My whole flock was killed last night, please help me

[SpottedCrow]

Hardware cloth or welded wire is the best...
Chainlink fences things can climb so that's no good...
Chickenwire/poultry netting--save your money...

Even ferrets and weasels have some sort of scent, they can't help it...I sell ferrets at work and they're descented and they still stink...

Hope you get im.

 

[icthus]

I used to trap as a teenager. Here is how to get him: (I see you inquired about connibear traps on another thread. You are on the right track.) The varmit is probably getting under the mower deck by going through the discharge port. Set the trap in front of this port and you will get him next time he goes in. If there is a dead bird in there, leave it as bait. If not, you may have to wait for him to kill again. Be sure you keep other animals out of the area because the trap will kill anything that gets in it. Another option is to set it in a trail if you can find one. Sometimes you can actually direct the varmit into your trap by creating a "funnel" effect. Place items in the way to block off other routes in and out. The animal will usually take the path of lease resistance and get in your trap. Good luck.

 

[MissDeb]

We have a old dog kennel we have put up for our chicken yard. We are also going to run chicken fence along the bottom about two feet up, burying a foot or two in the ground so that if they go to dig under then they meet the fence. It depends on how tall the chicken wire is that we find.
We have used another dog kennel for the top. They come in handy panels. It was really easy to make.

 

[SueNH]

(coyotes, fox etc...) Do have a sense of smell unlike no other. I have had fox walk up to me as well while out calling. But its a different story when your trying to trap something. If you have any sort of human scent, lard, goose fat, chicken fat, your doing nothing but going to either one, run the weary animal off with your scent, or two, snap a fox in the nose when checking out the scent on the trap and I can guarantee you you'll never see him again.
Kathy, if you need a hand Sue had a great idea, contact your local trappers Association. We have done many of these sets for folks who have had predators on their property. A mink box is another great idea, but if its a fox, you'll never catch him with a mink box. Do both! you'll likely catch something!

The mink in my trap was just imaginary then. Put an imaginary bullet into it too. I had just been in the coop and came back with a bucket of feed, 5 minutes tops had elapsed. He wasn't afraid of me. He was watching nearby. Waiting for his chance.
Had an imaginary one attack once while I was in the coop with a firearm in my hand, years ago now. Couldn't shoot for the panicked chickens but I did play baseball using a 2x4. Hit a home run. It leaped past me at a roo on a perch and I whacked it right out the door. It ran off but never returned. Safe to assume I did some damage.

I was talking to a few ladies I hadn't seen all winter last week. They had mink/weasel problems too. One lady got a weasel. The other was still on the hunt. Her birds were all gone. I really think it had something to do with that record breaking snowpack. I've still got a little ice here and there. Don't know if I want to see another winter like that again. Even my ski fanatic teenager was hating the snow by the end.​

 

[MissDeb]

Sue,

There is no reason to be condescending about this topic. I did not even insinuate that your mink were imaginary. What Im saying is if your going to trap, do it right. You increase your odds if you do it right. Do it your way, and I'll do it my way, I have been doing it that way for 30 years and don't plan on arguing with someone over the internet....I will however direct someone new to trapping on how to do it right. They have every right to do what works for them but Im not going to mislead anyone when it comes to doing it the right way.


Thanks anyway!

 

[Denece&Lacey]

Im so sorry also. We lost all of our chicks twice in the past couple of months. Its so devastating.

 

[BeckyBird]

I had a weasel problem when I moved to the country 2 years ago. I had a small chicken tractor for my large chicks, and one night, something dug a Tiny hole underneath, and killed every chick with a bite to the neck. The only thing that could have fit through the hole was a weasel--not a baby raccoon or opossum. It happened while I had family staying over too. I was humiliated and hurt.

I bought a live cage trap, but never caught the thing. Probably because I touched the trap with my bare hands.

So I wonder, what if you boil the trap in some chicken broth, or water with food in it? Will that make the trap more attractive to weasels? And if you dip the gloves in the pot too? I haven't had a problem since I rennovated my pens, but I still want to try and catch the weasel (yes, 2 years later, still upset!) You never really get over an attack, because we all really love our chickens. They are just as much of a pet as a dog or cat!

 

[HeadHen]

I couldn't help but notice that the place it keeps returning to is where you keep your mowers (to store it's kills). Maybe you should try bating or laying a trap there. If it can't get into the area where your animals are now, then it will probably return to where it stored some before. Being hungery and familiar enough with the area to feel it is a safe place for it to keep it's kills means it will be less cautious so more likely to get itself caught there.
Just a theory...

 

[HeadHen]

Oh, also you could dust the floor in there with something (unscented powder???) to see if you can get some good foot prints to give you some idea what you are up against.

 

[Dorthia]

Multiple predator problem. A coon is definently one.