mink proofing coup and terrified chickens

[Howard E]

This is an interesting video as it shows a variety of minks, weasels, etc. all working a mink box trap. None of them get caught. So the problem would seem to be an issue with the trap and perhaps trap trigger. That is what I would expect from my Duke 110. Trigger on it is stiff to begin with, and has at least 1" of trigger movement on the end of the trigger whiskers before it fires. So trap is NOT sensitive.

Note the comments on how to improve it.

But also note the size and scale of these varmints. Mink, weasel (ermine) and perhaps even a tiny little least weasel.

Gotta know your opponent and set things up accordingly.

 

[Howard E]

On the mink game cam footage, here is part 2......which in my mind, reveals the reason why his mink trap did not work. Trap is too big. Fast forward to about the 1:50 mark to see the mink go to work on a trapped animal. The trap shown looks to be at least a 160 (6" jaws) or 220 (7" jaws) vs. the 4 1/2" openings on a 110 or 120. No wonder these guys could come and go with impunity. They were running right past the trigger. Point being there is often a really subtle difference between what works and what doesn't. Trap size, trap brand (size, shape and sensitivity of the trigger), box design, box placement, all of it matters.

And again, watching the video gives on a good idea as to the scale of least weasel, weasel and a mink.

Know that any one of the three......including that tiny little guy, can kill an entire flock of birds in a single attack. If you have issues with any one of them, exclusion is required and as you can see, it ain't easy.

 

[Morrigan]

One other option is to run electric fencing around your secure area. I had a weasel problem and had no luck trapping them. We installed double strands of hot wire (ultimately increased to 4), starting at 1 to 2 inches off the ground. My husband actually saw a weasel approach the wire then turn and run at top speed away after being shocked. We never saw that weasel or any evidence of it, again. It seems like animals only need to be shocked once, and they treat the area as a no-go zone.

Good luck and sorry you are dealing with this.

 

[Howard E]

There is no reason why an electric fence would not work on a weasel, mink, etc, except for the size involved. Getting the wire close enough to the ground so they can't slip under or through it to avoid the shock would be the trick. Placing a wire only 1" to 2" off the deck and doing so evenly would be a neat trick.

I've wondered if electric poultry netting would work, and perhaps it would except the spacing is not tight enough.

But another concept I've been toying with would be to use the smooth, 1/2" or 3/8" smooth sided insulated posts, and simply clip about a 12" section of chicken wire to those. Then make your chicken wire the hot wire.

Place those along the base of the coop or run, about 1" to 2" or more off from the exterior. Raise and lower the chicken wire to the point it is nearly touching the ground. Can't touch or it may ground out, but has to be close enough nothing can sneak under it. But not likely they will.......likely they will raise up to try to climb it and as soon as they touch the fence, BAMMO!!!

In theory, this could replace any aprons, etc. and would be a great way to protect a tractor from diggers and others trying to get in. It may even work well enough to replace hardware cloth on hoop coops, etc. Just about anything approaching from the outside is going to have to touch that hot wire.

 

[drumstick diva]

There is some necessary upkeep with electrified fencing, isn't there? I mean it has to be clear of snow, grass, weeds etc. to perform well. I would imagine flooding would also short it out.

 

[Howard E]

There is some necessary upkeep with electrified fencing, isn't there? I mean it has to be clear of snow, grass, weeds etc. to perform well. I would imagine flooding would also short it out.

On upkeep, yes there is, which is why using an electric fence to repel something as small as a weasel is problematic. The issue is the close tolerances between what is needed to work and what is possible due to the problems with keeping the ground clear so the fence does not short out. But if you were to put something like a row of bricks or landscape pavers or some such beneath the fence, so as to keep it clear of grass, weeds, etc. from grounding it out, it might be possible. There are also long term soil sterility products (about 3 to 5 years) to keep the ground clear directly beneath a fence. So keeping the ground clear is possible, but takes some effort

The poultry netting does have the bottom strand, which lays directly on the ground and is not hot, but the horizontal distance on most poultry netting is at least 3 1/2", so there is that much of a gap for a weasel / mink to sneak through.

If I knew I had this problem to deal with long term, and I was in the chicken business long term, best solution is to improve housing to the point nothing gets in. Cement floor that nothing can dig under or through and hard / tight structure at ground level that nothing can get past.

 

[Howard E]

On keeping the ground clear, I have also thought of using weed barrier mulching products like black plastic, paper bags, etc, but most of those are also poor conductors of electricity, meaning they have an insulator affect. An animal standing on black plastic might touch the fence and not get shocked.

So another option might be to lay down something like used metal siding....old barn roofing tin or some such........lay it directly beneath the hot wire. That would do it.

 

[Morrigan]

Regarding E-fencing: It is optimal to have a low clearance to keep weasels, minks, etc. out. When we first installed our fence, the bottom wire was about 3 or 4 inches off the ground. It did a pretty decent job -- that was the wire height at which my husband saw the weasel get shocked and flee.

We were good for about a year, before we had another weasel attack. We could follow the prints and saw it had come in under the wire. I presume it was pure luck as, in my experience, once shocked, animals typically don't come back to test the fence or look for weaknesses.

It was at that point we adjusted it, so that the first wire was an inch or two off the ground. In the 3 1/2 years since we've done that, we haven't had a weasel attack save one --that was the morning after a huge rainstorm the had washed debris over the wire and grounded it out.

It does take on-going maintenance. I have mulch or gravel around most of it to help with weed suppression, but weeds still do come up, wind and rain move debris to the wires, and branches fall. I bought a device that permanently hangs on the wire that tells you if the charge is active, and I check that ever day. Once a week -- and after heavy rain-- I go around the fence and pull weeds and remove any debris. I don't have much snow, so I'm not sure how feasible this would be in an area with frequent, heavy snow.

It is a pain, but it is worth it to allow the birds access to a large area for some semblance of free-ranging. The only other solution would be to confine them to a hardware cloth covered run. I would do that only as a last resort.

 

[lazy gardener]

I like the idea of using chicken wire as a low to ground option to deter rats and weasels. Eventually, I'd like to put E wire around my coop/run, but would have to put some sort of physical weed barrier b/c I refuse to go the chemical route. Had thought about using roofing shingles but know the flock would have a blast destroying those. Even (1 or 2" x (4 or 6") laid flat on the ground, and drilled at the edge to allow the fence posts to pass through might be a good option. You could then do a "buzz cut" up to the board from the outside with a weed wacker.

 

[Morrigan]

This has got me thinking about better weed suppression around my wire. I don't like the idea of using something metal as I'd be worried that it would cause a ground out if so much as one small branch fell and joined your e-fence to the metal sheet. Ideally I'd like some heavy duty rubber or plastic that I could roll out and secure to the ground somehow. I kind of hate adding more plastic to the world, however. Maybe just laying down thin sheets of plywood would work? Giving this some more thought.