The Old Folks Home

[ozexpat]

I am not a fan of poisoning cats. I cannot shoot them nor use a bow and arrow. No traps are available. I have little choice. I lost a total of 48 birds with four breeds wiped out. This has set me back over a year. If those 48 birds were sold as chicks I would have made over $600. If i bred from them, in seven months or so I would be making $600 per week from them. I have poured all I can into this hobby and I need to be able to get returns.

These are absolutely 100% feral. They are not somebody's Moggy.I am just tring to find the most humane way possible.

The baits are set in locations that only a cat can get to. No dogs will be harmed. They go out at 8pm and inside at 5 am. No birds will be harmed.

Lets finish all the poison talk.

 

[bamadude]

Kabobs

 

[drumstick diva]

Hagar, at first I worried that you were chasing bunnies with a propane torch

relieved that you were talking about prickly pear cactus instead.

I had winter hardy Opuntias (prickly pear) along the south side of the house for over 40 years. My sister got a couple pads from a friend and shared them with me. No one ever said they were invasive. They stood up to everything I tried to 'off' them. Gave up last spring , after our winter that was the coldest, snowiest in 20 yrs, left them in tact.

Ended up with me prying them out of the ground -over the course of several days and dumping them at the end of the property. Then tending to numerous spine-hair assaults on the human body. What a relief to have them gone though. I did save a couple dozen for the side where all the trespassers, dogs, cats, ?? come through so we'll see how that works.

 

[Cynthia12]

oz, had a feral cat get one of my Heritage Rhode Island Red pullets. I was steaming mad. Caught her eating it out behind our shed. I set a live trap, put some tuna in the back of the cage. Boy she was mean! Didn't dare put your hand in that cage. We did not take her to the pound. She would have been put down for sure. We went way west of us where there are fields and barns. Pretty sure that kitty knew how to catch a mouse or two..or even pheasant.
If you don't have a live trap, you may just have to invest in one of those the next time you are in the states. Or a couple if you have a lot cats. It would be well worth the money from the sound of it. Just take those wild cats somewhere else.

 

[Bunnylady]

Hagar, at first I worried that you were chasing bunnies with a propane torch

relieved that you were talking about prickly pear cactus instead.

I had winter hardy Opuntias (prickly pear) along the south side of the house for over 40 years. My sister got a couple pads from a friend and shared them with me. No one ever said they were invasive. They stood up to everything I tried to 'off' them. Gave up last spring , after our winter that was the coldest, snowiest in 20 yrs, left them in tact.

Ended up with me prying them out of the ground -over the course of several days and dumping them at the end of the property. Then tending to numerous spine-hair assaults on the human body. What a relief to have them gone though. I did save a couple dozen for the side where all the trespassers, dogs, cats, ?? come through so we'll see how that works. It's always just a little strange to see them,

It's always just a little strange to see them, but there is a prickly pear that is native here. You know it's poor soil when you see them growing; one of the few means you can use to control them is fertilizer, believe it or not. Prying pieces of them out of mower tires is a nuisance. I've heard that one of the prickly pear relatives, cholla, has a reputation for jumping at people; dealing with prickly pears, I can almost believe it!

 

[ronott1]

It's always just a little strange to see them, but there is a prickly pear that is native here. You know it's poor soil when you see them growing; one of the few means you can use to control them is fertilizer, believe it or not. Prying pieces of them out of mower tires is a nuisance. I've heard that one of the prickly pear relatives, cholla, has a reputation for jumping at people; dealing with prickly pears, I can almost believe it!

These?


The house at our back corner has prickly pear cactus growing at their back fence. It is big in Mexican cooking.

 

[Teila]

Guess who got a new camera today!

Still learning how to use it .. lots of bells and whistles but I wanted to share some shots I took while stalking chickens!

 

[Penny Hen]

Down in Texas they use a propane torch, a pear burner, and burn the spines off of the prickly pear and the cattle eat them..

My sheep will take bites out of my prickly pears. Mine have wimpy spines compared to some varieties.

 

[drumstick diva]

Teila , any chance your chickens are Cilla (Black), Dusty (Springfield,) Tina(Turner),

 

[drumstick diva]

and yes, there are "jumping chollas," a friend in Phoenix told me about them, she said they responded to body heat(near them) by shooting them out. Preemptive strike.