[IMOmimey]

I think the crows round here are the healthiest in the land, well fed, incl poultry spice, and all wormed with flubenvet, and come to chat with the scarecrow every morning, Any one got any suggestions?

[archiesgems]

Get yourself a hawk, you will definatly get no crows, magpies, jays, well any birds visit your garden really, and as for rats well lets just say that they are on the top of the menu x

[IMOmimey]

My ex  and I had a kestral, beautiful though she was, dont wanna go back there 

[snowflake]

you can buy dummy hawks to put on stakes, or get a shot gun and hang dead crows around, think thats what they did years ago, to put them off?
Down lottie I tie a piece of old vidio tape to the top of a  garden cane. as it flutters in a slight breeze it puts all birds off landing. How your hens would like it well its cheep and cherfull ?

[joyfull]

But Jay, I like some of the birds that visit my garden - gold finches, green finches, chaffinches, thrushes - wonder if I could train a hawk just to eat the pigeons, collared doves and rats  . Mice and frogs are soon dispatched by the hens. Any crows jackdaws just fly over us and we don't seem to get any magpies or squirrels.  Oh that reminds me must get some male ferret pooh for that mink - how much do you think I would need?

[IMOmimey]

HANG DEAD CROWS AROUND?? Then the locals would know i'm an old witch!!!

[IMOmimey]

Like the idea of getting a dummy one, will it scare the girlies though, or would they just get used to it?

[archiesgems]

But Jay, I like some of the birds that visit my garden - gold finches, green finches, chaffinches, thrushes - wonder if I could train a hawk just to eat the pigeons, collared doves and rats  . Mice and frogs are soon dispatched by the hens. Any crows jackdaws just fly over us and we don't seem to get any magpies or squirrels.  Oh that reminds me must get some male ferret pooh for that mink - how much do you think I would need?

They dont eat the birds, its very funny to watch the little blue tits flying around her head screaming at her, but she does certainly kill the rats rabbits and pigeons,

I will bag some up for you, they need cleaning out, put it in 5 gallon of water and leave it for about two weeks then strain it and sprey the liquid around the perimeter, works a treat

[archiesgems]

Like the idea of getting a dummy one, will it scare the girlies though, or would they just get used to it?

You can get some really good dummy ones from any shooting shop, the best ones are the eagle owls, it won't scare the girls at all, Storm sits out on a perch in the middle of all mine and they don't even give her a second glance

[joyfull]

We had those plastic eagle owls at Colwick Park in Nottingham where I was a warden to deter the birds sh*tting in the rowing boats - didn't work, they just used to sit on top of them 

[IMOmimey]

 
sounds like my scarecrow.

[joyfull]

Jay let me know when I can collect it - got 1/2 acre garden so need enough to go round that. Work from home (supposedly but spend most of my time on here  ), so can come down almost anytime.

[archiesgems]

Not a problem Joy i will be cleaning out this after noon, I also have knocked you up a mink trap, just pop some meat in there and it will catch the little ************

[joyfull]

oh wow thanks Jay. I don't blame the mink I blame the so called animal lovers who released them into the wild. I don't wear fur but, because of their actions our native species (eg the lovely water vole) have nearly been wiped out - well between them and Kenneth Graham calling the water vole ratty in his wind in the willows story forcing people to think they were rats and dispatching them  . Sorry I'll get off my soap box now. 

[8doubles]

oh wow thanks Jay. I don't blame the mink I blame the so called animal lovers who released them into the wild. I don't wear fur but, because of their actions our native species (eg the lovely water vole) have nearly been wiped out - well between them and Kenneth Graham calling the water vole ratty in his wind in the willows story forcing people to think they were rats and dispatching them  . Sorry I'll get off my soap box now. 

I don`t think it was thinking they were rats that caused the dispatching it was the amount of damage they did to the river/lake banks when they were lots about. People like to see them but if they riddle the banks with holes they needed to be kept to a reasonable level. Mink are bad news for all wildlife and not even a little bit cute like ratty.

Edit, may i make it clear i am not a rat fan, water vole 'ratty' is the cute one.