O/T Slightly - %&$%^ Rabbits & Ferrets

I though we could fence off the base and let the ferret go, or do you actually need the burrow mouth fenced?

alan

Alan,
the burrow mouth is netted, so that the rabbits are caught as they run from the ferret. If a ferret catches a rabbit, he'll eat it then sleep in the burrow for the next few days. Owner would not be too happy about that.

Gassing is best and most effective... but again.. you need access to the burrows.

Okay, thet means ferrets are out, and i will need to look at baits instead of gas.

Alan

Memories !

They just come flooding back, as a kid on the old mans farm, in Sth Gippsland, getting heaps of rabbits.

And so does the nightmare of having ferrets, with a really bad attitudes, trying to eat my fingers.

Worst thing that these little mongrels did to me !



Imagine this
I'm 28 years old, left the farm, married and working.
Just knocked off work and heading to The Astor Hotel in Albury.(Friday thing)

Ferret jumping around office, and doing its sniffing thing,
See you Monday "Boss"
Boss says "do you know anything about ferrets".. yes I replied," had heaps of them on the Old Man's Farm."
Bloody boss told me the little mongrel was nice and tame..I picked it up easy

Me screaming, swearing, and cursing the Boss, as this monster, went from one finger to another, then back and forward from one hand the other..

Mongrel Boss, almost wet his pants laughing, when this thing with the attitude of a very angry "crocadile", tried eating me..
The horror of heading to my favourite Pub with about 20 bandaids on my 1/2 eaten fingers, on both hands..
Talk of the Pub, for a week, as I could hardly hold my beer, with 2 hands, through pain and still shaking...everyone laughing and stirring me !

Great entertainment value for all but me.


Ferrets should be destroyed on site

Can still feel that one eating my fingers some 30 years later
Cheers
Bucky

hahaha....you probably deserved it

Oh yes, thanks for the painful reminder Bucky.

My dad kept ferrets when I was a kid, for rabbiting and they were like pets too.

I was sitting on the ground playing with a Doe one day and she entered the leg of my long trousers at the ankle. It seemed like fun at the time as she crawled up my leg, "look dad, she thinks she is in a burrow".

Did she ever, good fun til the bitch thought she caught a rabbit in the burrow.

Then I started screaming.

I still have the tooth scar to prove it.

Cheers Neil

Bucky
That why the agro ones have tails, it's easier to pick them up, once bitten like you were you soon learn this as I did when I had them.

Mandrake

Like the joke,

whats a wok?

Its a thing you throw at a wabbit when you haven' got a wifle.



It looks like a great tool but wrong time of year to use it.

Alan

This is also a good option...

Rodex Industries

Make sure you watch the video!

Hi Sillydad

Great product Buuuuuuuttttttttt!!!!!!

If i use this it will cause more damage and definitely upset my paving. Not only that the kids will probably give me your username as a new nickname.

Alan

Nothing wrong with a little over kill -- the only problem i see is the use of it during high fire danger -- last thing you need on your property is a bunch of 'flaming' bunnies :)

but then again .. a massive bush fire will fix most of your vermin prob

May i ask how much you got your train carriage for -- i am looking at that option as a guest house on our property


Boc

Ozboc

It came with the house and we turned it into a bedroom for stepson a few years ago.

It was an old WA Gov Railway wheat van, back in the early 80's they got rid of hundreds, lots of farms have them for sheds. From memory they wanted a couple of thousand baclk then

We are thinking of getting rid of it, but as it has been there for so long and trees grow, landscaping chnages etc it will cost a fortune in craneage to get it out.

Alan

HI , thanks Alan for your reply .... there is a guy in penrith ( sydney ) that sells them and transports them - just wanted to get a ball park figure to see if its a viable idea for the property as it could also be a good bed / breakfast for weekend stayers in Bega valley that do not want to camp but would rather a nice property with trees - river frontage and so forth ...

shall investigate further

Boc

phostoxin

But at rural merchandise sores Such as Elders or CRT

Daz

I think they stopped using zyclon B in about 1942- 43

boc

Thanks

It looks like my options will be poison baits, thats a great document as well especially about the weeds erradication.

Alan

Good luck Alan.
BTW - better get to them quick before the problem grows!
I've got a property I go rabbit shooting on, a few hundred acres only. He's been poisoning, shooting, ripping etc for yonks. Those things just slow them down for a bit and then they're back as strong as ever. I guess the fact that the neighbours are also infested doesn't help.
But your plague is minor so if you hit them hard once with a good dose of poison you should be rabbit free for a while. Until the next wandering bunny finds the place and decides to call it home!

Moose, are you from the mallee area of SA? Lameroo in particular.

No Des - not within a bulls roar of SA.

OK Thanks Moose. The roaring bull, I take it that it isn't a Mallee Bull then. LOL

That's pretty crook - but still better than most of what passes for Friday Funnies on this site.

Is that before i cover the bush nearby with ham,

so i can hambush them.

LMAO - and if that does not kill them the cholesterol will !


Boc

Hairy

I can see diggings but no actual opennings. At a push i can get reach with my hand.

Alan

Alan,
The way we used to bait them on the Station years ago was using Phostoxin as someone earlier said,
We used to wrap two pellets up in toilet paper and stick them in the end of a piece of 3/4 poly pipe about 4 foot long. turn the pipe around and stick it down the hole pellet end first.
If you can get near the hole, fill it in leaving a bit of poly hanging out of the ground.
Do this to as many holes you can get to and try to fill the rest in.
Once they are all loaded, squirt a bit of water down the poly and poke a length of 1/2 inch poly down the 3/4 to push the pellets down the hole and pull the two pieces out......bye bye bunny.
Hold your breath and get out....dont forget to shower before the dinner bell or you might get drilled by the cook!

Cheers
Hairy

I am curious to try this - i have rabbits on the property and from the looks of them they look very healthy ( from a distance )

what are some things to look for in a rabbit to make it safe for eating --

and as far as food preparation goes - what's your method

Boc

Ozboc ,years ago when the rabbittoh came round door to door in Albury and sold them for 2 shillings a pair ,Mum would always soak them overnight in milk , after draining would cook them same as whole chicken or break them down to pieces and cook. Was a rumour back when Albury got its 1st Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet that every 2nd piece was in fact rabbit ,lol.

Ozboc

The olbvious thing to look for is Mixo, the eyes of the rabbit will look strange because it makes them go blind. It has been a while since i have seen one so i cant recal what it looks like, but you will know it when you see it.

The other one is hidatis(?) which you can only see when you gut them, it is a spotting on the either the liver or kidney. Again it s been a while.

I am not sure about calici if there is any issues with eating an infected one and how to identify one.

Alan