Yesterday I found 3 quail dead in their cages. One cage had evidence of forced entry on the door, the other showed nothing. 2 had the skin on their necks gone, another had been 'eaten out' from the vent area. I reinforced the door of the cage, so it's not so easy to pry open.
Today, I find 2 more dead, in the same cage. One is just 'dead', no signs of injury, the other has all of its skin of the neck and head missing, and looks like whatever it was ate the brain of the bird. No signs of entry at the door to the cage this time.
I also found a baby duck with the same m/o.
The baby ducks (3-4 weeks old) are in a pen in the front yard that is open topped (since ducklings don't fly) and they have a dog house for shelter. The quail are in a raised pen that has 1"x1/2" wire on 1/4 of the bottom, the rest of the bottom is wood. 1/2 of the front of the cage is 1/2"x1/2" hardware cloth. The only way I see that anything could have gotten into this cage after I reinforced the door was by a small 1"x1" hole that was in the back where a cord was run out for a heat light. The light and cord were still there, so I assume whatever it was climbed the cord and got in that way.
Considering that:
a) 1/2" wire is not big enough for anything to get its head out; and
b) both birds have the same 'symptoms', one in a fort knox cage, the other in an open cage.
So I assume it's a weasel. We do have a rat problem, but usually when I've had rats get my quail (it has happened before), they eat the entire bird, everything but the bones. These quail had just the neck/brain or their vent areas eaten.
So please tell me if I'm correct in assuming that I have a weasel problem, and tell me how I can get rid of it
We also yesterday lost a bunny rabbit. It was inside the barn in a cage that I had made for quail. The wire was 1" square on most, 1"x1/2" on the rest. The door was not completed, I had just had a bungee strap on it to keep whatever was inside from pushing the door open. The bungee strap had obvious bite marks on it where it was broke, and the bunny was gone. The bunny is not wild, and often is allowed to 'roam' around the yard, so I think that if she were still here, she would be 'here'. We have not seen her since.
Today, I find 2 more dead, in the same cage. One is just 'dead', no signs of injury, the other has all of its skin of the neck and head missing, and looks like whatever it was ate the brain of the bird. No signs of entry at the door to the cage this time.
I also found a baby duck with the same m/o.
The baby ducks (3-4 weeks old) are in a pen in the front yard that is open topped (since ducklings don't fly) and they have a dog house for shelter. The quail are in a raised pen that has 1"x1/2" wire on 1/4 of the bottom, the rest of the bottom is wood. 1/2 of the front of the cage is 1/2"x1/2" hardware cloth. The only way I see that anything could have gotten into this cage after I reinforced the door was by a small 1"x1" hole that was in the back where a cord was run out for a heat light. The light and cord were still there, so I assume whatever it was climbed the cord and got in that way.
Considering that:
a) 1/2" wire is not big enough for anything to get its head out; and
b) both birds have the same 'symptoms', one in a fort knox cage, the other in an open cage.
So I assume it's a weasel. We do have a rat problem, but usually when I've had rats get my quail (it has happened before), they eat the entire bird, everything but the bones. These quail had just the neck/brain or their vent areas eaten.
So please tell me if I'm correct in assuming that I have a weasel problem, and tell me how I can get rid of it
We also yesterday lost a bunny rabbit. It was inside the barn in a cage that I had made for quail. The wire was 1" square on most, 1"x1/2" on the rest. The door was not completed, I had just had a bungee strap on it to keep whatever was inside from pushing the door open. The bungee strap had obvious bite marks on it where it was broke, and the bunny was gone. The bunny is not wild, and often is allowed to 'roam' around the yard, so I think that if she were still here, she would be 'here'. We have not seen her since.
Last edited:
