]

I have no idea if they can chew through wood. Nor do I know what your local landscape consists of... but if you have a lot of rocks available to you for free, you can put rocks from the walls of your coop out to two feet or more. If I were to have something like that available to me, I would first lay down pavers or some hard flat surface for my own feet and then pile as many rocks as I could around the outside of the coop.

 

[brahmabreeder]

Yeah...we don't have that many rocks available. Just a lot of clay soil.

 

[Big Orp]

I have a hen that was hurt and I had to bring her in until she could heal. She was away from her flock for about two weeks. When I put her back with her flock they turned on her, ripping out the new feathers and making her bleed. She was raised with them. Why are they doing this and how can I get her back to her flock?

 

[Lacy Blues]

Treat her like a new flock member. Provide a space in the coop for her to live where the others can see her but not get to her.

In my opinion, it's always best to introduce more than one bird to a flock if you're going to add. Perhaps after she has been there for a week or so, get the lowest flock member and add that one in with her. After they are getting on well, perhaps grab the new lowest flock member to add to the group. Once they are getting on well, perhaps then you can let them in with the rest of the flock.