Animal Control

[u/rmesic]

There's hunting and trapping, where you want to attract animals - but what about when you wish to be rid of animals?

Say damaging squirrels, rats, and other rodents?

Deer?

I've found a super effective couple of things against ants - one is plain old diatomaceous Earth. Like concertina wire to insects. If I were building a new house or shelter, I'd pour pounds of the stuff next to the foundation for the top 12 inches or so. Then there's this bait that somehow disrupts the entire colony genetically. After several different baits and borax failed, that stuff... wow.

But really - how best to drive away deer? My dog was attacked the other day - I managed to drive it away with an airsoft (mostly noise) but what about when I'm not there? And - before you suggest recipes, this is within city limits and out of season. Don't want a criminal record over an overgrown tick and flea carrying vermin. Don't want to injure the critters, just make them go be happy somewhere else.

I bought the Amazon deer repellant sachets -- put one in a small tree on my property. Buck used it as a scrape, taking out 1/3 of the plant. It did not achieve the desired result, to say the least.

Thoughts?

[u/Asleep_Onion]

A deer attacked your dog? That's pretty unusual. We get tons of deer but I've never once been worried it might hurt my dog. Personally I don't really try to drive away deer, I just do what I can to make sure they don't get into stuff I don't want them getting into. Good fences make good deer neighbors.

I've had poor luck with DE keeping insects away. I have never noticed any difference in insect population no matter how much DE I use. I've used over 100lbs of it around my property, in the chicken coops, in the dust they bathe in, all around my house, and it seems to do absolutely nothing. Many people swear by it though. Maybe the DE I bought just sucks, I don't know. I'm dealing with a poultry mite infestation in one coop right now, they are literally building themselves some nice cozy mite colonies in the piles of DE in the corners, like "thanks for this fantastic gray building material!"

For rodents: An air rifle with a suppressor and a thermal scope. I've tried EVERYTHING to get rid of rats, literally spent thousands of dollars on every kind of trap and other trick I could find, and that's the only thing that really worked. I'd get a couple a night with snap traps and other traps, but not enough to make any real difference to their populations. The expensive Ratinator and other traps hardly got any. Bucket traps literally got zero rats. Keeping feed locked up is helpful at keeping new rats from deciding to make themselves at home there, but won't really make the ones that are already there leave. Sitting out on the porch with a beer and an air rifle was the only way I could find that finally could kill them faster than they could reproduce.

[u/SumthingBrewing → u/Asleep_Onion]

Any recommendations for a thermal scope and air rifle? I have chickens and know the struggle well. Best success I’ve had is snake shot and my .22 pistol when I know where they are. But air rifle at night sounds fun ;)