Mink

[wildwestcoast]

I just went through the same thing with a mink 2 weeks ago. Sadly once they know you have birds and have made a kill it will keep coming back. The one we had was coming middle of the day. I caught it in the act and once I had secured my survivors I borrowed a live haveaheart trap. I used my poor dead bird as bait. Caught that mink within 2 days. At that point a pellet gun was our best solution.

 

[dishfickle]

During the day?! Noooo! I was just thinking we'd make the coop mod secure, and everything would be.ok. I didn't know they come during the day.

 

[aart]

During the day?! Noooo! I was just thinking we'd make the coop mod secure, and everything would be.ok. I didn't know they come during the day.

Any predator can come during the day if they are hungry enough.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

What did you do? Ours free range, so I don't know if we have to worry about the run too much. We found a security problem on the floor, my husband is gonna cover the whole thing with sheet metal.

Mink are mice and rat eaters along with selected sea food. Mink can squeeze into almost any coop or run that will hold a chicken. Don't get too complacent, mink are native to every part of North America, at the rate of one mink on every 5 acres and up. They prefer to eat bloody meat but if fresh food is scarce then cold food will do, as long as its meat. the best strategy is to keep a few mink boxes set at all time to keep the mink population down to a dull roar. One good thing is that mink are solitary and if forced into close contact with other mink, bloody fights will breakout. These fights also have the benefit of limiting the mink population.

 

[dishfickle]

Maybe my neighbour's koi pond will keep it busy for awhile. We put out three traps with chicken liver in them, we'll try fish next. I haven't talked to a single person that knew we had them here. Most said "a what?". If we catch it, I'm thinking about slippers

 

[wildwestcoast]

During the day?! Noooo! I was just thinking we'd make the coop mod secure, and everything would be.ok. I didn't know they come during the day.

I caught him on camera at about 3 in the afternoon. If you look at the picture I attached you can see him at the bottom left corner of the coop. He was climbing all over it trying to find a way in.

 

[aart]

If you look at the picture I attached you can see him at the bottom left corner of the coop

 

[itsasmallfarm]

picture almost looks like a fisher to me, looks quite big and i have seen a few mink.

 

[wildwestcoast]

picture almost looks like a fisher to me, looks quite big and i have seen a few mink.

He was pretty big. I have never seen a Fisher, not sure if we have them here. Mink are prolific here as well as marten. Here's another pick of him. He kept coming back after I chased him off so I got a few pics. just edited to say..you could be right..we do have fishers here according to Google! I learned something new today

 

[dishfickle]

Yikes. My husband is on a mission. He's trying to find fish guts at the moment