Mink?

lordarpad

Guys, what is the story with mink? I assume they can be shot? How successful are people in doing that?

EPointer=Birdss

I don't know what the law is against them but Im noticing them more & more! Nasty little buggeres!
Once the ducks start laying & have ducklings they will clean up!
Big plan this year to reduce their numbers! They are not a native species so I can't see how they'd be protected but I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong!
I'd use traps if I were you anyway as they are more effective than the gun. Easy enough animal to trap!
If you have rivers running through your shoot I'm sure they'll have a few wild pheasans also. I trapped one around a breeding run last year which was half miile from nearest river!

P.S. Come on lads, lot of people reading threads but not leaving a reply. Share your knowledge (Or lack there of )

Terrier

Mink can be shot and trapped all year round.
Plenty about unfortunately, trapping is the best method and least time consuming but a good terrier working a river bank can also prove successful.

I used mink cage traps (live capture) set along riverbanks and baited with sardines\fish oils etc. Cover the trap well to make a tunnel as mink are naturally inquisitive animal. I normally break the river into sections based on number of crossing. I have 12 cage traps so I can cover large areas.

Some people use pipe trap but I've had very limited success with this method.

P.S NARGC regional councils normally offer discounts on vermin equipment so if you affiliated go through you club when buying traps.

cavan shooter

Have a look here seem to remember last year a lot of discussion was had on mink. Trap them is the only way to get them unless your lucky to sneak up on one

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/archive/index.php/t-2055178257.html

And if you scroll down the bottom of the page there is loads of more threads on the subject

I have bought traps from http://www.trapman.co.uk/ via there agent in the North

Terrier

cavan shooter wrote: »

I have bought traps from http://www.trapman.co.uk/ via there agent in the North

Would you be able to provide the agent name?

cavan shooter

If you go into the website and click distributors and agents you will find the following

Strangford Agencies
35 Londonderry Ave,
Comber
County Down
BT23 5ET
Northern Irl 028 9187 4028 Southern Irl 048 9187 4028
Email Strangford Agencies

They supply other things bits and bobs as well

Mellor

EPointer=Birdss wrote: »

Big plan this year to reduce their numbers! They are not a native species so I can't see how they'd be protected

There are two types of mink species. American and European. American mink mink are not native and likely came from fur farms etc.
European mink are native but are often losing out to the american mink

pullandbang

Mellor wrote: »

There are two types of mink species. American and European. American mink mink are not native and likely came from fur farms etc.
European mink are native but are often losing out to the american mink

Didn't think we had any native mink. I thought they were all fur farm mink which were released by the the woolly hat brigade during their attacks on farms.

cushtac

European Mink are not native to Ireland, they are from the continent. Many mink have escaped from fur farms over the past 50 years so it's unfair to blame the current problem on environmentalists.

ivanthehunter

cushtac wrote: »

European Mink are not native to Ireland, they are from the continent. Many mink have escaped from fur farms over the past 50 years so it's unfair to blame the current problem on environmentalists.

Perhaps so but when the brigade of wollies/B] released thousands at a time, nothing survived (fish ducks swans etc) and the mink themselves starved to death..because of lack of food

Well done lads

It wasn't me!

The blame doesn't rest solely on the fur-huggers who broke them out; when it became unpopular and stopped being so profitable, some of the farmers released their stock rather than dispatching the lot of it, so nobody's innocent here and there's a lot of work to be done cleaning up the bloody things.

cushtac

ivanthehunter wrote: »

Perhaps so but when the brigade of wollies/B] released thousands at a time, nothing survived (fish ducks swans etc) and the mink themselves starved to death..because of lack of food

Well done lads

There's no 'perhaps' about it, loads of mink were escaping long before any of the the animal rights crowd got involved, some of the in-laws have been shooting them up north for the last 40 years. I never heard of them releasing thousands at a time either.

Mellor

pullandbang wrote: »

Didn't think we had any native mink. I thought they were all fur farm mink which were released by the the woolly hat brigade during their attacks on farms.

cushtac wrote:

European Mink are not native to Ireland, they are from the continent. Many mink have escaped from fur farms over the past 50 years so it's unfair to blame the current problem on environmentalists.

Whats the definition of "native"?
Originally, european mink were spread throughout europe (inc ireland and the UK). Even as far north as iceland, and northern finland. Numbers have declined and mink have been extinct in many parts of europe. Numbers are only plentyful in eastern europe. The european mink is offically classed as endangered. The american mink is not and is in far better shape. Most mink released, or that escape, are american minks. As their pelt is larger, and they are prefered for fur farming.

cushtac

Mellor wrote: »

Originally, european mink were spread throughout europe (inc ireland and the UK). Even as far north as iceland, and northern finland. Numbers have declined and mink have been extinct in many parts of europe. Numbers are only plentyful in eastern europe. The european mink is offically classed as endangered. The american mink is not and is in far better shape. Most mink released, or that escape, are american minks. As their pelt is larger, and they are prefered for fur farming.

When was the European mink supposed to have been native to Ireland?

Grizzly 45

I never heard of them releasing thousands at a time either

Maybe not in thousands,but a perusal of the animal rights extremists Irish websites or indymedia the loony leftist mouthpiece,will show you that they have been active here a good long time.And still are.

Mellor

cushtac wrote: »

When was the European mink supposed to have been native to Ireland?

I think it was a wednesday

cushtac

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Maybe not in thousands,but a perusal of the animal rights extremists Irish websites or indymedia the loony leftist mouthpiece,will show you that they have been active here a good long time.And still are.

To the best of my knowledge, there's only six mink farms left on the island. So they can't still be that active in releasing that many mink into the wild. The farms were operating well before the heyday of the animal rights activist, and mink have been escaping & breeding since the farms opened. And as has previously said, unscrupulous farmers also released mink into the wild instead of killing them.

cushtac

Mellor wrote: »

I think it was a wednesday

In other words, you haven't a clue :rolleyes:

Mellor

cushtac wrote: »

To the best of my knowledge, there's only six mink farms left on the island. So they can't still be that active in releasing that many mink into the wild. The farms were operating well before the heyday of the animal rights activist, and mink have been escaping & breeding since the farms opened. And as has previously said, unscrupulous farmers also released mink into the wild instead of killing them.

I recently read that there were 5 fur farms left also, and that 140,000 are killed each year. As for mink excaping, I fully agree. I don't think anybody suggests that they only got out due to antis. And to be honest, I would be so bold as to guess what percent came from anti release, farmer release and escape.
But I think the point was that, while escapes happen all the time, and always have, they are slow and steady, a local ecosystem can deal with that better than a mass release of numourous minks. (I don't have irish figures at the minute, but I can confirm that 6000 and another of 8000 were mass released by antis in the UK, this shows a terrible understanding of what they were doing)

cushtac wrote: »

In other words, you haven't a clue :rolleyes:

No, so I was joking. As my question wasn't answered. What do we define as native?
At one point there was no mink in europe. They came from america, around the peak of the last ice age. It was about 10,000 ago that the two species emerged. At this point they would of been quite widespread, bear in mind that they came from the west into europe. By modern times they were hunted to extiction in most parts of europe. The are offically endangered.
Mink farming is done with america mink only, afaik at least

Vegeta

I believe something is defined as native if it was here at the end of the last ice age.

Not 100% but I believe that is the yardstick used

wildfowler

Hi lads had a pen of pheasants last year and a mink killed 15 of them. set a live trap and caught him that night . nothing for 2 weeks then another 1 moved in lucky he was caught before he done any damage.the pen is about a mile and a haif from stream or river do any of ye know much about setting snares

J. Ramone

Back in the good old days when there was spring salmon fishing in Ireland I often encountered mink on the riverbank. If the shotgun was carried on the next trip it often resulted. They are creatures of habbit.

I saw a mink in the back garden last year chasing a rabbit but never saw him again unfortunately.

sbkenn

Cage traps are recommended, as you can simply release anything else that is caught. Mink can then be drowned in the cage. Make sure it has a handle on it though, or they'll have your finger. Our Staffodshire B.T. killed a mink once, then spat it out, curling her lips in distaste .. Yuk !

lordarpad

sbkenn wrote: »

Cage traps are recommended, as you can simply release anything else that is caught. Mink can then be drowned in the cage. Make sure it has a handle on it though, or they'll have your finger. Our Staffodshire B.T. killed a mink once, then spat it out, curling her lips in distaste .. Yuk !

not a good death, drowning. in that case I'd shoot.

Mellor

J. Ramone wrote: »

Back in the good old days when there was spring salmon fishing in Ireland I often encountered mink on the riverbank. If the shotgun was carried on the next trip it often resulted. They are creatures of habbit.

I saw a mink in the back garden last year chasing a rabbit but never saw him again unfortunately.

Very much creatures of habit.
Males are very teritorial, they wil almost never share the same area as another male. By their area, I mean there main grounds along a wet area (river, lake etc). They will allow females to overlap on there area. As soon as a male is killed, another will take up his turf soon enough

lofty95

there was some research carried out back in 1985 on the effects of mink as a non native species in ireland, all i can remember them saying was that when one mink was removed from a territory it created a vacuum for juveniles to come in and in essence the problem would get worse in area not better for a time. The conclusion was that they were not going to be eradicated and they should be just accepted as part of irelands flora and fauna. It is something that would probably need a huge effort year round from gunglubs and the like to make any sort of serious indentation in the numbers currently

sbkenn

lordarpad wrote: »

not a good death, drowning. in that case I'd shoot.

If one has a gun !.

NoNameRanger

sbkenn wrote: »

If one has a gun !.

One could use the exhaust from a car to humanely kill using carbon monoxide gas. Just put the cage in a large plastic bag and hold neck over exhaust pipe (while the engine is running of course):) A lot better than drowning:cool:

NoNameRanger

Mellor wrote: »

There are two types of mink species. American and European. American mink mink are not native and likely came from fur farms etc.
European mink are native but are often losing out to the american mink

Mellor wrote: »

Whats the definition of "native"?
Originally, european mink were spread throughout europe (inc ireland and the UK). Even as far north as iceland, and northern finland. Numbers have declined and mink have been extinct in many parts of europe. Numbers are only plentyful in eastern europe. The european mink is offically classed as endangered. The american mink is not and is in far better shape. Most mink released, or that escape, are american minks. As their pelt is larger, and they are prefered for fur farming.

Mellor wrote: »

I recently read that there were 5 fur farms left also, and that 140,000 are killed each year. As for mink excaping, I fully agree. I don't think anybody suggests that they only got out due to antis. And to be honest, I would be so bold as to guess what percent came from anti release, farmer release and escape.
But I think the point was that, while escapes happen all the time, and always have, they are slow and steady, a local ecosystem can deal with that better than a mass release of numourous minks. (I don't have irish figures at the minute, but I can confirm that 6000 and another of 8000 were mass released by antis in the UK, this shows a terrible understanding of what they were doing)

No, so I was joking. As my question wasn't answered. What do we define as native?
At one point there was no mink in europe. They came from america, around the peak of the last ice age. It was about 10,000 ago that the two species emerged. At this point they would of been quite widespread, bear in mind that they came from the west into europe. By modern times they were hunted to extiction in most parts of europe. The are offically endangered.
Mink farming is done with america mink only, afaik at least

Mellor wrote: »

Very much creatures of habit.
Males are very teritorial, they wil almost never share the same area as another male. By their area, I mean there main grounds along a wet area (river, lake etc). They will allow females to overlap on there area. As soon as a male is killed, another will take up his turf soon enough

Where are you getting your information from?:) Wiki? There is no evidence that european mink were ever native or present in Ireland. Native species are generally regarded as species that were present at the end of the last Ice age when the Ice melting separated us from mainland europe and the UK. There is an arguement for species that have made it here since then without the intervention or assistance of man e.g magpie and more recently the little egret.

ivanthehunter

NoNameRanger wrote: »

One could use the exhaust from a car to humanely kill using carbon monoxide gas. Just put the cage in a large plastic bag and hold neck over exhaust pipe (while the engine is running of course):) A lot better than drowning:cool:

OK Nonameranger..
I have come Full circle here so prepared to be broadsided by ITH;)

Is it not legally forbidden to use any noxious gas an any animal? or- are vermin excluded.. Honest question

TBH i see where your coming from and it would be a more relaxing death for such a pest. Personal a drowned all live catch animals as i wont risk shooting animals in cage for fear of cage damage and TBH in some residential areas you cant fire a gun without the curtain twitchers having a field day

NoNameRanger

ivanthehunter wrote: »

OK Nonameranger..
I have come Full circle here so prepared to be broadsided by ITH;)

Is it not legally forbidden to use any noxious gas an any animal? or- are vermin excluded.. Honest question

TBH i see where your coming from and it would be a more relaxing death for such a pest. Personal a drowned all live catch animals as i wont risk shooting animals in cage for fear of cage damage and TBH in some residential areas you cant fire a gun without the curtain twitchers having a field day

Without digging through the wildlife act, I'm pretty sure it is not an offence to dispatch unprotected species in this way. But you are welcome to prove me wrong. Just be sure he is well dead before opening the cage:)

minktrapper

<p>Trapping mink is more sucessfull than shooting.You need a long cage trap about 24 inchs,Dig a channel with a spade into bank of river so that sides of cage are covered and only front of set trap is visable.Get some sardines in oil (available in tescos for 40 cent a tin , there is enough in one tin to do 2 cages)place some under cage just in front of trigger plate,lay in your cage, set the cage,cover cage with vegatation then some earth.Put more bait into cage and at entry point.Be sure to tie cage onto something solid in case of flood or an otter getting stuck in it.I have caught 12 mink in one trap using this method last spring and 9 this spring.Jan to Mar are the best months as mink are hungrier and are travelling up and down the river banks looking for a mate.Shooting with a pellet gun is the means of dispatch i use.

The_Minister

Terrier wrote: »

I used mink cage traps (live capture) set along riverbanks and baited with sardines\fish oils etc. Cover the trap well to make a tunnel as mink are naturally inquisitive animal. I normally break the river into sections based on number of crossing. I have 12 cage traps so I can cover large areas.

Just out of curiosity, what do Mink traps look like?

Do the Mink survive trapping, or is it like a mouse trap?

EDIT: Read the rest of the thread, making the second Q redundant.

Does drowning not ruin the fur? What do you do with the dead mink?

The_Minister

cushtac wrote: »

There's no 'perhaps' about it, loads of mink were escaping long before any of the the animal rights crowd got involved, some of the in-laws have been shooting them up north for the last 40 years. I never heard of them releasing thousands at a time either.

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/30415
They claim they released over a 1000 animals in ONE incident.

500 in another - http://www.indymedia.ie/article/86769

minktrapper

The_Minister wrote: »

Just out of curiosity, what do Mink traps look like?

Do the Mink survive trapping, or is it like a mouse trap?

EDIT: Read the rest of the thread, making the second Q redundant.

Does drowning not ruin the fur? What do you do with the dead mink?

Love to be able to say I make blackpudding out of them (seeing as they are the right shape and length) but I dont realy know of a use for them .Maybe someone else might be able to enlighten us.

Dusty87

I was told that if you put a mirrir into a mink trap, a mink will go in to fight the 'other' mink it sees in the mirror. This could be true but i had a laugh when i heard it. Anyone know is there any truth in that? Also was thinking of setting a few traps as pheasants are suffering the last few years. There is a small stream in the field with a few burrows in the bank with openings about the size of tennis ball, maybe a bit smaller. Is that a mink burrow?
Thanks

CJhaughey

minktrapper wrote: »

Love to be able to say I make blackpudding out of them (seeing as they are the right shape and length) but I dont realy know of a use for them .Maybe someone else might be able to enlighten us.

I know that in the States Mink oil is a valuable commodity for dressing leather to make it waterproof.
I am not sure how you get the oil, rendering whole mink sounds like a rather unpalatable job TBH.

Grizzly 45

Not to mind that the mink pelt is extremly valuable to the fur industry.So if you know how to tan your hides you can get a nice coat for the other half/main squeeze in your life.:pac: And if an anti nutter throws paint on it..what harm??Plenty more mink out there to be caught.
Rendering mink oil is a smelly job all right.I tried it ...once.
Wet mink fur,no problem,as they are semi aquatic their fur has good waterproof qualities
You really need to get as much body fat as possible out of them and work with that,but strong stomach is advised.