OT - Mink stealing pond fish

[block head]

watch your bait. frozen or extra funky is going to make things much harder. also watch your trap. thaw /freeze cycle can bugger your trap quick. snow/ice under the trap pan is very common. after about 3-5 days you' ll start to attract possum,skunks,coons, cats. perch carcass is good, canned mackrel ,or red meat is fine. mice are really good.

 

[PCKRAJ]

Done.... my fish are safe once again.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Happy days are here again:dance::dance:

 

[Spartan]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Spartan
What about the design of your pond?
You can do things to make it more predator resistant. For example steepen the sides of the pond and make it deep enough so that a mink or like predator cannot wade in or stand up.
nope, they swim like a fish underwater. you'd have to make it vertical or undercut with a 2' plus drop to the water.

That is exactly what you should do, ideally. Some point or other you're bound to have another predator. It is worth it depending on the value of your collection.

 

[PCKRAJ]

I think we've done everything possible to keep them safe. When we built the pond 10 years ago, we knew that with the sound of the waterfall we would be inviting all kinds of wildlife, and we live in the woods near a creek (which by the way has a blue heron nest).

Unfortunately we can't pick and choose the wildlife we want visiting our pond and we do not want to harm any animals so we researched the best way to keep our fish safe.

We had a 'scarecrow' which is a device attached to a hose that is a motion detector which clicks and shoots out water when motion is detected. The electric fence is low to the ground and keeps out predators by giving them a little jolt. I think what happened is that there was a spot between the rocks and wire that the mink was able to crawl under. In spring we'll re-arrange the rocks to that it'll be difficult for anything to squeeze under.

Looking forward to seeing who's left when ice thaws completely.

 

[NirvanaFan]

How far away did you relocate the mink?

 

[block head]

trapping gets a bad rap. some of it is well deserved. i'd encourage anyone to take the course, and get legal. natural fur is a beautiful ,renewable resource. a koi pond is basically a bird feeder for many animals. if the need to remove an animal occurs, nothing needs to be wasted.