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The ferret is a beautiful but dangerous animal. Once in the chicken coop, he will not rest until he destroys all the birds. Having discovered traces of his presence, you need to urgently decide how to catch the ferret in the chicken coop.
Catching a ferret is not easy at all. This is an intelligent and cautious animal belonging to the mustelidae family. To cope with him, you need to know his habits well.
Description of the animal
The ferret is unusually dexterous and cunning. Its long narrow body with a bushy tail is perfectly adapted to penetrate narrow burrows. If necessary, he defends himself excellently or quickly runs away, knocking dogs off his trail with a stream of stinking liquid. He lives on the edge of the forest or on the plain. It digs a hole, but if it finds a ready one, it settles in it. By feeding on rodents, the ferret is beneficial because it reduces their number. Reptiles and birds also serve as food for the animal. He even knows how to dive into the river for fish. Insects and honey from forest bees are delicacies for him.
If a ferret is tamed at a young age, it will become an excellent guard for the owner's chicken coop and will not allow mice or rats near it. However, no one guarantees that he will not raid the neighboring chicken coop - after all, this is someone else's territory.
Setting up a chicken coop
If the ferret has not yet appeared in the vicinity of the chicken coop, the room must be well strengthened and equipped so that no predator can get inside:
- concrete or cover the floors in the chicken coop with metal sheets;
- experienced owners strengthen the base of the chicken coop with fine-mesh metal mesh to a depth of half a meter;
- one of the successful options is to install the poultry house on high supports, the floor being better covered with iron sheets;
- The ceiling can also be covered with mesh;
- Install a secure lock on the door;
- the area must be fenced with a metal mesh;
- You can place flat stones around the chicken coop next to the mesh - in this place the ferret will not be able to dig;
- you need to seal all the cracks and holes;
- replace old, sagging boards with new ones;
- there should be no garbage heaps or dumped building materials in the vicinity so that the ferret cannot hide there.
After watching the video, you can get acquainted with the methods of arranging a chicken coop.
Aggressiveness
The ferret in the chicken coop is very aggressive. Having sneaked up unnoticed, with a sudden jump he attacks the chicken, strangles it, and then eats it.
However, the ferret kills much more than it eats. His delicacy is chickens and young hens. Traces of the ferret being in the chicken coop remain in the form of suffocated chickens. The survivors behave restlessly and do not get off their perch. If a ferret has been in the chicken coop at night, the chickens urgently need to be rescued - transferred to another place, and the premises strengthened.
Catching an animal
The ferret goes hunting at night. In order to catch him, you need to be well prepared. You should wear thick mittens on your hands to protect your hands from his sharp teeth. You can throw an old thick coat over the animal. Wrap it up and put it in a cage.Next, the best solution is to take the ferret caught in the chicken coop further into the forest and release it into the wild. If, while catching an animal, he manages to bite his hand, you need to pinch his nose and put a piece of wood in his jaw.
You can catch a ferret in a chicken coop and using a trap. But at the same time, you should remember that the animal will not approach it if it smells a human scent on it. Therefore, the trap must be processed in one of the following ways:
- boil with spruce needles;
- coat with manure;
- keep in slaked lime.
If there are already tunnels around the chicken coop, then the trap should be placed at their exit. Bird feathers will serve as bait.
Homemade traps
You can easily make them yourself at home.
Place a cardboard box at an angle under the stop, placing a piece of fresh meat there. When a ferret appears under the box, attracted by the smell of meat, it will slam shut. You can use a cage or bucket instead of a box. However, this method does not fully guarantee that a ferret in a chicken coop will fall into a trap. It may miss the support or pass the trap.
You can prepare a simple trap yourself:
- cut off both ends of a two-liter plastic bottle;
- place bait from a piece of meat at one end;
- in the path of the ferret's movement in the chicken coop, a chair is placed, and a bottle is placed on it so that its end with the bait is on the edge of the chair;
- in this place an empty bucket is placed under the chair - you need to correctly calculate its position so that the ferret falls from the chair directly into the bucket;
- The lid of the bucket is secured in such a way that it closes with the slightest movement.
Having set a ferret trap in the chicken coop, all you have to do is wait for the animal to appear. Sensing the smell of meat, the animal covets the prey. When he grabs the bait, his body weight will outweigh the end of the bottle and fall into the substituted bucket.
After this, you need to take the ferret away from the farm and release it into the wild.
You can also put a bucket with a chicken carcass in the chicken coop. Place several traps around it. Even if on the way to the bait the animal is able to avoid traps, moving back with the prey, it will still fall into the trap.
Modern technical means
One of the modern ways to deal with ferrets in a chicken coop are repeller lights that react to any movement. They are installed next to the chicken coop. When an animal appears, the flashlight reacts with light and sound effects, scaring away the animal. Ultrasonic repellers can also be used.
live trap
Since it is difficult to get rid of a ferret in a chicken coop using conventional traps and snares, you can try using a live trap. It consists of:
- an elongated wooden body equipped at the end with a door that falls at the right moment and closes the entrance;
- guards with stops in the form of two nails driven through the lower part;
- gatehouse with a ring on it;
- SIM card passing through the hole to the ring;
- The lifting height of the door is adjusted by a SIM card with a special spring;
- the back wall has a small window covered with transparent material - plastic or plexiglass.
Pieces of meat and rodent carcasses can be used as bait. The bait is placed against the back wall.
Moving towards her through the open passage, the ferret steps on guard. The stop falls, setting the guard in motion. The SIM card ring flies off and the door falls down, closing the entrance. What to do with a caught ferret? The best way to release it is in the field.
Traditional methods
To get rid of a ferret in a chicken coop, some summer residents advise coating the walls of the chicken coop with tar or laying sheep or goat skins around it. Specific smells will scare off the ferret, and he will prefer to look for another territory to hunt.
You can place a dog house next to the chicken coop. When the dog smells the animal, it will make a noise and drive it away. It is not recommended to leave the dog in the chicken coop itself, as both it and the chickens will behave restlessly. If a dog just runs around in the yard, it will scare away the ferret, even if it doesn’t catch it. You can leave a cat in the coop overnight, but not every cat can handle a ferret in the coop.
One way to protect a chicken coop at home is with geese. They sleep very lightly and will make noise at the slightest rustle. They protect the poultry house and turkeys perfectly. By causing a commotion, they will scare away the small predator and discourage him from visiting the chicken coop.
Conclusion
When fighting a ferret in a chicken coop, we must remember that this is a predator, which nature has endowed with a certain instinct. It is not suitable for plant foods. The animal destroys the bird, guided by its instincts, and not by the desire to harm. Therefore, you should not kill him. It is better to take care of ferret-proof chicken coops with strong walls and floors.
