Mustelids and possums
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@nzzp Thanks.Hopefully they are all that they are made out to be and your Dad just lives in a pristine environment.
When I set one up around here I expect to have a huge pile of rat and stoat corpses under it within a few minutes. I will probably have to sit next to it so that I can take them all away in wheel barrow.
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@taniwharugby said in Mustelids and possums:
I hate wasps. More wasps would be horrible.
Wouldn't it be better for the govt. to set aside funds, to be paid back to people who bring in this weed? By weight. Extra pocket money for kids. They have to cut it off at the bottom and spray a weedkiller on that, take a photo of each one.
Something like that? -
@Snowy How did you get on with your trapping programme?
I've got at least a couple of bait shy rats living in the ceiling and need to find a new way of taking them out. Saw those Good Nature traps in Farmlands a couple of days ago and was reminded of this thread.
Do they work?
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@Chris-B Funny that you should bump this. I have only just installed the possum trap on a different property a week ago and I know the bugger is down there but I haven't got it yet.
I have a Good Nature rat / stout one as well but they recommend that you put out these little tester things for them to nibble on for a few days to find the best spot. Not sure that I need to (given that something is getting into the hens eggs and both the rat and I know where the eggs are). However I'll do as I'm told for once and try to get it right.
Will give you an update in a few days. I do have an alternative for the possum - very well balanced weapon it is too.
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@Paekakboyz said in Mustelids and possums:
@Chris-B he ain't trapping animals these days 😁
Yeah I am, just different types - remember they all deserve it.
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@Snowy I love that you wear the skin of your online persona so graciously. Ah, has anyone seen @MN5 or @Rancid-Schnitzel lately?
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@Chris-B said in Mustelids and possums:
@Snowy How did you get on with your trapping programme?
I've got at least a couple of bait shy rats living in the ceiling and need to find a new way of taking them out. Saw those Good Nature traps in Farmlands a couple of days ago and was reminded of this thread.
Do they work?Just remembered that I was going to get back about this. I have both the possum and rat killers set up and haven't got anything. Whether I have them in the optimal place I don't know. With the rat one they give you cardboard baits that the rats chew so that you can find the best location, but it hasn't been effective. The cat on the other hand is doing a great job - gets a couple of rats a week.
As for the possums, neighbour has an air rifle and I'm going to try more traditional traps and just shoot them if I get any. Will try some spotlighting as well. I know where they are as they are territorial and they leave trails in the long grass. Quite handy as if you do kill one another will take over the territory and you can just keep getting them in the same spot.
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@Snowy A neighbour tells me a wild cat has raised a nest of kittens in her hedge and the rats in the ceiling have disappeared. Might just be they've moved to their summer quarters, but something good might have come from the wild cat.
My cat is too old and useless to catch rats - she mainly operates a catch and release programme with mice - once she's brought them inside.
Disappointing to hear those traps/baits aren't particularly effective.
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@mariner4life said in Mustelids and possums:
@Snowy I have a couple of good size pythons living around my place I can send you if you want
Also a big goanna getting fat off the eggs from the neighbors chickens.
Straya!
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@mariner4life said in Mustelids and possums:
@Snowy I have a couple of good size pythons living around my place I can send you if you want
Thanks, but I'm good for now (all snakes are on my animal shit list). My sister had a huge python at her place in Sydney, called Monty (of course). I hated the thing and wanted to make shoes out of it.
Thisss one of yours being "shipped"?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/118431038/snakes-on-a-plane-python-found-on-queenstowns-runwy-after-stowing-away-on-jetAlso the reason for getting rid of the rats is that they are getting the chicken eggs - so a goanna probably won't help by the sounds of it.
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@Chris-B I'm going to check the operation of my A12 possum trap because they must be better than my one seems to be.
I bought a standard cage trap yesterday, set it last night, possum in it this morning. Now I look like Davey Crocket (actually I hated shooting the thing and didn't make a hat, so have been reading up on how evil they are for NZ).The A24 rat trap hasn't been any better really so will set a cage out tonight. Did you buy a trap?
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@Snowy No - I've just persisted on with my standard trap and caught an unwary rat in it a couple of weeks ago.
I wonder whether you could try baiting your rat trap with peanut butter instead of whatever flavours they've given you (I think I saw chocolate in the store). Peanut butter is the best bait I've come across.
I am still somewhat tempted by these re-setting traps though, because where they've nested is an incredibly difficult place to get near to in the ceiling - so I don't want to be crawling there every day to re-set a trap (or peer at an empty one).
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@Chris-B Yes the bait is chocolate. Good idea with peanut butter, have had plenty of success getting mice with that.
As for the resetting trap just remember that if you don't check it you are going to end up with rotting rats in your ceiling, so not much better off really. Assuming that it works of course.
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@Snowy My house is a pretty old one and has had the ceilings lowered so has false ceilings and sort of crawl spaces. You'd like it!
If I set the trap cunningly it will hopefully kill the rats and let them decompose, without any nasty impacts.
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@Chris-B said in Mustelids and possums:
@Snowy My house is a pretty old one and has had the ceilings lowered so has false ceilings and sort of crawl spaces. You'd like it!
If I set the trap cunningly it will hopefully kill the rats and let them decompose, without any nasty impacts.
Put the trap on a plastic tray or something if it’s on the lowered ceiling. You don’t want a gross stain on the gib as nature takes it course.
Pretty much every house I’ve worked on has at least one decomposed mouse headfirst in a PowerPoint . If theres a lot of mice and rat signs I get them to buy some poison for me to chuck up in the ceiling as I line it. There’s been a few people over the years I’ve felt tempted to scatter a few loaves of bread around in the ceiling instead.