Mice!!!

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Sun Apr 12, 2009 8:47 pm

Sorry for your troubles ,could something be in your aviary staying in the sand floor how deep is that on the floor ,wish I could give you better answer

lovemyfinch · Post by **lovemyfinch** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:14 am

Just an idea, but maybe try setting up a web cam in the direction of this beasts entrance. Take pictures at intervals, maybe you can catch it on candid camera and figure out just what it is.

By the way, sorry for your loss.

CandoAviary · Post by **CandoAviary** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 11:52 am

Really looks like rats to me... I lost a couple of canaries like this. The rats would not go to the traps or live traps. I had them baited with peanut butter and dog biscuits (this usually worked for the dog kennels)
Seems these rats had developed a taste for meat...one night I had some take out fried chicken and on a whim I put a partially eaten wing bone in the live trap... caught one right away.... after drowning it I set the trap again with the same chicken bone... bingo another one within 15 minutes

That became my new bait...... chicken meat. I guess the rats found it higher protein and maybe better milk production for their young..... makes sense. I never lost another bird to rats.... the chicken wing was to thier liking and was easier to get.

HoangQuan · Post by **HoangQuan** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 12:10 pm

CandoAviary wrote:Really looks like rats to me... I lost a couple of canaries like this. The rats would not go to the traps or live traps. I had them baited with peanut butter and dog biscuits (this usually worked for the dog kennels)
Seems these rats had developed a taste for meat...one night I had some take out fried chicken and on a whim I put a partially eaten wing bone in the live trap... caught one right away.... after drowning it I set the trap again with the same chicken bone... bingo another one within 15 minutes
That became my new bait...... chicken meat. I guess the rats found it higher protein and maybe better milk production for their young..... makes sense. I never lost another bird to rats.... the chicken wing was to thier liking and was easier to get.

A friend of mine has just PM me and told me that he used to stuck in the same situation. The rat was way too clever to be trapped by any kind of traps whatever kind of baits, and the birds keep dissapearing and dissapearing days by days. Finally, he use a death sparrow, put some poison in it, and hide that sparrow in his aviary at night. Two days later, he found the predator, a very big rat, died nearby the aviary. IT took him many weeks and five birds loss to finally find the way to kill that rat.
In my aviary, I did try chicken meat as bait, but still had nothing in the trap.
It's kinda cruel but I am considering the hard way now...I cant stand it anymore. It's better sacrifice a bird for once than risking all of them.

Post by **Sally** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 1:33 pm

I would try different kinds of meat, both raw and cooked, before sacrificing one of your birds. Plus removing all the birds from the aviary temporarily. With no birds to get, the rat may go for the meat bait.

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 1:46 pm

I agree with Sally - I'd go and get anything rather than sacrifice any bird to catch a rat - though that rat does have to be caught. There has to be other irresitible bait that it cannot refuse (other than yours or any birds).

CandoAviary · Post by **CandoAviary** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 3:12 pm

I highly recommend 'Kentucky Fried Chicken'....extra crispy

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 5:39 pm

How is the rat getting in to you aviary,thats the most important question

,are you using the plastic type hardware cloth if its got one or two strings broken or he could just bite through the plastic to make a hole.
I like the galvanized for outside much better to keep the predators out

HoangQuan · Post by **HoangQuan** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 7:36 pm

I finally took all of my bird out..(phew)
if using a death bird as bait, I'll not using one of my bird. Sometimes baby sparrow(dont know from where) falling into my Doberman cage and die inside, guess I can use one.
And till now, I have no idea how that rat can get in the aviary.
Last night another friend of mine called, he knew another type of trap hat doesnt need to use bait, easy to fool the rat and very effective. I heard that that kind of trap has get some awards in many festival and they sell out 2000 of them in only one day. So maybe I'll go buy and try that first.
By the way, I still see the digging trace on the sand floor this morning. Still dont know what the rat did that for. IF it dig down the floor to get more room and try to build a nest, then I'm in a bigger trouble

HoangQuan · Post by **HoangQuan** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:47 am

Gosh!!! Im so excited, the trap was really great, dont need to use bait, I finally got one:

This rat had its tail stucked in the trap, still alive, so I must "terminate" it myself. Feeling so strange, so cruel, but I have no choice

, dont wanna kill anything anyway.
Hope this is the only one I have to kill, tomorrow will be my vegetarian day

lovemyfinch · Post by **lovemyfinch** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:50 am

So glad you were able to catch the culprit. So sad to see so many birds died.

He's a big one

mike · Post by **mike** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:10 am

I don't think I've seen your answer to the question that has been asked a couple times: what is under the floor of your cage to prevent animals from digging up into the area? Forgive me if you answered it and I didn't see.

I know few people here seem to like rats but the one in your trap is very beautiful. He looks healthy.

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:16 am

HoangQuan
Could the rats be tunneling up from under the floor,could you put a wire floor in then cover with sand or etc.

HoangQuan · Post by **HoangQuan** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:25 am

mike wrote:I don't think I've seen your answer to the question that has been asked a couple times: what is under the floor of your cage to prevent animals from digging up into the area? Forgive me if you answered it and I didn't see.

I know few people here seem to like rats but the one in your trap is very beautiful. He looks healthy.

Sorry I forgot to answer you.
My aviary laid on 2nd floor, in my balcony, concrete floor below it, I dont think there're any kind of animal that can dig throught it

, for planting, I use a planter made from metal

The rat is bronze brown-yellow colour, kinda beautiful one, but i like hamster the best, I dont like rat with tail

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:39 am

Well it has to be getting in somewhere, what do you have on the floor of aviary ,can you remove it to see if there is away to enter between the cement and bottom of aviary.