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lamb attack??

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  • 30-03-2008 10:56pm
    #1
    ivanthehunter
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,284 ✭✭✭


    Predation on lambs?
    What sort of species are currently attacking your lambs.
    what about any other farm animals? are they being attacked by any other creatures?


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    #2
    reilig
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,401 ✭✭✭reilig


    Hey there,

    We have had a lot of problems with Fox's attacking and killing our lambs in the past. So much so that we not lamb all of our ewes indoors and keep them in until the lambs are at least a week old.

    We might miss one or two ewes who would be going late and let out by mistake but we are usually careful to get some tar spray on the back of the lambs neck which seems to keep the fox away.

    Have had some serious problems in the past with dogs attacking, especially 1 person's dogs. One day we found 12 dogs belonging to the 1 man eating 4 ewes that they had killed. We knew who they belonged to but he would not admit to owning them. We sent them to the dog pound with the hope that their owner would collect them their and admit that they were his, so that we could get some compensation from him. Never heard anything from the pound again. Heard from a third party since that the owner did come to the pound and volunteered to take all 12 dogs, but denied owning them.
    Anyway, after speaking to the Guards, we took their advice, all 12 dogs attacked our sheep about 2 weeks later and we shot them all, dug a hole and put them down. Their sneaky owner drove up and down our road for weeks calling them, but they never appeared.

    We also had some problems with mink.

    Regards

    Dan


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    #3
    whitser
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,038 ✭✭✭whitser


    i know the damage a fox can do, but i was a bit taken back when a farmer i hunt foxes for told me he lost lambs to mink a few years back. mink are right little demons,for their size. grey crows can also do damage.


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    #4
    reilig
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,401 ✭✭✭reilig


    whitser wrote: »
    i know the damage a fox can do, but i was a bit taken back when a farmer i hunt foxes for told me he lost lambs to mink a few years back. mink are right little demons,for their size. grey crows can also do damage.

    I never really had a major problem with mink attacking new born lambs, but a few years ago, I had a 10 month old lamb that was a little slow in himself and he used to get caught in bushes and briors a lot. One morning, I found him lying on the back of a ditch and half of his stomach eaten out, I can only presume it was a mink that did this to him as he would be able to defend himself from a fox at that size.

    Mink are becoming a lot more popular in our area. I don't like the little pests - they send a shiver down my spine when I see them.

    Happy Hunting!!!

    Dan


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    #5
    foxshooter243
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,461 ✭✭✭foxshooter243


    greycrows killed 6 lambs belonging to a farmer near me ..took their eyes out whilst being born..i despatched them with my 223 ..the crows that is;)


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    #6
    whitser
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,038 ✭✭✭whitser


    farmer also told me of a badger that took chickens and ducks! no wild animal will pass a meal if its capable to killing it. last year a fox came up and took chickens at 2 in the after noon from a garden at the back of a farm house where i hunt. the farm dogs were knocking around and the wife was hanging out washing. how brazen is that?


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    #7
    pburns
    Registered Users Posts: 2,423 ✭✭✭pburns


    Mink a major problem for farmyard hens. Every 18 months or so a mink comes alomg and wipes out ALL the hens in the coop (only 5 or 6 mind). what grieves me is that he will not even eat the entite carcass, just 'nibbles' the neck, sucks the blood presimably and moves on. They seem to take pleasure in killing.

    I've had to defend myself against a mink when i interceded for a chicken out in the yard one night. No such thing as being afraid of humans, i failed top save the hen. He was fully prepared to take me on! Didn't have a gun to hand unfortunately. i had a dog who was a master at sniffing out and killing mink but sadly he died. The lads I have now are eejits...

    TBH mink are such a threat where I live I'd be worried about leaving a toddler/small child unsupervised for any period of time:(...


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    #8
    ivanthehunter
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,284 ✭✭✭ivanthehunter


    pburns wrote: »
    Mink a major problem for farmyard hens. Every 18 months or so a mink comes alomg and wipes out ALL the hens in the coop (only 5 or 6 mind). what grieves me is that he will not even eat the entite carcass, just 'nibbles' the neck, sucks the blood presimably and moves on. They seem to take pleasure in killing.

    I've had to defend myself against a mink when i interceded for a chicken out in the yard one night. No such thing as being afraid of humans, i failed top save the hen. He was fully prepared to take me on! Didn't have a gun to hand unfortunately. i had a dog who was a master at sniffing out and killing mink but sadly he died. The lads I have now are eejits...

    TBH mink are such a threat where I live I'd be worried about leaving a toddler/small child unsupervised for any period of time:(...
    Scarey thought that about leaving the kid outside


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    #9
    snowman707
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,279 ✭✭✭snowman707


    pburns wrote: »
    Mink a major problem for farmyard hens. Every 18 months or so a mink comes alomg and wipes out ALL the hens in the coop (only 5 or 6 mind). what grieves me is that he will not even eat the entite carcass, just 'nibbles' the neck, sucks the blood presimably and moves on. They seem to take pleasure in killing.
    ..

    are you sure it was a mink ? it could also be a pine martin


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    #10
    jmayo
    Registered Users Posts: 13,186 ✭✭✭✭jmayo


    pburns wrote: »
    Mink a major problem for farmyard hens. Every 18 months or so a mink comes alomg and wipes out ALL the hens in the coop (only 5 or 6 mind). what grieves me is that he will not even eat the entite carcass, just 'nibbles' the neck, sucks the blood presimably and moves on. They seem to take pleasure in killing.

    I've had to defend myself against a mink when i interceded for a chicken out in the yard one night. No such thing as being afraid of humans, i failed top save the hen. He was fully prepared to take me on! Didn't have a gun to hand unfortunately. i had a dog who was a master at sniffing out and killing mink but sadly he died. The lads I have now are eejits...

    TBH mink are such a threat where I live I'd be worried about leaving a toddler/small child unsupervised for any period of time:(...

    Are you living in west Sligo/ east Mayo by any chance ?

    I am not allowed discuss …



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    #11
    johngalway
    Closed Accounts Posts: 10,271 ✭✭✭✭johngalway


    pburns wrote: »
    Mink a major problem for farmyard hens. Every 18 months or so a mink comes alomg and wipes out ALL the hens in the coop (only 5 or 6 mind). what grieves me is that he will not even eat the entite carcass, just 'nibbles' the neck, sucks the blood presimably and moves on. They seem to take pleasure in killing.

    I've had to defend myself against a mink when i interceded for a chicken out in the yard one night. No such thing as being afraid of humans, i failed top save the hen. He was fully prepared to take me on! Didn't have a gun to hand unfortunately. i had a dog who was a master at sniffing out and killing mink but sadly he died. The lads I have now are eejits...

    TBH mink are such a threat where I live I'd be worried about leaving a toddler/small child unsupervised for any period of time:(...


    Dingle Poultry supplies sell a very effective live catch mink cage. I bait with John West Sardines in sunflower oil (not brine!). It's quite effective.


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