I have him on camera. Bastard Mink. It is not much of a shot but I think there are two of them.
If you flip back and forth you will see them. They literally ate a hole in the door. And killed two more chooks.
So after I had milked the cow, fed the animals, done the baking and made the custard for the ice-cream, put a pound of butter in the freezer and thanked the farmer for planting 8 rows of sunflowers for this years feed. Watered the pots, let the big animals into the fields and filled the water troughs:
I ignored everything else and set to work to finish The Tank myself.
It did take hours and I admit freely to not being very good when working with wire but I had a lot of help from my sleepy support team. Yesterday I abandoned the chook house altogether. No more chickens in there now. Earlier than planned but enough is enough. 
Later in the afternoon I called the nice man at the pub and asked him if he could make John’s dinner for me, and throw in a few extra pieces of chicken for the traps.
While I waited for the birds to go to bed so I could catch them, we did some fencing. I think Marcel is getting a bit too big to play the Boo games anymore. 
Then I milked the cow, cleaned up, dragged out every box and cage I had and set to work; catching every single chicken. There are two cages of birds on the verandah and The Tank is full. I will repair the next chicken tractor tomorrow for the caged birds.
We will keep loading the traps until we trap them, there is nothing else to do.
But for the meantime the chickens are in the front yard where they are well within the territory of the dogs. In fact they are only a few feet from the verandah where the dogs lie.
Last night I slept.
Oh and Daisy’s milk is still healthy. No problems there for the moment. Wonderful.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Your friend on the farm
celi
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
66 responses to “My enemy”
Damn – I suppose they have set up home somewhere near to the good food supply 😦
Good! That chicken-killing mink
Needs a serious re-think!
Tell you what would be my vote –
Turn them into a mink coat!
I can’t wait to see the sunflowers bloom! I think it will be lovely, bright and make you smile every time you see it!
Good Morning Celi, Such devious enemies! How do you keep them from digging into the tractor?
The tractor will be in a field far from the chicken coop and the water. And moved twice a day and easily guarded by the dogs.. best I can do.. c
I think after all that, I would still be sleeping! But it’s good you executed your plan! Onwards and upwards!
I imagine the girls may get a better night’s sleep too!
Hi Celi! I’m back on the farm–so much has happened! And I love the blog redesign. Donna
I love the tractor! Let’s hope that you can get those minks soon. It’s enough to make you sick.
I hope you’re ready to off those bastard minks, because that’s the only way to really get them out. And do it before they make mini minks! I’ve been living with a groundhog for years that I haven’t had the heart to kill, and we do battle every year . He eats everything I plant- this year he’s going away– one way or another.
i have heard that groundhogs cannot tollerate large amounts of salt,put cups of salt in, or near groundhog hole. i have never tryed this,neighbors claim it works
I’ll try that. Sounds quick and easy.I like quick and easy.
They will not be relocated, but first I need to trap them, have been trying for a week now without any luck.. c
Your pen is very nice! I do like it! Also, relocating is bad…your solution is the best!
✿♥ღLinda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Sit up at night and shoot the devils
I can’t see them well enough to make them out but raccoons are very destructive too. The first time I had chickens I eventually gave up because the raccoons were smarter and more determined it seemed. They ate all my girls. After that I put wire on the floors, but I was always grateful I wasn’t dealing with minks because I remember reading that minks can crawl through the tiniest of holes. I read, that the best way to determine what is eating them is to examine the “murder” scene…such as whether they eat only the neck, or if the whole carcass is missing, etc. In my case I stayed in the barn with the chickens right before it got dark and waited….and of course raccoons are very prompt. I then put a baby monitor in my chicken coop. I didn’t sleep for a long time. 🙂
I SAW the mink dragging a chicken across the floor one night, but was not fast enough to kill it, I know what is getting in.. c
Oh!…well it’s good you know…I’ve never seen a mink as long as I’ve lived in the country, and I live near a lot of water..river plus creeks. I would be traumatized seeing my chicken being carried off. 😦
What about setting the trap outside the barn, and letting the dogs sleep inside the old chook house for a couple of nights to cover all contingencies. Will the trap be big enough to catch both minks? If you started making mink coats we could feed all the animals for years to come, although I really hope you don’t have that many. Laura
I have traps inside and outside. Of course there are no hens in there anymore. c
i worry that a mink may make it thru the chicken wire ,or tunnel under,for more carnage
now that hens have been evicted,and chicken house cat proof,could you get some steel traps and set in chicken house, while the hen aroma is still fresh? or some sort of mink poison?i know poison is last step, but its war now,like the old caddy shack movie
Now that it is empty I would consider Poison, nothing else could get in there. All the traps are empty again this morning, i will keep at it til i get them, Of course i have 70 more chickens coming in the next few weeks. I might set up a new chook house on the concrete pad. The option is no chooks at all and no chicken in the freezer.. c
And, according to the time-stamp on the photo, they were in there for 4 hours!? No wonder the poor chickens look so terrified up there on the roost. Let’s hope the Tank keeps them safe and that you are able to eliminate the bastard minks.
Love the photos of Marcel and Boo, though.
Good for you, Ce—–you are going to catch those stupid minks and take care of them once and for all. I am sure that moving the chooks and having the dogs around close will be a good thing. Marcel is getting so big!!!!