Killer Weasels/Mink

[Soon2BChixMom]

Dogs kill for fun as they mostly have a bowl of food at home. At least they are not doing it because they need food or are starving.

I would say that is their predatory drive (instincts) that leads them to kill when they have readily available food. Like Aart said, fun is a term that applies to humans.

 

[GldnValleyHens]

Killing for sport is perhaps a better term

 

[chicknmania]

Oh yeah, I understand the principal, but animals DO have fun, and don't tell me that mink doesn't have fun killing all those birds, because I KNOW he does. And, Pintail Drake, I would never in my wildest dreams use a trap like that. Sorry, but that doesn't sound humane, imo. I have no desire to catch/ kill any innocent animal using our pond, in a trap like that. We found an entrance hole the mink has been using, and we have a baited kill trap over the hole. There's no guarantee that he lives near our pond, we have wetlands nearby and vernal pools in our woods, drainage ditches in surrounding areas, etc...and last time we tracked him we tracked him to the vernal pool area of our woods, last spring. Mink can travel n a 10 mile radius. All I really want him to do is just go away.... I prefer not to kill him..but easier said than done. And yes I know they cache food, but oddly enough, they never come back for it. Hmmm.

 

[chicknmania]

Wild animals do not kill for fun, they would not waste precious energy.
Many mistake a killing frenzy, where they kill multiple prey at once, as killing for fun.
That frenzy behavior is instinctual, to kill as much food as possible while it's available and cache it for later.

I would say that is their predatory drive (instincts) that leads them to kill when they have readily available food. Like Aart said, fun is a term that applies to humans.

Wow. OK, this thread is not about whether animals have "fun" or not. but really. Your dog doesn't have "fun" playing games with you? Or your cat? Of course they do. Whatever you call it is relative. I call it fun, I always will, and I have a very good relationship with animals. I don't try to micro analyze.

 

[aart]

Sure animals can 'play', it's to hone instinctual hunting and survival skills.
I prefer reality over anthropomorphizing.....jmho.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

@chicknmania

I was referring to “kill for fun”. That instinctual drive comes from their genetic make up. They do have fun catching frisbees or balls. Of course, without certain drives or tendencies some do catch and fetch and some don’t.
I’m not saying their excitement level is not up when they kill another animal - generally unless feral they do not eat the prey. However, it’s their instinctual predatory drive that kicks in when they kill. There is a lot of things that dogs continue to do due to their instincts before becoming domesticated. Domesticated dogs still have the tendencies of their wild ancestors, we have just figured out a way to tame that out of them using other rewards to evolve into a pet.

 

[chicknmania]

aart, humans ARE animals if you want to be technical, which I guess you do. And what YOU are doing is called "trolling". Illegal on this site. End of discussion.

 

[aart]

Just a lively debate.

 

[itsasmallfarm]

Oh yeah, I understand the principal, but animals DO have fun, and don't tell me that mink doesn't have fun killing all those birds, because I KNOW he does. And, Pintail Drake, I would never in my wildest dreams use a trap like that. Sorry, but that doesn't sound humane, imo. I have no desire to catch/ kill any innocent animal using our pond, in a trap like that. We found an entrance hole the mink has been using, and we have a baited kill trap over the hole. There's no guarantee that he lives near our pond, we have wetlands nearby and vernal pools in our woods, drainage ditches in surrounding areas, etc...and last time we tracked him we tracked him to the vernal pool area of our woods, last spring. Mink can travel n a 10 mile radius. All I really want him to do is just go away.... I prefer not to kill him..but easier said than done. And yes I know they cache food, but oddly enough, they never come back for it. Hmmm.

just to say that pocket set about drowning the mink is a humane set, in fact it is recommended by my government for trapping mink.

 

[drumstick diva]

What government is that? What country?