Agricultural Pests | Rapid Pest Control

Top marks for my trainee today – rabbit control

January 18, 2012 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

Today I was working with Steve Light from Pest Bee Gone over near Goring / Wallingford doing some much needed rabbit control with the ferrets. Ferreting, when done well, is one of the most effective ways of clearing an area of rabbits and is also the most environmentally friendly one too as its all natural. Rabbits are a major agricultural and domestic pest in the Berkshire and Oxfordshire area.

I have been ferreting since is was very small, but I am still surprised when I come across people who have never done it. Well today, Steve was one of those guys.

When it comes to rabbit control using birds and hawks, Steve is one of the best Falconers in this area. Sadly, his best hawk died recently, and getting a good hawk to replace one lost is not an easy thing, so Steve needed to deal with the rabbit problem in another way – by using ferrets to control a growing rabbit problem in one of his customers gardens.

Anyway, I am happy to pass on skills to friends and colleagues and also work with like minded pest control professionals who have their clients interests at heart, so after a short chat to go through what we were going to do today, we set off for the first rabbit burrow to net up.

Ferreting is a skill you learn over many years – every hole is different and every situation is ever changing, so whilst you can show somebody how to do it, it is something that only experience can teach. Steve however took to it like a duck to water and soon was clearing bushes, netting up and getting on well. Then came the crunch moment….handling the ferrets!

It turns out that Steve was not a lover of ferrets, and having read a few of my previous blogs with various people getting bitten, he was very nervous. The thing is, the more you handle the ferrets the easier they get with you, so its something you have to do. The biggest issue is getting the radio collars on them, you are right at the business end and they do get cross if you fiddle about. Today, they were in a good mood, so getting them ready was very easy.

The next thing to overcome is grabbing the rabbits when they are in the net (the ferret will chase the rabbit into a net over the hole, which closes around them and holds them while you get there). I am a great believer in diving on the rabbit, despatching it quickly and humanly, then getting another net on before another one comes out. Sounds simple but when you have 30 holes all netted and two ferrets going nuts in the burrow, it does get a bit crazy – as Steve found out!

Anyway, we had to dig once to get a killed rabbit out (sometimes a ferret will actually kill a rabbit in the burrow and stay with it, trying to eat it) but the radio tracking worked perfectly and I dug down the 3 feet straight onto the rabbit and ferret, saving loads of time.

The day ended nicely with 14 rabbits in the bag, a very happy customer as the rabbits had devastated the garden, and a very happy Steve – who funnily enough now loves ferrets and can’t wait to do it all again soon!

If you live in the Oxford Area and have a rabbit problem, contact Steve at Pest Bee Gone now, and of course if you have a rabbit problem in the Newbury area, contact us now! Also, if you want to try your hand at ferreting, why not give me a call and we can sort something out – I am always looking to pass on these skills and willing students are always welcome – just call me – maybe a birthday present with a difference for a loved one??

Here is a few pictures of the day:

Filed Under: Agricultural pests, Ferrets and Ferreting, pest control, Pest Prevention, Rabbit Control, Vermin control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Berkshire, Ferrets, Newbury, pest control, Rabbit Control

How avoid attracting rats to your property

January 3, 2012 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

As the weather is getting colder and natural cover is starting die off, rats will look to move to more suitable accommodation. Rapid Pest Control has put together a list of do’s and don’ts to minimise the possibility of your property becoming a rat heaven and their winter residence.

Make sure your dustbin lid fits firmly. Most bins are wheelie bin types these days so make sure you do not over fill them and leave any gaps that a rodent might get in to it. Be selective in what you put inside the bin, making sure all food stuffs are wrapped up in plastic bags if possible to stop the smell attracting unwanted guests.
If you have filled the bin, try not to put additional bin bags out until the morning of collection – especially if there are any food scraps in them.
Most gardens have that corner where all the brick rubble, old bikes and stuff is piled. Try to dispose of this at the local tip etc as this is an ideal habitat for rats. You may not really notice the evidence, but they will be in there.
Clear up any fallen fruit from apple trees etc. Whilst this is not a great job, this is a valuable food source and attracts rats from far and wide to your garden.
Place your mulch heap on top of concrete slabs. Most people now have plastic mulchers and so it is easy to place them on top of slab. Rats love these heaps and will do anything to get inside them, so make sure the trap door fits snugly.
Inspect sheds and outbuilding. Make sure the door fits properly and that there are no holes in the skirting area. If the shed is not placed on concrete or slabs, it will almost certainly be home for a family of rats. If possible, re-site it on a slab of concrete.
Make sure bushes and trees are trimmed so they do not over hang flat roofs of sheds or conservatories, garages etc. Rats will use this as a pathway to your loft if they can.
Do not put loose food out for the birds – especially on the ground. If you have a bird table, rats will easily climb onto them to eat any food left out. If you want to put loose food out, make sure you take it away after a few hours. Better still, use a fat ball and hang from a suitable point so rats cannot get to it.

Finally, if you are in any doubt of what to do or suspect you may have rats, contact your local professional pest control experts, Newbury based Rapid Pest Control. We will be able to offer advice on prevention and deal with any rats you may have.

Filed Under: Rat Control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Berkshire, Newbury, pest control, Rat Control, Rat Poison, Rat Problem, Reading

Badger Cull finally gets go ahead

December 18, 2011 By GrahamChapple 2 Comments

Badger picture by wikipedia

After many studies and years of waiting, the long debated subject of badger culling is given the green light.

So why do badgers need to be culled? Last year alone, over 25,000 cattle were culled after failing the Bovine Tuberculosis (BTB) test and the bill of £1 Billion over the next ten years will be bourn by the taxpayer. BTB is rampant in the West and South of England with at least 25% of all farms carrying the disease.

This is not just an open licence to go and kill badgers. Badgers are highly protected under the Protection of Badger Act 1992 and Natural England is responsible for enforcing the law under this Act.

There will be two carefully controlled pilot schemes run over a controlled time period. The results will be monitored closely by DEFRA and panels of experts to ensure the cull is effective and humane. This will then be evaluated as to the outcome and if successful a wider plan will be implemented.

It is believed that the pilot schemes will be carried out in secret locations, and after the Olympic Games has happened, due to the possibility of civil unrest and the policing requirements as this is a highly charged and emotional topic.

Other alternative are also being considered like badger vaccination schemes, where badgers are caught in live traps by trained operatives (pest controllers are being asked to get trained in readiness for this) and the government has earmarked £250,000 for a trial scheme for this method. The Government has already spent £35 million on developing badger and cattle vaccines since 1994 and plan to spend another £20 million on the development of practical and usable vaccines over the next five years.

Whatever happens, the badger population will end up being reduced, especially in high BTB areas. I am sure this is not the last we will hear about this and so we will keep you informed as news breaks on this topic.

Ironically, DEFRA has just announced its plan for a National Badger Survey to happen in 2012/2013 to establish the exact number of badger in the UK. The last one was held in 1997 where the results showed a significant increase in the badger population.

Filed Under: Agricultural pests Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Badgers, trapping, Wildlife Management

Using Ferrets for Rabbit Control

November 15, 2011 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

With winter moving ever closer, it is an ideal time to deal with rabbit control using ferrets. With the leaves dropping off the trees and the undergrowth suffering it’s first proper frost, rabbits now will move from summer runs (usually in bushes on top of ground) to winter burrows in the ground.

Whilst people often see rabbits running into holes during the summer, they only do this for protection, preferring to spend time above ground – doing what rabbits do best – eating and breeding. In the winter however, they go to ground as the temperatures are stable and conserve energy. That’s when ferreting is at its best.

The process of using ferrets for rabbit control is quite simple:

Clear all the holes of debris
Place Purse nests over the holes
Put 1 or 2 ferrets in the burrow
Stand back and keep quite
Dive on the rabbits when the ferrets “bolt” them out of the holes
Dispatch the rabbit, re-net the hole and repeat until no more rabbits are in the burrow

Some people do not bother with nets and use shotguns or lurchers to catch the rabbits, however we only do this as a last resort if clearing holes cannot be done due to serious obstruction (like walls or fences etc).

The key thing is to understand ferret and rabbit behavior – and keep quite too once the ferret is in the hole. The term bolt means exactly that. A rabbit will come out of a hole at full pelt and if netting will tangle up for just enough time to get it. When shooting or using dogs, the rabbit has a greater chance of getting away – not what we are there to do – we must eliminate the pest problem that rabbits cause and not do it for the pure sport.

Ferreting is still one of the most effective ways of clearing rabbits from an area – both in terms of cost and efficiency. If there is a rabbit in the burrow, it will be caught and killed – simple.

Handling ferrets is also a skill, they get very excited and want to work, so getting hold of one carefully and talking to them all the time is essential so they do not bite you – nothing likes being grabbed at or flinched at – doing this puts them on edge and will result in timid ferrets which bite.

Today, we were working on a country estate in Newbury. We had a new helper for a while, their gardener, so he was not really used to handling ferrets. After giving instruction and a demo of how to do it, he was let loose to do his best. Unfortunately, our young ferrets are a bit of a handful and once they got a bit excited, sure enough Matt got bitten – not once but 3 times…I think he gets it now! Fair play to him, after he stopped squealing like a girl (which excited the ferrets more!), he did settle down and did well.

ferretbite 1024x576 Using Ferrets for Rabbit Control

A ferret bite - note the 4 teeth marks - ouch!

So if you have a horse paddock, filed or garden, or on a large scales are a farmer with a rabbit problem, contact Rapid Pest Control now for a quote for dealig with your rabbit problem and a rabbit clearance.

Filed Under: Agricultural pests, Ferrets and Ferreting, pest control, Rabbit Control, Vermin control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Berkshire, Ferrets, Newbury, pest control

First outing with the Ferrets

October 30, 2011 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

It is always a problem to know when to start the ferreting season. There are many factors which will determine the start point and to have all these factors lined up is the ideal start time, however the pressure to start rabbit control for clients is pushing the season start date closer to mid October.

This year, with the cold snap from mid October, we decided that now is the right time.

So, I hear you ask, what are these factors?

As I said there are lots, but we usually use a few guidelines to make the decision.

Firstly, where are the rabbits? Are the still above ground and not using the burrows for protection from the weather? There is no point in going to loads of effort clearing burrows of brambles etc if the rabbits are still running around you.
If they are underground, will they “bolt” (this is the term used for rabbits running out of the hole when a ferret is put in)?
Has there been sufficient cold to flatten down the undergrowth, allowing us to find the holes – they always bolt from the holes you did not find of course!
Are the ferrets fit and ready? They have to work hard and get pretty bashed about by a large buck rabbit when they get up to them.
Are the rabbits seen all adults? You spend the day digging out the ferrets if they kill young part grown rabbits.

The list does go on, but at the end of the day, ferreting is one of the most effective ways of dealing with rabbit problems and controlling rabbits.

I remember as a kid, Grandad used to wake up one morning and declare the season open – we would then rush to get ready and be out of the door! We used to load the bicycles up with all the gear (Grandad did not drive) and off we would go for the day.

I always remember being freezing cold, but in those days the cold weather was a bit more predictable I think! Grandad always knew it was the right time and we used to catch 20 – 30 rabbits in a morning – hooking them onto the crossbars of the bikes and riding home, arriving totally exhausted with all the extra weight, but that was a good source of income and our pocket money sorted for the week.

This week we started with a small job in Newbury – a garden has become the home for many rabbits over the years and despite all attempts to rid the problem by the owners, it was time to call in the rabbit control experts – Rapid Pest Control!

Once we located and cleared the first burrow, we netted up and popped in one of the older ferrets – the first rabbit was in the net within seconds! Now this garden did have some challenges – not least of all the 6 foot fence and old crumbling wall which meant that we had to keep passing things to and fro over the fence and making things very awkward.

With such established burrows, it is difficult to work out the hole patterns and routes, but once the ferrets go in, you can track their progress with the radio collar – in some cases the holes went down over 12 feet – a bit scary if you have to dig that deep!

Anyway, this opened the season and tested the ferrets nicely – so all in all a successful day.

If you do have a rabbit problem in the Newbury area, call Rapid Pest Control now so we can sort it for you.

Filed Under: Agricultural pests, Ferrets and Ferreting, Rabbit Control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, pest control, Rabbit Control

Bird Prevention in the most foul weather

September 7, 2011 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

On Tuesday, we had the most awful weather – made us think it was winter rather than the tail end of the summer (I guess summer was the 2 nice weeks in April!).

Luckily, I had planned a bird exclusion and bird prevention job INSIDE 2 large storage barns! Now normally we working in most weather, but if we had been doing this bird proofing job from the outside, we would definitely have postponed this - for both safety and sanity reasons.

Bird exclusion and bird proofing is a tricky one – birds are quite clever and very much creatures of habit, so keeping them out of a building that has been home for some time can be problematic. As we arrived, several birds were inside the pitch black building – the only light was from the ventilation slots high in the roof – the birds normal entry point.

So the first job was to eliminate any birds still trapped inside, and scare them out. The second job was to get all the expensive cars out of each building – these buildings are being used to store some pretty classy cars, so birds pooing all over them and setting the alarms off pretty much everyday was becoming somewhat of a nuisance – hence the bird exclusion was required.

During our survey, we assessed that no eggs or chicks were present in the various nests scattered around the buildings, so we knew we could just get stuck into the job without having a problem like this to deal with.

Our strategy in dealing with this problem was quite simple – block the ventilation chambers with mesh, so air could still circulate, but making sure the birds could not get in again. With such tall buildings and the shear amount of vents that needed to be secured, the only possible solution was a very large cherry picker lift. We have successfully used cherry pickers to perform this type of project many times, so its all pretty routine. The only difference today was the incredible wind speed, which would certainly have prevented us using the cherry picker if we were outside due to safety reasons.

Simon is very experienced in using these devices, so took over the role of driver, leaving me to worry about getting the netting in place, securing it and sealing the vents. Each building had about 60 outlets to cover, so it was a slow process, but with careful driving and teamwork, we cracked on at good speed, despite working at high level over some very expensive cars.

So what could have been a total disastrous day, turned out to be a really productive day in the dry – and another happy customer with no birds in their buildings!

If you have a bird problem or require bird exclusion to keep birds away from buildings etc, call Rapid Pest Control on Newbury 01635 247192 or contact us here now.

Here is a few shots from the day:

Filed Under: Bird Control, Pest Prevention Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Berkshire, Bird Control, Bird Exclusion, Bird Proofing, Newbury, pest control

A Good time of year to control Wood Pigeons

August 2, 2011 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

Simon & Jasmin with wood pigeons shot over Oil seed rape

One of the many agricultural pests we deal with are Wood Pigeons. These wily adversaries are highly adaptable and very difficult to keep off of crops.

They have almost super-hero eyesight and are extremely cautious of anything new placed on a flight path or in a field where they are feeding and always seem to be just out of range!

There are a few times of year when you can really get to grips with controlling wood pigeons; at harvest, at roost in February or March, then in bad weather and snow at any time – especially on Oil seed Rape sprouts.

Last week, we were called to one farm where we do regular work to go and shoot over oil seed Rape stubble which had just been harvested. This farm seems to be plagued with wood pigeons, and the farmer wanted to get a few shot before ploughing up the field, so it gave me an opportunity to introduce Simon to shooting wood pigeons over decoys.

This method of shooting is one of the most used, basically, you set up a number of “dummy plastic pigeons” called pigeon decoys about 25 – 30 meters out from your chosen shooting area (these are chosen with lots of factors in mind – pigeon shooting is all about observation and looking for the feeding habits of the Wood Pigeon). You then erect a “hide”, a structure that basically hides you from sight, which can be made from natural materials or camouflage netting etc – ususally in a hedgerow – then you settle down to wait.

The next 30 minutes or so will determine who the day will go – the pigeons will either spook and fly off – then something is wrong, or they become suicidal and fly into the decoy pattern (takes years of trial and error to work this out). If things are not right, you have to make adjustments, if you get it right – prepare yourself for loads of action!

Shooting is done by using shotguns – generally 12 bore with a specially designed cartridge to maximize the killing effect – wood pigeons are very hard to kill. I have been pigeon shooting since I was about 8 years old with my grandad and his friends, so for Simon this was a new and very exciting experience.

After the first few shots, he managed to calm down and think about the shot (anybody who has been pigeon shooting will understand what I mean!), then results started to come. We try to average 1 in 3 shots, but beginners usually average anything up to 1 in 10! I was on standby to take out a few when Simon missed, so our average was maintained nearer the 1 in 4 zone…but next time he will be more confident.

Anyway, it was a great introduction to a different way of controlling Wood Pigeons and Simon did really well. The trusted Jasmin was on hand to pick up any dead or find any wounded so we can dispatch them quickly and a few hours produced a reasonable amount.

The by product is of course some beautiful plump wood pigeon – a real favorite of mine, so then Simon got a lesson in pigeon plucking and dressing as well! As normal, we share the bounty with our local farmer so he was very happy too – cant wait until next time really!

So if you have a farm and want to take advantage of this time of year to control your wood pigeon, contact Rapid Pest Control now or call Newbury 01635 247192

Filed Under: Bird Control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, pest control, Wood Pigeons, working dogs

Egg thief caught red handed

April 12, 2011 By GrahamChapple Leave a Comment

Over the last few weeks, I have noticed a drop in our normal egg production which always makes me suspicious. In our chicken run, we have plenty of places for the chickens and geese to nest, but every now and then they find a new place but I generally find these as the number of eggs drop off, however not this time.

Today, I discovered the cause.

I am always amazed at how clever things can be, even the most seemingly stupid things. So today, I was sat doing a quote when I noticed a rook from our local rookery land in the chicken run (which is fairly normal activity) thinking it would be scratching around for some spilt corn etc, but to my surprise, it just walked right into one of the laying sheds!

A few seconds later, I came out with a very large egg in its beak! The thing could hardly fly with it, but after a shaky take off, made it over the fence and away.

Anyway, after about 5 minutes, it came back. It landed and walked into the shed, so I dashed out to catch it in the act…but it was a bit too quick and guessed my moves, but still managed another egg!

The crazy thing was, the chicken was still sat on a nest and allowed this to happen - unbelievable!

So a few bits of carefully sculpted wire later, I think I have now “rook proofed” the shed….we shall see.

Rooks can be quite a help to farmers as they normally feed on leather jackets and other grubs which can be harmful to pastures. The only problem is the sheer number of them – especially in a rookery. One of the biggest issues is noise and the amount of excrement created in a rookery.

Every now and then it is beneficial to thin the numbers out so April and May is the traditional time to do this, shooting out the nests and young birds as they emerge to fly for the first time. Rook pie used to be a delicacy in years gone by, I have tried it and I have to say it is an acquired taste and a bit chewy…!

If you have an active rookery that needs thinning out, call Rapid Pest Control now to deal with your rook problem. I know one that will be thinned out sooner than they think!

What kind of chickens lay the extra large eggs? (greenanswers.com)
Freshly Layed Eggs (theorganicchickenlady.wordpress.com)

Filed Under: Agricultural pests, pest control Tagged With: Agricultural pests, pest control

Did you catch the show?

March 13, 2011 By GrahamChapple 6 Comments

At 8:30 on Wednesday, all was revealed as to what happened when Chris Wright of Newbury Sound joined me for the morning as my apprentice.

It was a bit of a challenge to arrange several different things for Chris to try, but I decided that we would go to a local farm where we have several different issues we deal with on a regular basis. Firstly, we had a go at mole control. We use 4 or 5 different types of mole trap depending on the ground and depth of runs, but the pro’s trap of choice is a very powerful scissor type mole trap called a Talpex trap.

These are pretty tricky to set until you get the knack, so I showed Chris what to do, including finding an appropriate mole run. After about 5 minutes, he did manage to set one and position it successfully, but it did take him about 10 attempts! The spring in this particular trap is very strong, and we like them as the gate is wide allowing the mole to be right in the trap before it triggers, assuring us that it is a very quick kill.

Next we did a rat inspection of a barn. This was Chris’s worst nightmare as he is very frightened of rats. I did not expect to see one (which is why I chose this particular farm, knowing Chris was terrified – not a nice thing to actually have to confront your fears) but I did want to see his reaction if he thought there was one…hence the little spook I did on him!

For all his fears, Chris actually did a good job of identifying the runs, setting rat traps, loading bait stations and positioning them in the right places, but you could see he did not enjoy this much!

Then we had to gas some rabbit burrows. This all sounds a bit strange but we have ferreted these burrows several times over the last few months, always catching some, but as this particular burrow is close to a small wood, the rabbits keep going back and re-populating the holes. This burrow is in the middle of a paddock which has some valuable horses in, so it was a danger to the horses – if they dropped a leg in one of these holes it would surely be broken.

The gas we use is extremely dangerous and so I kept Chris well away whilst I administered the treatment. To finish the process, the open holes need to be sealed to make them air tight, so I got Chris to collapse the earth around the holes and seal them…well that was the plan, but Chris is not a natural with a spade to say the least! I showed him exactly what to do, however I do not think he is built for this type of manual work…enough said! Needless to say, I was not over impressed with his efforts!

So back to the office to de-brief and pass judgement on Chris’s performance. Whilst he does learn very quickly and would be superb in dealing with clients, his physical strength and technique failed him on both setting mole traps and hole filling. Also he is terrified of rats … so unfortunately Chris, You are Fired!

It was all a bit of good fun, I hope Chris had a good in sight into what Pest Controllers do on a daily basis and some of the issues we face. I really enjoyed the whole experience and Chris and Paul made me feel very comfortable – again it is as much a challenge for me to do this as it was for Chris to do my job!

Check out the Newbury Sound website where there are a bunch of pictures and an audio link to the highlights of the show. Chris very neatly over-laid UB40′s hit “Rat in my kitchen” soundtrack in background as he asked me for a theme tune…very clever!

If you have a pest problem you want dealt with, contact us now for a fast efficient service..and an autograph!

Filed Under: In the life of a pest controller Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Mole Control, Mole Traps, pest control, Rabbit Control, Rat Control

Farmers do the funniest things….

September 11, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

I do a lot of work with local farmers and you always here some really great stories from them.

For instance, I was chatting to one yesterday as I was doing my monthly rat inspection and he just happened to mention that he got the combine harvester tangled up in the over head power lines and took the whole village out last week, then set fire to the field at the same time….now I know why we had a power cut…!!

Having said that, I have never seen anything like this video before – its so mental I just wanted to share it with you – ENJOY!

Farmer Bales Himself In Hay – Watch more Funny Videos

Filed Under: Agricultural pests Tagged With: Agricultural pests, Rat Control