Late last week I separated five young roosters from the flock to the turkey shed for butchering and didn't get to them this weekend due to other things coming up. This morning I went out to do chores and found all five of them dead. Something got into the shed through a small dug hole in the floor, killed all of them but didn't eat anything. Things in the shed were knocked over and there were feathers everywhere, looked like a mighty battle took place in there. I"m still shocked at the scene I found when I opened the door. I guess we have a weasel or a marten here which I've suspected for a while, along with the rats. Maybe that's where the baby rabbits are going. Looks like I have a lot of work to do before the young turkeys get here in May. Not a good way to start the day.
Rough Night on the Homestead
- Thread starter Truckinguy
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Oh boy, definitely NOT a good surprise :x . Hopefully you can get everything locked and secured between now and chick season! I just bought a "new" partially finished coop that DH's cousin was making... he had it well thought out to keep them protected, so even though I thankfully haven't had any issues in a number of years, I am ready to get them up off the ground! I have been using a hoop coop, which has worked well over the years, but it's just a matter of time. I did have a coon getting in and eating eggs, but thankfully it never messed with the chickens :shock: .
Sorry you had such a slaughter, Truckinguy. 
Losing critters to predators is always so infuriating.
The small entrance hole sounds like a weasel or mink to me and I'd guess a weasel by the mass killing of all the birds with no sign of eating them. Martens are somewhat larger. and the time we had a mink get in with the rabbits, it killed one doe and had apparently been eating from that carcass for a couple of days before we found out. (The dead rabbit was in the nest tunnel out of sight and in a colony you don't always see every individual every day.)
The silver lining is that a weasel or mink will likely kill off most of the rats, especially if you make sure it can't get to your birds and rabbits. We have several times live-trapped mink using sardines as bait. I'm not sure what would be the best weasel bait.
Losing critters to predators is always so infuriating. The small entrance hole sounds like a weasel or mink to me and I'd guess a weasel by the mass killing of all the birds with no sign of eating them. Martens are somewhat larger. and the time we had a mink get in with the rabbits, it killed one doe and had apparently been eating from that carcass for a couple of days before we found out. (The dead rabbit was in the nest tunnel out of sight and in a colony you don't always see every individual every day.)
The silver lining is that a weasel or mink will likely kill off most of the rats, especially if you make sure it can't get to your birds and rabbits. We have several times live-trapped mink using sardines as bait. I'm not sure what would be the best weasel bait.
Nika":1h8ekfd8 said:
Ummm.... yummy? :x
Ouch, that always hurts. It's certainly bad enough to lose animals to a predator, but to have them killed for sport without being eaten is a double whammy. Cleaning up the aftermath is always depressing ... I recommend a bit of chocolate.
MoonSpiritMom
Well-known member
I've had issues with weasels, raccoons, a skunk and an owl this year! we had weasels at our farm earlier in the late spring last year and they ate chickens, took the heads off *GROSS!* then we moved to the house we are in now.. and in a span of 3 months we had our flock of almost 30 chickens get taken by a skunk, raccoon and then an owl (a BIIIIG OWL) widdled down to 11 chickens. I about gave up on having chickens this past year. but i reenforced the coop... clipped wings (my chickens were jumping 12 ft high fencing!! can you believe it!) cut down branches near the coop... and now i haven't had any losses! YAY! and I've finally started getting some eggs again.. after nothing since August! lol
Anyways... sucky deal on your roosters!! but chin up, and press on!
Anyways... sucky deal on your roosters!! but chin up, and press on!
Nika":22w3ltpl said:
We don't have wild ferrets here in Ontario, but weasels (I think you would call them stoats) also have the reputation of drinking the blood and leaving the carcass. I'm not certain how true it is, but it seems to fit what happened at Truckinguy's place.
MamaSheepdog
Well-known member
I'm so sorry, Truckinguy!
I know you are probably kicking yourself for not processing them yourself, with the inevitable "if onlys" running through your head on what seems to be a continuous loop. :x I know that's what I would be going through, anyway.
You might want to check Craigslist real quick to see if there are any raw feeders in your area- someone might give you a few bucks for them as dog food.
On the bright side, at least you can reinforce the turkey shed before you get your order in May. Buying birds isn't cheap- imagine the carnage if there were twenty something little chicks in there and you had no forewarning that you have a resident predator.
I know you are probably kicking yourself for not processing them yourself, with the inevitable "if onlys" running through your head on what seems to be a continuous loop. :x I know that's what I would be going through, anyway.
You might want to check Craigslist real quick to see if there are any raw feeders in your area- someone might give you a few bucks for them as dog food.
On the bright side, at least you can reinforce the turkey shed before you get your order in May. Buying birds isn't cheap- imagine the carnage if there were twenty something little chicks in there and you had no forewarning that you have a resident predator.
I've been here just over ten years and I've had rats here last year for the first time. I've caught about a dozen rats since early summer last year but come to think of it I haven't caught any in the last few weeks. I've always had raccoons here but since the summer three years ago when I caught 26 of them they haven't been much of a problem. Something got one hen Saturday night but the door to the coop was still open and the rest of them (about 35 birds) were snug on their roosts. Whatever it was just ate the neck of the hen and left the rest of it out behind the coop.
I left the bodies in the shed this morning because I was a bit too shook up to clean everything up but I lined them all up neatly by the door for later disposal and while I was in town for a couple of hours around noon something tried to drag one of the bodies over to the hole in the floor so the critter is out and about during the day. I have a live trap out by the hole now with sardines in it and three rat snap traps with cheese in them blocking the way to the bodies so we'll see. It's just what I had lying around at the moment.
Those roosters have been butchering out to about three pounds each so that was 15 pounds of chicken lost. I wonder if weasel is good eating!
Would a weasel carry off baby rabbits? I haven't had any baby rabbits since mid summer, I"ve had three nests built but no sign of any popples. I"m still scratching my head about that.
I left the bodies in the shed this morning because I was a bit too shook up to clean everything up but I lined them all up neatly by the door for later disposal and while I was in town for a couple of hours around noon something tried to drag one of the bodies over to the hole in the floor so the critter is out and about during the day. I have a live trap out by the hole now with sardines in it and three rat snap traps with cheese in them blocking the way to the bodies so we'll see. It's just what I had lying around at the moment.
Those roosters have been butchering out to about three pounds each so that was 15 pounds of chicken lost. I wonder if weasel is good eating!
Would a weasel carry off baby rabbits? I haven't had any baby rabbits since mid summer, I"ve had three nests built but no sign of any popples. I"m still scratching my head about that.
I once watched a weasel here making multiple trips carrying young mice. We speculated that it was taking them from their nest to its own nest for its youngsters. I think it would have had no problem carrying off rabbit kits--weasels are strong for their size.
The recent lack of rats suggests that it is doing its job well. If you can secure the rabbitry and poultry houses so it cannot get in, that critter will be an immense asset to ridding you of rats.
What size is the wire on your rabbit colony? Weasels are small and can get through most places that a rat can get through. It could be either the rats or the weasel making off with infant popples.
The recent lack of rats suggests that it is doing its job well. If you can secure the rabbitry and poultry houses so it cannot get in, that critter will be an immense asset to ridding you of rats.
What size is the wire on your rabbit colony? Weasels are small and can get through most places that a rat can get through. It could be either the rats or the weasel making off with infant popples.
Well, I caught the bugger. Not sure if it's a weasel, fisher or a mink but it stinks to high heaven, I could smell it halfway across the backyard. I'm hoping it's a loner but I'll keep the traps out for a while.
Maggie, the colony is wood back and sides, chipboard and metal roof and 1x1" cage wire on the front but there are small gaps between the sides and roof for ventilation in the winter. I"m planning a major renovation for the colony between now and spring so I'm going to make it more secure in the process. I also need to do some more work on the turkey shed to also make it more secure.
Today started off better than yesterday!
Maggie, the colony is wood back and sides, chipboard and metal roof and 1x1" cage wire on the front but there are small gaps between the sides and roof for ventilation in the winter. I"m planning a major renovation for the colony between now and spring so I'm going to make it more secure in the process. I also need to do some more work on the turkey shed to also make it more secure.
Today started off better than yesterday!
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MoonSpiritMom
Well-known member
Oh wow!!
Nice trap job!
So whats the procedure in your area? Here we are not allowed to relocate nuisance animals (raccoons, skunks, weasels) they must be shot on site.
Nice trap job!
So whats the procedure in your area? Here we are not allowed to relocate nuisance animals (raccoons, skunks, weasels) they must be shot on site.
Nice job! And quickly done to boot!
I can't help with ID, thankfully I have never had to deal with any of of the smaller critters like that. It's neat looking, but I am sure nothing you want around! Look at those teeth :x
Could you maybe save the pelt at least?
I can't help with ID, thankfully I have never had to deal with any of of the smaller critters like that. It's neat looking, but I am sure nothing you want around! Look at those teeth :x
Could you maybe save the pelt at least?
It looks like a mink to me, but I can't tell the size from the pictures. A large mink will run about 2 pounds and reach about 21 inches nose to tip of tail, or 14.5 inches not including the tail. Those were the measurements of the one that killed our doe; many are smaller. We think ours was an escapee from a mink farm . . . we found out later that the mink farm backed onto our land. (It's gone now.)
The shape and colour of a fisher is not much different than a mink, but they are much larger, about the size of a good-sized house-cat.
If you plan to relocate him, take him far, far away. We once took one just a few miles to a swampy area and it came back in about three weeks. Almost positive it was the same one. Out came the live trap and sardines and we had it again in about fifteen minutes. The second time we deported it much farther north and it did not return.
The stink you spoke of, Truckinguy, is the typical musk of all members of the weasel family. The skunk, of course, is the worst, but even a small weasel like the ones Marilla killed in our house have a fairly strong musk. Of course she got it all over her fur, but she seemed to enjoy spending the next couple of hours grooming herself clean. :roll:
The shape and colour of a fisher is not much different than a mink, but they are much larger, about the size of a good-sized house-cat.
If you plan to relocate him, take him far, far away. We once took one just a few miles to a swampy area and it came back in about three weeks. Almost positive it was the same one. Out came the live trap and sardines and we had it again in about fifteen minutes. The second time we deported it much farther north and it did not return.
The stink you spoke of, Truckinguy, is the typical musk of all members of the weasel family. The skunk, of course, is the worst, but even a small weasel like the ones Marilla killed in our house have a fairly strong musk. Of course she got it all over her fur, but she seemed to enjoy spending the next couple of hours grooming herself clean. :roll:
MoonSpiritMom":p2fy0vpu said:
We practice the three S's here: shoot, shovel and shut up. Actually, the middle "S" becomes a "C" for compost. I would never make a nuisance animal anyone's else's problem so I wouldn't dump it elsewhere. I'll likely skin it and tan the hide and see how that turns out.
So, was it a mink, based on size? And did you use sardines for bait?
When we relocated the one mink, we took it to a very deserted spot where two creeks ran together. I doubt it became anyone's problem there, but your point is well taken.
When we relocated the one mink, we took it to a very deserted spot where two creeks ran together. I doubt it became anyone's problem there, but your point is well taken.
MamaSheepdog
Well-known member
Good catch! Hopefully that is the only one! :clover:
Judging by Maggie's measurements, if that cage has 1" x 1" wire, it looks like it falls into the size range of a mink.
Judging by Maggie's measurements, if that cage has 1" x 1" wire, it looks like it falls into the size range of a mink.
It was 3lbs 1oz and measured 25" from nose to tip of tail. The hide is in the brine now so hopefully it turns out nice. Should be the winter coat although we've had a warm winter. The tail was bushy and about 1/3 of the overall length. Medium to darkish brown all over.
I used sardines and a rooster head for bait. The trap is set again and put back where it was just in case.
I threw the carcass in the compost but for next time, just curious, are they good eating?
I used sardines and a rooster head for bait. The trap is set again and put back where it was just in case.
I threw the carcass in the compost but for next time, just curious, are they good eating?
Most predators are NOT good eating, though there is no reason that you couldn't try it if you wanted to. The exception seems to be lynx . . . I've seen recipes for it and since house-cat shows up now and again in Chinese restaurants as chicken, it is probably very mild.
Yours was almost certainly a mink, though a big one! I've only seen one fisher in the wild, when I was a teenager, but it must have weighed at least 10 pounds, maybe more. At a glance I thought it was a big black cat until I realized that the legs were shorter and the ears smaller and more rounded. I looked it up in a field guide on mammals as soon as I got home.
I admit to having a soft spot for the predators, especially lynx, foxes and the weasel family. We try to work with them here, but when they start going after our poultry or rabbits, they've got to go. Interestingly, we've never had a problem with them as long as there were rats for them to eat. I don't know if they simply prefer rat meat or if it is just easier to get. When the rats run out, then they will take poultry if they can get at them. But on the whole, they have been more beneficial than harmful here.
Yours was almost certainly a mink, though a big one! I've only seen one fisher in the wild, when I was a teenager, but it must have weighed at least 10 pounds, maybe more. At a glance I thought it was a big black cat until I realized that the legs were shorter and the ears smaller and more rounded. I looked it up in a field guide on mammals as soon as I got home.
I admit to having a soft spot for the predators, especially lynx, foxes and the weasel family. We try to work with them here, but when they start going after our poultry or rabbits, they've got to go. Interestingly, we've never had a problem with them as long as there were rats for them to eat. I don't know if they simply prefer rat meat or if it is just easier to get. When the rats run out, then they will take poultry if they can get at them. But on the whole, they have been more beneficial than harmful here.
