meinnotts 1 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 (edited) I keep a few hens at the bottom of the garden and recently there has been a huge increase in the number of entry points under the coop. There used to be 1 or 2 now there is probably 7 or 8 entry points under the coop from 3 runs. The runs come from right under 2 big holly bushes so are pretty inaccessable. I decided it was time to get hold of some fenn traps, ordered them from north east fieldsports, arrived in good time and i have left them outside for a few weeks to 'weather'. I had some plywood tunnels made up at work and yesterday evening decided to set the traps. I set 4 tunnel traps and one in the top of the compost bin because the other day i opened it to put some scraps in and saw a rat diappear down the side. See pics which i took this morning anyway went down this morning and checked the traps, live trap was untripped, 4 of the fenns were untripped, but got to the last one which is on the busiest run and hey presto TWO littleuns caught in one trap, the one was only caught by its tail so i had to dispatch it, made me jump at touch when i lifted the tunnel off though i can tell you, didn't expect to see any let alone one caught by its tail jumping around !!!!!!! only question now is how do i get the buggers out of the trap !!!!!! hope i've done everything ok, its my first effort and comments welcome and a big thankyou to the guy at north east fieldsports who took the time to call me regarding a query on the delivery and then offered plenty of advice on setting the traps - cheers pal ! Edited March 23, 2009 by meinnotts Quote Link to post
fish 148 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 the traps are the wrong way round under the tunnels bud Quote Link to post
Matt 160 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Good effort, it's nice to see the old fenns in action. A couple of points to consider. Firstly, that trap looks like it's the wrong way around. They need to be accross the run rather than inline with it. I would either not bait at all, or use much less bait. I always 'tune' my new traps. If you take the brass trigger out, you can file it back a little, which makes the plate sit a little higher. It would also pay to boil the new traps rather than just weathering them. There are a couple of posts on trap preparation over on uktrapper forum. Keep the fenns set all the time, and you will pick up the rats before they get established. Ditchshitter wrote a very good post about rat control around small scale poultry over on the 'living off the land' board. Quote Link to post
Crow_Killer 0 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 good catch mate Quote Link to post
The one 8,398 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Nice going mate and when you get it turned in the tunnel stop baiting it and leave them set 24/7 and you will pick up the odd rat ever time they move in Quote Link to post
meinnotts 1 Posted March 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 right then i take it the traps need to be at 90 degrees to the run, i will get em swapped tonight i wont bother baiting them anymore then like the 'tuning' idea, i was thinking last night that the plates could do with being a touch higher, does anyone peg the traps down there is a chain attached but i haven't pegged them into the ground ? fingers crossed over the next few weeks i should get a few more Quote Link to post
The one 8,398 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 i use a metal peg and then sit the trap on top of it but there you could leave the chain sticking out the tunnel and sit a brick on the chain a rat wont move it Quote Link to post
meinnotts 1 Posted March 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 i was going to use a old tent peg got plenty of them knocking aorund Quote Link to post
IanB 0 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 You can actually bend the pan plate up slightly if its really required, test fire the trap first to ensure no restrictions on firing, yes they need to be turned 90deg so the rats are coming through either side of the jaws rather than over them... If you want to degrease a load of traps at once just get a bucket with some hot water in and fairy liquid in there, that should get rid of any residue, then rinse and hang.. You can spray or dip or just leave weathered.. With your cubby, the rats will use them, but try putting a little bait one side of the trap and blocking the entrance hole on the same side, so they have to come over the trap to get to it... You will mop them up soon enough, make sure your triggers nice and light also, and keep the safety on till your happy, then flip off... Quote Link to post
meinnotts 1 Posted March 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 a busy night of filing and resetting tonight for me, this trapping lark is a bit of 'fun' to be fair, although it was shock this morning it was quite satisfying to find a couple in the (what i now know wrongly) set traps !!! the other option was to sit out with the air rifle for a few hours..........but where the runs are and the rats are coming from makes that a impossible option Quote Link to post
IanB 0 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Don't go filing too much, I don't file anything just set them on a hair trigger by hand... Quote Link to post
meinnotts 1 Posted March 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 'by a hair trigger' ??? do you mean very sensitively ? Quote Link to post
The one 8,398 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Aye i had a mate catch his hand in a mk6 luckily nothing was broke but right across his knuckles was black and blue Quote Link to post
IanB 0 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 'by a hair trigger' ??? do you mean very sensitively ? Yes just like any trap, i.e mousetrap, etc.. tweak it so its very fine or sensitive to touch.. Quote Link to post
Matt 160 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Tune the trap up a bit, and then put a little bit of bait under the plate. The rats will try and 'dig' the plate to get too the bait...... I'm not a fan of bending traps. A little careful filing is ok. If you take too much off, let me know and I'll send you a replacement brass trigger. Quote Link to post
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