How to get rid of weasels in a chicken coop: rules for dealing with predators and how to catch

The weasel looks like a cute and cute animal, but farmers know that it is a dangerous and cruel predator. Having got into the habit of visiting the chicken coop, he is able to deal with the entire livestock of poultry in a short time. But there are many simple and effective methods for getting rid of weasels and other weasels in the chicken coop. Some methods are radical, others humane, involving the use of deterrents.

Can a weasel kill a chicken?

Weasel looks cute but deceiving. This is an aggressive and voracious predator that eats chickens, ducks and even geese.Despite its small size, the animal pounces on the victim, strangles it, then tears off parts of the carcass. The weasel has sharp fangs and a muscular body, and a captured chicken has no chance of surviving.

Small elongated body and brown coat color allow the animal to go unnoticed in its natural environment, so it is difficult to shoot it. The animal near human habitation feeds mainly on rodents, attacking chickens infrequently, only during the hungry period. There have been cases when a starving weasel pounced on cats and small dogs

After a night raid by a predator, a farmer finds several (sometimes more than a dozen) carcasses of dead chickens in the chicken coop.

How can a weasel get into a chicken coop?

Weasel is a nimble, active animal. Thanks to a slender, elongated body, she is able to get into the chicken coop through any more or less suitable hole. The place of penetration can be:

• chip foundation;
• mouse gap;
• rotten and crumbling wooden walls;
• ventilation system.

Even a small, unsuitable hole for petting is often not a problem. The animal has sharp teeth and strong claws, easily expands the hole to the required size, if the material from which the chicken coop is built allows. The predator easily crawls through mouse tunnels, digs underground paths on its own, gnaws holes in the rotten damp boards that make up the walls of the house.

Therefore, a farmer who decides to get rid of weasel must take care not only of the means of destruction or scaring away, but also of strengthening the structure of the chicken coop, as well as the fight against mice and rats in the backyard.

Signs of appearance

If a poultry farmer noticed predators of the weasel family near the farm, then he can be sure that soon he will have to count the carcasses of dead chickens.

If the weasel came out of the forest, approached human habitation, then she planned her victims.

It is difficult to see the animal, because, like any skilled hunter, it knows how to carefully disguise itself, perfectly orients itself in the area, and sneaks up to the feeding place unnoticed. Therefore, poultry farmers have to use tactics not of attack, but of defense.

After the snow falls, it becomes easier to notice signs of affection: specific paw prints remain on the snow cover. Hunters call them "two points". Representatives of the weasel family move by jumps, and paired dents remain in the snow.

If a farmer noticed such traces on his plot, then you need to measure the distance between pairs of dents with a ruler. From this distance, you can understand which particular representative of the mustelids got into the habit of ruining the chicken coop:

• weasel makes jumps of 20-30 cm;
• marten - in 30-40 cm;
• ferret - 50-60 cm.

How to deal with petting in a chicken coop?

The forest predator is easy to deal with. The main thing is to take into account his weaknesses and habits. Farmers have invented a large number of means of struggle. They use mechanical, electrical devices, folk remedies, even other pets.

Capture with your own hands

This option is difficult. Since weasels are nocturnal hunters, the chicken coop owner will have to spend a sleepless night. You need to hide in a secluded place, wait for the appearance of a forest enemy. When the weasel approaches the chicken coop, jump out of the shelter, throw a blanket or tarp over it, press it to the ground, preventing it from twisting and scratching the covering fabric. Next, grab the scruff of the neck, place in a previously prepared cage.

A farmer who decides to catch a weasel must definitely wear rubberized work gloves, because the animal, trying to escape, will bite and scratch.To prevent bites, you can pinch your nose with your fingers so that the animal opens its mouth, and then put a gag or a wooden block in its mouth.

If the humane attitude to wildlife is a priority, you don’t want to kill an animal, then you should take the cage to the forest closest to the personal plot, release the animal there.

Homemade Devices

You can catch affection not only with your bare hands, but also using simple traps:

1. A wooden box or a metal bucket is placed near the chicken coop upside down on a prop. Meat is placed under the structure as bait. The predator, trying to get to the meat, breaks the structure. The prop falls, the animal is trapped.
2. Acquire or design a cage in which the door falls down when a living being enters. A treat is placed inside the cage.

These traps are not always effective. The weasel can reach the delicacy carefully without hitting the prop, or it can completely ignore the bait, heading straight for the chicken coop.

The farmer should be on duty, hiding near the trap. After all, even being tempted by the bait, the predator will try to get out of the trap.

Big size mousetraps

Weasel representatives are small animals. Therefore, they are often caught with large mousetraps, also called rattraps. They look like a box made of wood or metal mesh, inside which is a hanging block connecting the passages.

A treat is placed in the center of the rat trap. The animal, seduced by the bait, runs along the block, falls into the chamber, and cannot get out of it.

Rat traps are sold at specialized points of sale. Some farmers design their own.

Repellers

If the poultry farmer does not want to destroy small predators, but seeks to drive them away from the chicken coop, he can use repellers. There are the following devices:

1. An electronic device that produces low-frequency sounds that are not picked up by the human ear, but in small animals cause fear and a desire to run away.
2. A lighting device with a motion sensor that turns on when a living being approaches. Bright light and sound signals scare away an uninvited guest. Usually such a device is hung directly on the wall of the chicken coop.

Folk methods

Of folk methods, poultry farmers most often use:

1. Tar. They smear the walls of the chicken coop. The substance exudes an unpleasant odor for animals. But such a tool is useless if the animal sneaks into the building through the roof or mouse holes.
2. Goat skins. They are hung on the walls of the chicken coop. Their action against predators also lies in the exhalation of an unpleasant odor.

Setting traps

An effective but radical method of dealing with weasel is to install traps on the site near the chicken coop. But it must be borne in mind that a cautious animal will not approach an object that smells of a person, therefore, before placing the traps, they are treated with manure, coniferous decoction or slaked lime. The lubricated device is opened and secured with rubber or cloth gloves.

The installed trap must be firmly fixed in the chosen place, since often sinewy and nimble animals run away with the device.

If the weasel enters the chicken coop through an underground tunnel, then the trap is placed near the start and end points of the path. Pieces of meat, chicken feathers are used as bait.

Help Pets

It's good if, in addition to chickens, geese and turkeys live in the house. These birds, noticing a predator, begin to scream heart-rendingly. And the large size of their body does not allow weasels to quickly kill them.

Pets scare off forest predators no worse than electronic devices. If a cat knows how to deal with rats, then it will cope with affection. The main thing is to provide her with free access to the chicken coop.

In order for the dog to scare away intruders, a booth must be built next to the chicken coop. Or attach a long chain to the collar, allowing you to reach the house. But you should not let the dog into the chicken coop itself. Barking and rushing for affection, he can scare and injure birds.

Prevention of Predator Entry

The farmer should carefully inspect the chicken coop and the surrounding area, if necessary, perform the following work:

• caulk all holes, cracks, cracks, even small ones;
• replace rotten, damp parts of a wooden structure with new ones;
• strengthen the flooring with metal plates;
• put the house on piles;
• protect the chicken coop with netting;
• clear the area of debris, piles of fallen leaves and other things that can become a hiding place for a predator.

It is advisable to make the floor of the chicken coop concrete, put a solid roof. If the building is in a deplorable state, then it is easier to build a new one.

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