cattle wrecking warrens

[max abell 198]

Does anyone else get this problem we were lucky enough to have been given permission on about 2000 acres of good rabbiting land to add to our permission list the place is alive with rabbits and the burries vairy from big uns and small ones in the open to the same under the hedgerows the farmer is a fantastic bloke and we can go whenever we want and drive the 4x4 to the ferreting area we intend doing that day the only prob is its a cattle farm no crops no sheep just hundreds of cattle and what we are finding because cattle are so heavy when the ground is wet and been wet in the past the ground collapses round the entrance of the holes so you end up with great big entrances to the holes some of the burries look more like badger setts LOL

All our purse nets are homemade 4ft polly but even these are dwarfed by quite a lot of the holes we put longnets round where poss and it does help we also purse net what we can and use bolt traps to help prevent rabbits hole hopping we are very gratefull for this word of mouth permission and want to do a good job for the farmer but some of these big holes are proving awkward does anyone else get this problem with cattle/horses collapsing the ground

[The one 8,594]

Thats a problem but try holding up your purse nets by sticking a couple of small stick's into the earth at the top of the burrow .and if the cattle collaspe the entrance its a easy job to remove a sod of earth and dig your rabbit out

[kevin from bristol 95]

try getting some larger nets or if the entrances are that big you could try a gate net layed over ,it has worked for me in the past but not really what its for ,ive have had these problems on some of my permissions before sometimes after you have ferreted a bury with a large opening inside the field but most in the bank or hedge ,i have back filled the hole to the level of the ground surface and when i have returned they have dug it back out with just a rabbit sized hole if that makes sense you could try that also but they may well just trample it again

Edited December 14, 2010 by kevin from bristol

[DogMagic 461]

Get yourself some poke nets mate.

 

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/5-Foot-Poke-nets-10z-ferrets-long-nets-purse-nets-/370463494580?pt=UK_SportingGoods_Hunting_ShootingSports_ET&hash=item56415851b4

Edited December 14, 2010 by DogMagic

[Ideation 8,217]

Like has been said - light weight nylon nets pinned in or poke nets. We have the same problem with the damn cows.

[AL BUNDY 45]

thats terrible tell the selfish b*****d to keep his cattle out your ferreting fields.

[max abell 198]

thats terrible tell the selfish b*****d to keep his cattle out your ferreting fields.

LOL

[pitmanuk 2]

we own an organic dairy farm and we get this problem a lot. i have tried a few different things but in the end i just decided to you the dogs and forget the nets. dunno if you can take dogs on your permission, but i found there was to much messing around with the bigger holes.

 

atb