To kill or not to kill, that is the question.

[alan refail]

Following the threats to Gardener's Question Time panellists from animal rights activists - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/78 ... rrels.html - where would you draw the line about what to kill and what to "deter"?

[Primrose]

I really don't like the idea of killing anything (except slugs !), but I do accept that from time to time, the population of some of these creatures can grow beyond acceptability, especially when they are destroying the environment around them in some way. I can accept squirrels and rats being killed if there's a nice quick clean kill like a shotgun. I simply hate the idea of poison.

I few years ago we had a family of young rats in our garden. Believe it or not, I enjoyed watching them as they grew up. They were highly intelligent and became quite tame. But as always, there came a point when it was no longer sustainable to live with them and I was forced to call in the pest controller to put down bait. I have to say that watching these creatures die a slow horrible death as they staggered around the garden made me feel like a murderer and I was absolutely sickened by the process. I know they had to go but it is the method of killing that bothers me. And I don't know how you can "deter" rats; they just keep coming!

[Geoff]

I definitely kill Rats and Squirrels, slightly tolerant of Moles in the grass but not in cultivated areas, this week's enemy No.1 are the Voles that have taken a liking to Strawberries (and one trap that has gone missing!). I'm not that keen on Corvids or Doves and would go for Pigeons but they aren't a problem here. I've deterred Rabbits with netting as I have trouble killing them with an air rifle. Animal rights activists are somehow mentally deficient as they are so incapable of joined up thinking that they protect vermin like Rats and release Mink into the environment to wreak havoc on native wildlife, they should be used to smoke cigarettes for cancer research.

[alan refail]

they should be used to smoke cigarettes for cancer research.

I take it you mean animal right activists

[Johnboy]

Hi Alan,
The way I see this problem is with the modern conservationist who is trying to save anything and everything which in the end achieve very little. The other day on another thread I said that I shoot Magpies, not because I thoroughly dislike them because they are quite a handsome bird, because they are a total threat to all the song birds in the area.
Since my policy of disposing of Magpies has been in operation the other birds in the area get a chance to life. I have been criticised by the local conservationists who say that I am going against nature. Well so be it but I now have literally hundreds of birds around my plot whereas they had very seriously dwindled due to this one bird specie.
When the RSPB were trying to aid the recovery of the Avocet they used to roll gulls nest on a very regular basis. I wonder what the modern conservationist think about that.
Conservation should be the culling of certain dominant species to try and create a reasonable balance of nature.
Things like Mink should be totally exterminated from this country as they are a total menace to just about every living creature.
The only known predator of the Badger is Man and since it has been made illegal for man to control them the population is totally spiralled out of control. The Badgers that are around are fighting each other for territory and their health is declining. Culling them down to a very reasonable population will help the Badgers but modern thinking is that it always knows best and that they should be left to deteriorate.
I beg to differ.
JB.

[The Mouse]

The moles have just started to go mad in my veg patch again, and I definitely want to get rid of them!!!

But ... last week I set the traps - one scissor trap and one tunnel trap. When I went to check, I found a live mole caught in the tunnel trap. I was horrified, as the trap should kill them almost instantly. This one, despite being caught around its waist, was still very much alive and started trying to dig an escape hole into which it would take both itself and the trap while I stood there wondering what the hell to do!
My first thought was to put the thing out of its misery, but I couldn't do that while it was still in the trap. I needed to get my gloves in order to release it first. I put the trap down and ran to get them, but when I got back a minute later it had managed to drag itself out of the trap and down a newly-dug hole!!!

After that, I am reluctant to use my traps, because I don't want to cause unnecessary suffering.

[Geoff]

I was about to post a photograph but decided against it. Enormous Rat drinking out of the birds' water so I put out some food, opened the window, loaded the air rifle and waited patiently with one eye on football, same result, Rats 0 Geoff 1.

[Nature's Babe]

We have some very efficient pest control, our cats !
One thing concerning me at the moment is gulls, they got used to scavenging on landfill and some are now actually living inland not sure if the cats would tackle one of them though they might raid their nests.

[Parsons Jack]

We have some very efficient pest control, our cats !
One thing concerning me at the moment is gulls, they got used to scavenging on landfill and some are now actually living inland not sure if the cats would tackle one of them though they might raid their nests.

Gulls are a big problem for us as well. If you can discourage them from using your roof before the breeding season starts, it's not too bad, but there are a few people along from us that allow them to use their roof. Consequently we get almost 24hr noise and aggression from them. It gets worse when the chicks are learning to fly.

[alan refail]

On the subject of gulls: we have a pair of semi-resident herring gulls which we feed. Over ten years they have successfully kept away all other herring gulls, including their own young ones. Close up, like a couple of feet away, they are the most beautiful of birds.

And they are on the RED LIST.

[alan refail]

Owain Glyndŵr yn yr eira.jpg (21.93 KiB) Viewed 4837 times

Here's Owain Glyndŵr in the April snow 2008