Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC

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Possible Snake Repellents

Did I just write the heading, possible snake repellents? Doesn’t that statement conflict with an earlier blog post about the relative inadequacy of mothball-based snake repellents, see Snake Repellents? Well the short answer to all that is, “Yes, but with a caveat.” An interesting article by Larry Clark and John Shivik, entitled, Aerosolized essential oils and individual natural product

white garter snake photo
White garter snake may cause some people to be frightened enough that they would buy a snake repellent.

compounds as brown treesnake repellents, published in 2002, in the Pest Management Science journal (58:775-783, DOI: 10:1002/ps525) shed some interesting light on several possible snake repellents.

Clark and Shivik’s Article in Brief

Brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) are an invasive (and dangerous) species that since their introduction to the island of Guam have been responsible for significant declines in the island’s native bird species. Since officials want to avoid transporting these snakes to other islands, finding an effective repellent would be an important tool in the tool box for managing this dangerous species. Since the cost of registering a non-food based repellent with the EPA is enormous, these scholars sought to evaluate essential oils. Essential oils, many of which are already used in food or air fresheners would require a lower barrier to EPA registration.

Clark and Shivik investigated the effect of 14 essential oils not counting water on snakes followed by an analysis of 20 specific chemicals which were key components of those essential oils.  Essentially the test was as follows. First snakes were tested to see if they reacted to a squirt of water. If they didn’t react they were used in the study. Reactions were evaluated as either vigorous motion, slow motion or no motion. Vigorous motion was when the snake reacted violently to the sprayed oil or chemical. Slow motion was the snake’s reaction was more investigative as if it was trying to look around. No motion should be self explanatory.

Results of the Snake Repellent Study

The authors found that snakes reacted significantly to cedarwood, cinnamon, sage, juniper berry lavender and rosemary oils. As for individual chemicals, snakes reacted vigorously to aerosols of m-anisaldehyde, trans-anethole, cineole, cinnamaldehdyde, citral, ethyl phenylacetate, eugenol, geranylacetate or methyl salicylate.

Bottomline

Before you go out and buy some essentials and start offering snake repellent services, you need to keep a few things in mind.

  1. These products were tested on brown tree snakes. Not garter snakes, etc. Does that matter? It might.
  2. None of these products/chemicals have been registered by the EPA for use as snake repellents. Don’t break the law!!!
  3. None of these products were tested as barrier repellents. Meaning, they weren’t tested to see if a snake would avoid an area with these chemicals. The authors noted that these chemicals may be better characterized as flushing agents. In other words, these products may find a use as a way of seeing if a snake is present in a shipping container or crawl space. Fog the space and see if the snake emerges or shows himself. While developing flushing agents can be important for WCOs or PCOs, they are unlikely to do much for the bottom line even if the EPA did register them. So patience folks. As of this blog, there are no known barrier chemical repellents yet, at least for American snakes, that I know of. The search and the wait continues.
Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Painting Cage Traps

Have you ever thought of painting cage traps? If you answered, “No.” or if you are thinking, “Why would I want to expend the effort of painting cage traps.” Then let me provide a few reasons why you should consider painting your traps.

Reasons for Painting Cage Traps

  1. Painting helps preserve the traps against rust and decay. You probably already thought of this reason.
  2. Painting helps protect the trap against theft and trap molestation. The fact is lots of people hate trappers and trapping. A portion of the anti-trapping community will take the extra effort and steal the trap. Some will simply molest the trap by knocking it closed, (so it won’t catch anything and thus waste your time) or they will release an animal that happens to be trapped (and thus break the law and waste your time). Of course, you must use the right paint. I like to use flat black paint. Flat black paint lacks a shiny sheen so it doesn’t catch one’s attention as easily as a bright shiny metal trap can. If you set your traps in the shade, and you should, painting a cage trap with flat black paint, will go a long way in helping to hide the trap.
  3. Painting helps the trap’s capture rate. Okay, I can’t prove this. But I think that a dark trap that lacks the shininess of an unpainted trap will allow the animal to focus on your bait and lure. A shiny trap may distract or even frighten the animal. Perhaps it will remind them of the time they were captured in the homeowner’s unpainted trap and thus avoid it. I think you get the point.

Another tip is in the video. I hope you watch it and subscribe to my channel and to my podcast with Pest Geek.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Y Stick

The Y Stick

I had been fairly happy with using “y” sticks as holders for bait in my cage traps. They were cheap (free) and worked really well. But my honey moon was soon over when I started having some problems. Some times I would have to spend too much time searching for bait sticks. It seemed that some residents kept their property cleared of broken branches and trimmed their trees. It just didn’t look good raiding some bush for a usable “y” branch.  Sure I would stock up on them when I had the chance but they would sometimes break as from the jostling they got in the back of my truck. Traps moving in and out, bait containers being tossed inside would be too much for the dry sticks to handle. I needed another option.

PVC bait stick and y stick
PVC bait stick (left) and the Y bait stick (right)

The other problem with the “y” stick was that the two ends protruded above the cage. You might not consider that a big problem. It isn’t when the weather is warm and dry. But I live in New England. I often want to protect my bait and trigger area from snow and rain. The “y’ stick prevented me from laying stones or boards above this area. Doing so would only break the sticks or roll the angle of the stick into a bad angle making it too easy for an animal to misfire it. I needed another option.

In comes the PVC bait stick. I think I learned this from Rob Erickson but my memory could be wrong as there was another gentlemen in the Massachusetts and Connecticut area that also mentioned it. Anyway, the principle of the PVC bait stick is the same as the Y stick but with additional benefits. First, it is durable. Second, it disperses odor from the paste bait better. Finally, being white, it shows up better in low light conditions, which I think enhances the enticement for animals.

If you would like to create your own PVC bait stick, just watch the video below.

 

Want to learn more about baiting cage and box traps, take our 1 hour training course.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Baiting Cage Traps

How do you go about baiting Cage traps? Do you just smear some peanut butter on bread and toss it into the back of the box trap? If you want to improve your technique of baiting cage traps, then let me tell you about my new training class.

Chunk bait holder. Photo by Stephen M. Vantassel.
Chunk bait holder. Photo by Stephen M. Vantassel.

I’ve created a course on “Baiting Cage and Box Traps Like a Professional”. The video training is hosted on Vimeo. I formerly had it on SkillShare but they said it was dangerous and blocked its publication. So I had to provide the training on my own. This training is not about what specific ingredients you should use to make bait. There are plenty of books and materials on the web about what lures and baits you can use to attract animals to your trapping set. Rather, the purpose of this training is to help you understand the principles and practices of baiting cage and box traps so that you get the most benefit out of the specific lure or bait you are using.

The challenge is many people think that cage and box trapping is simple. Well it is but the simplicity can be misunderstood as being simplistic. Too often people fail to appreciate how their baiting of traps hinders their capture performance. My course, Baiting Cage and Box Traps Like a Professional will help you avoid common mistakes with lures and baiting.

To sign up for the class, pay the $19.95 using PayPal below or visiting our Shop Page

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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Trail Cam Stand On Steroids

Trail Cam Stand

Have you ever used a trail cam stand? Have you ever struggled with finding the right stand for your trail cam? If your answer is, “No.” Then it is likely that you have only used your trail cam in a natural setting. In urban settings, a trail cam stand is an essential item because you can’t simply be drilling holes into your client’s home or shed. Likewise, you must be careful in pushing rods into the ground as you may puncture a sprinkler system or subterranean line that you didn’t know was there.

Trail Camera Stand
Trail Cam Stand on Steroids.
The trail cam stand discussed in the video has several key features. First, it can actually stand on its’ own. You don’t need to push it into the ground or screw it into a tree or wall. Second, it has screw tight grips so it can be squeezed onto a stud or rafter to hold it into place without leaving a hole or mark. Third, it has plenty of swivel capability so you can position the trail cam in the position that serves your needs best.

The negative is, this trail cam stand is a bit pricey. I got mine for around $90.00. But if you rely on quality images or video from your camera, this product will help you get the shot you need. More details are in the video below. Please subscribe to the channel.

Tips on Trail Cam Use

 

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACE, is the owner of Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. He helps people restore their balance with nature through publishing, training, consulting, and the internet. He has published numerous articles in trade and academic publications available at {Stephen’s Academia.edu Page} along with several books {WCC Store}). Listen to his podcast “Living the Wild Life” at {Pest Geek Podcast}. Please subscribe to {Stephen’s YouTube Channel} He is a sought after speaker and trainer. If you would like to have Stephen speak at your event or use his consultation services, send an e-mail to wildlifecontrolconsultant@gmail.com. Copyright All postings are the property of Stephen M. Vantassel and Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC. Text (not images) may be reprinted in non-profit publications provided that the author and website URL is included. If images wish to be used, explicit and written permission must be obtained from Wildlife Control Consultant, LLC.

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