Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[pinkchick]

Quote:
Well Ivy, I'm not really sure when they come up, but it seems like they come up at night. One of our neighbors has a mole problem and obviously has the best yard in the area for moles because he is the only one that has issues, but anyway, it seems like every morning he has more mole holes pop than he had the day before. It's like one day there is only a few holes and then the next there are 10 more and the next there are 10 more...right now it looks like he (my neighbor) has been randomly drilling fence post holes all over his yard. I notice they are more active in the fall and spring, but with our warmer temps right now our neighbor has several new holes.

 

[berkeleysprings]

i wish out soil was good enough for moles , we are in the side of a small mountain/foothills to otherrs..... its completly wooded but we have the worst siol its only 1inch or 2 deep and then its all rock ...We have been there since the 1970s and thought with a millon trees droping leafs on the soil it would be great but its s solid rock or shale . we are in a area that people know as apple country we are located around 30 min away
from winchester virginia,,,, into west virginia we do have lots of tree moles if ya know what i mean lol lol but no under ground moles

Quote:
Well Ivy, I'm not really sure when they come up, but it seems like they come up at night. One of our neighbors has a mole problem and obviously has the best yard in the area for moles because he is the only one that has issues, but anyway, it seems like every morning he has more mole holes pop than he had the day before. It's like one day there is only a few holes and then the next there are 10 more and the next there are 10 more...right now it looks like he (my neighbor) has been randomly drilling fence post holes all over his yard. I notice they are more active in the fall and spring, but with our warmer temps right now our neighbor has several new holes.

 

[Debbi]

Moles, voles, gophers, woodchucks, and ARMADILLOS!!!

The other night I was going to put the chooks in the coop, there was an armadillo in the yard! Granted, these guys aren't supposed to do well in the cold, and it was in the lower 30s. Guess he didn't read the literature on dillos and freezing temps.

This was just 3 nights ago, before the snow came. He was stumbling around like a drunk, no doubt freezing his little brain. Talk about doing damage to a yard, these things are like rooting pigs!! He is evidently, nesting under my old shed that is going to be the new coop. Dandy...

 

[Ivywoods]

Quote:
Debbi, it sounds like it's time for you to practice your plinking. have you ever seen an armadillo turned upside down and made into a basket? Someone gave me one of those years ago as a gag gift.

 

[math ace]

Day 22 - - -

I had to open the incubator and remove some chicks. . . .

I had one chick trying to hatch and 2 others were tasting him as he was trying to get out of the shell. Poor guy, his little toes were getting munched on by the other two chicks who hatched yesterday.

Total count so far - - - 7 marans and 4 OE have hatched
2 marans and 1 OE are zipping.
the rest look to of pipped, but nothing more than little holes in the shell.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Drum roll please!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Our first chick to hatch in 2011.

Steve

 

[chickenpickens]

Math Ace and Steve -

Woohoo to both of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Ivywoods]

Math- It sounds like you are having a pretty good hatch!

Steve-Cute baby and it looks like it came out of a pretty nice egg.

 

[Mountain Mel]

Quote:
Well Ivy, I'm not really sure when they come up, but it seems like they come up at night. One of our neighbors has a mole problem and obviously has the best yard in the area for moles because he is the only one that has issues, but anyway, it seems like every morning he has more mole holes pop than he had the day before. It's like one day there is only a few holes and then the next there are 10 more and the next there are 10 more...right now it looks like he (my neighbor) has been randomly drilling fence post holes all over his yard. I notice they are more active in the fall and spring, but with our warmer temps right now our neighbor has several new holes.


The type of moles we have here eat worms. We have earthworms that are known as "Nightcrawlers" and this is their favorite food. Moles occasionally come out of the ground but only in a "mole emergency" or as a very rare occurance. Our moles can be divided into 2 groups...day diggers & night diggers. Don't ask me how they know the difference since they are underground, that is one of lifes' greatest mysteries!
There are a lot of "old wives tales" out there about how to get rid of moles. I use steel traps or a 12 guage shotgun at 16 inches - both barrels. I did learn something the other year quite by accident, tho....I used to smoke cigarettes, and where I sat in the shade to drink beer under the big Magnolia tree there was a mole hole. I started putting all my cigarette butts down the hole, just to get them out of sight/out of mind type of thing....one day I noticed that there was absolutely NO mole activity within 100 yds of that hole. The rest of the property was plagued with moles, which I have since eradicated. Now, I don't know if it was just quincidence (doubt it) or if it was the stink from those butts (most likely) but I didn't have any mole activity within 100 yds of that hole all summer.

 

[Mountain Mel]

Good Morning Ivywoods...It's going to be in the 50's and sunny out here all week!