Venting about varmints

First time I caught a skunk, it was in a homemade box trap with a door that slid down and latched. I did not know what to do as I was leaving for work. My wife suited up in a raincoat with rain hat and rubber gloves and just removed the door and ran for it. Nothing bad happened.

BTW, looking through old notes, I see you had identified Japanese switch grass for me a while back. Looks like I need a new approach to pre-emergents next year.

Thanks, Frank

re bait: I don't use any. I find where they run - at least here, they leave a 'belly track' in the grass. They seem to like to go alongside a fence or wall. I set the trap right in the run, with a 'V' at each entrance to guide them in, made of ~8"-high plywood strips. I've gotten

that is funny. is this a wire cage type trap 1x1x3ft or so?

songbird

Yeah. Hav-a-Hart.

we just lent ours to our nephew, so i can't set it back out, but i hadn't seen any critters for a few weeks and the bean patches have been left alone since i plinked one good with the air rifle. then the other day one was at the front of the bean patch eating the clover. i'd never seen one run so fast as when i opened the patio door to plink at it again. never was able to get a shot off. they may not see very good, but they can hear. i think it must be a groundhog because i don't think muskrats get as big as this.

what do you do with them when you catch them? are they good eating?

songbird

go alongside a

I've gotten

I've eaten groundhog and it tasted somewhat like chicken but not quite as good. I had bagged it with a bow and arrow while at a friends hunting camp. I was the only one that ate it and the rest were eating fried chicken.

I reprogram them. 0% recidivism.

It's amazing what a stern talking-to will do to alter attitudes.