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Chickens vs Mongoose.
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04-10-2009, 04:24 PM
We seem to have a mongoose who is raiding the hen house and stealing eggs. We have 2 dogs but they have been unable to catch the rascal!! ] Does anyone know what to do to get rid of the mongoose? Mahalo Vickivickiboe@aol.com
vickiboe@aol.com
04-10-2009, 08:14 PM
Thanks for that. Could you elaborate or come on over and show me. Vicki Boening HC 3, Box 13590 15-2044 22nd Street Kea'au, Hawaii 96749-9232[:0] 808-966-8843 home vickiboe@aol.com
vickiboe@aol.com
04-11-2009, 02:08 AM
We have successfully trapped mongoose with a borrowed Havahart trap. Bait with some bread and peanut butter or whatever and place the trap where you've seen the mongoose. What you do with it after that is up to you.
04-11-2009, 03:42 AM
yes, the havaheart traps are the way to go, have them at dels feed. what i found is hardboil an egg (thats what they are after anyway,) and i smear some peanut butter on for good measure and they seem to find it... then i take them for a long drive, i just cant kill the creatures...it could also be rats, i have caught some HUGE rats although my chickens usually dispatch the rats themselves...
04-11-2009, 05:38 AM
Take them up and release them in JWFITZ's neighborhood. He loves it when other people dump their problems in his area.
Pua`a S. FL Big Islander to be.
Pua`a
S. FL Big Islander to be.
04-11-2009, 05:42 AM
Wow, lquade. I heard that chickens eat centipedes, but the thought of rat-killing chickens is really cool!!! I can picture them running and swooping onto the rat's back and pecking at its head. Or do you mean they chase them away? That would be a cool sight as well. Any particular breed of chicken? Are they good layers? Maybe there really are killer bunnies around too (I'm very serious about my chicken questions and hope they really do kill or chase rats, yet for those who take me too seriously, I'm joking about the bunnies but after all, it is Easter and the issue did come up recently). When I worked the coffee farm, the manager told me about setting those humane traps for mongoose. He had a pellet pistol, and when he caught one, he would stick the barrel into the cage. The mongoose would hiss, lunge, bite the end, and he would pull the trigger. Now, this confuses me because the guy was a stone-cold pacifist who converted to Buddhism. I'm not big on religion, and always thought its followers didn't go in for that sort of behavior. At one time, he nearly ruined his life on illegal drugs and now he drinks like a fish. He also had a powerful, dominating personality and that, combined with his personal beliefs and habits, drove me nuts and that eventually ended my career in coffee. To all of you out there, I would really appreciate any input as to what would make someone like that tick.
lquade, why do you bother to boil the egg??? It's a waste of energy and totally unnecessary. I wouldn't put it in the fridge, either, because a cold egg might make the mongoose suspicious. peteadams, careful with the use of peanut butter. You may attract fire ants.
04-11-2009, 05:59 AM
quote: ---------------- can't speak for jay, but we don't need any more of those critters over here. we just started raising chickens and would like to keep them. [:p] ---------------------- "chaos reigns within. reflect, repent and reboot. order shall return." microsoft error message with haiku poetry
"a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices."
w. james
04-11-2009, 06:06 AM
I have raised cockatiels, guinea pigs and now hens in my outdoor bird cage which I built on 16-ft tall metal posts about 20, 25 years ago. I'm still using it. It's built with the floor of the cage about 4 feet off the ground, composed of good, strong, smaller mesh chicken wire. Leftovr feed and the poop falls through to the ground, making it easier to clean.
Chickens and any birds will ATTRACT rats because of the presence of feed. Mongoose are in the neighborhood but seldom on my lot because of my ferocious predator cat. And I don't like to kill mongoose anyway because they're sweet creatures, are wonderful parents and could be a good meal someday if the ships quit coming to our shores. The predator cat catches and KILLS the rats for me (she doesn't eat them, however and I'm just as glad cause she sleeps with me). So all I have to do is toss the rats in the jungle. BTW, the chickens also eat the coqui frogs...when I find one while gardening, I just toss it toward my 2 hens and they fight over who eats it first! |
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