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A Bait Holder for Liquid and Chunk Baits

A Bait Holder for Liquid and Chunk Baits

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

Every wildlife control operator (WCO) knows that suspending bait is preferable to throwing it on the cage floor. The problem is how does one suspend slurry or liquidy baits? A while back, I discovered the answer while accompanying Dennis Ferraro of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln during some turtle trapping. I noticed a large white PVC pipe inside his turtle traps. I asked him what it was. He said it was his bait holder. The device, he said, was perfect because it allowed him to put in fish chunks needed to lure turtles to his traps.

The Ferraro bait holder uses a 4-inch long piece of 2-inch PVC pipe, 1 threaded end piece with threaded cap, and 1 solid end cap. He then would drill ¼-inch holes around the perimeter of the 4-inch piece. Ferraro then inserted a ¼ inch threaded eye-screw through the screw-on cap which could be attached to a chain clip for easy hanging in the turtle trap. With the bait holder suspended with the solid end-cap down, any liquid in the bait would be held inside the holder. The screw-cap allowed for easy filling of the holder. When you need to clean the holder, simply place it in a glass jar filled with 10% bleach and water.

I was impressed with the simplicity of the design and decided to try one out. It also didn’t hurt that the white-PVC made it visible for nocturnal wildlife. As you can see from the photos it worked. Upon further reflection, I don’t think the eye screw is necessary. It would likely be easier for trappers to attach a section of trap wire to the holder and use the rest of the wire to hang it in the trap.

If you do any cage trapping and want to use some chunk and liquid baits, then Ferraro’s bait holder is the solution.

About the Author

Stephen M. Vantassel is a certified wildlife control operator who helps individuals, businesses, and agencies resolve wildlife damage issues through training, writing, expert witness, and research. His latest books are the Wildlife Damage Inspection Handbook, 3rd edition and The Practical Guide to the Control of Feral Cats. He can be contacted at wildlifecontrolconsultant at gmail dot com.

If you would like your publication, video, or product reviewed, please contact the author at the e-mail above.

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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Suspend Baits and Lures

Suspend Baits and Lures

Bait stick to hang paste bait in a cage trap. Photo by Stephen M. Vantassel.
Bait stick to hang paste bait in a cage trap.

Experienced wildlife control operators (WCO) familiar with cage and box trapping know that suspending bait, as opposed to throwing it on the trap floor, offers several advantages. First, suspending bait allows the bait molecules 360 degree access to the surrounding air increasing the chances that animals will smell it. Second, suspended bait is less vulnerable to ants that can carry it away. Finally, the attractiveness of the bait can be enhanced by the visual curiosity of a suspended object.

The development of paste baits allowed cage/box trappers to hang the bait off the ground and take advantage of the benefits of suspended baits. Note, hanging bait stick was related to me by Robert Erickson.

About the Author

Stephen M. Vantassel is a certified wildlife control operator who helps individuals, businesses, and agencies resolve wildlife damage issues through training, writing, expert witness, and research. His latest books are the Wildlife Damage Inspection Handbook, 3rd edition and The Practical Guide to the Control of Feral Cats. He can be contacted at wildlifecontrolconsultant at gmail dot com.

If you would like your publication, video, or product reviewed, please contact the author at the e-mail above.

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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Bait Sponges

Bait Sponge

Bait sponges are devices to keep the bait off the floor of a cage trap. One day I received the bait sponge in the mail. I recognized them immediately. In hospitals, we call them Toothettes. They are small sponges attached to the end of lollipop type stick. They are about five inches long (including the sponge). The sponge is about an inch long and an inch wide. It has ridges formed into the sponge because they are actually used as tooth brushes or as mouth moisteners/refreshers. This one was modified however. The trap dealer had added a metal wire to the end of the stick so that it could be hung from the cage. I thought this was great. The answer to my problem had been found. Here is how you can make some sponge bait sticks on your own.

First contact the maker Sage Products Inc. by calling 815-455-4700 or by writing 815 Tek Drive  Cyrstal Lake, IL 60014. Ask them for hospital Toothettes. You want the plain variety. You can purchase the flavored kind if you want your bait stick to smell like mint/peppermint. You also don’t want sterile ones. Why pay extra for something you don’t need? Chances are you won’t be purchasing enough Toothettes for them to sell to you directly. Instead they will put you in touch with a regional distributor.

Once they arrive in the mail, get some thin wire and attach it to the end of the stick. Some just take a wire paper clip, cut it so that you have two ‘U’ shaped wires and then insert one end into the top of the paper stick. I don’t like this method because I don’t trust it to hold. But that is just a personal bias and is not based on experience. My method is to use some electric fence wire, cut it a small piece then wrap around the stick and then bend the tail into a “u”. Whichever method you use. I am sure it will work well for you.

I have found that they work great as paste bait holders. They are strong enough to scrape peanut butter out of a container provided the peanut butter hasn’t hardened. I have even reused them. I do have a couple of cautionary notes. First, unlike the ‘y’ stick, Toothettes aren’t natural. So if the animal chews them up and some do, you may have to pick up the remains. It is not a lot of trash, usually just the wire/stick which has been separated from the sponge but you don’t want to leave them on the property. I have not found this to be a big problem but it is a negative to be aware of. The second, problem is cost. “y “ sticks are free. On the other hand you have to consider the client. Using a bait sponge may make you appear more professional. Using a “y” stick could have the client saying that “hey, I could have done that”.  Third, I haven’t found the sponges to be very effective in holding liquid baits. It seems that they don’t have enough sponge power to hold enough to overcome evaporation.

I think that Toothettes make an excellent addition to the box trapper’s arsenal. Try them out for yourself and see if you agree.

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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The Gopher Snake for Pocket Gopher Baiting

The Gopher Snake Bait Applicator

Pocket gophers are a fossorial (i.e. subterranean) rodent that eats plants and their roots. Sometimes pocket gophers gnaw on buried pipes and wires causing substantial financial losses to the owners.

Gopher Snake bait applicator
Gopher Snake toxic bait applicator for control of pocket gophers.

Pocket gophers are usually controlled by traps or toxicants. All toxicants for pocket gophers must be placed below ground with the access hole closed behind it to prevent non-target access to the bait. Typically, you find the hole by probing the mound for the burrow which is usually plugged, but the soil is softer than the undisturbed ground around it. Once you find the hole, you dig it out till you reach the horizontal tunnel up to 15 inches below. Deposit the bait and close the hole. Sounds simple enough. But one of the challenges is to back fill the hole without burying the bait you just deposited. For if the bait becomes buried, the pocket gopher is less likely to eat it.

The Device

The Gopher Snake is a bait application device designed to help applicators get the toxicant deep into the tunnel and therefore safe from being covered when the hole is closed. The device has a flexible cable connecting a bait holder to a plunger. The plunger is held by two fore-fingers with the thumb pushing the plunger to open the bait holder. The design is so simple, one wonders why it hasn’t been invented earlier.

It is useful for owners wishing to treat small tracks of land perhaps up to an acre. If you have multiple acres to treat, a professional bait applicator that allows you to create the hole and release bait in one step would be preferable. For those with dozens of acres, you should consider a burrow builder to apply bait.

I am not endorsing the product because I haven’t used it yet. But I find it intriguing. If you wish to learn more about it, visit thegophersnake.com

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 Box/Cage Traps with the Y Stick

Baiting Box/Cage Traps with the Y Stick

This isn’t about the kind of baits you should use to trap  problem animals. Rather it’s about a method to place and manipulate the bait to  make it more effective. Y stick baiting technique Photo by Stephen M. Vantassel

Box and Cage Trapping Not as Easy as You Think

Box and cage traps are completely different to animals than traditional trapping tools. Here we have this unnatural metal or plastic contraption that we are trying to lure the animal into. He will sense its foreignness. The metal will feel harsh under his feet and his  body may feel cramped by the small opening. All these factors add to the animal’s reluctance to enter the trap. So if we are going to get the animal into the trap we must make sure it has a good reason to enter.

Choosing the right bait or lure is of course very important to enticing an animal into the trap. However, if the bait isn’t situated properly in the trap, the animal won’t be able to sense it and know its there.

Animals hunt primarily using three senses, hearing, smell and sight. Typically WCOs do not utilize hearing in their trapping so we won’t discuss techniques for this sense, but I should note that this is changing.

The “Y” Stick Baiting Technique

Usually trappers exploit the animal’s sense of smell to capture the animal. The key is to bait the trap so that the food or lure molecules have the opportunity to disperse into the air. The method I like to use most often was taught to me by Rob Erickson. He advises trappers to get a ‘Y” stick and with the stem of the “Y” scoop out some of your bait. Then insert the stem into the bait area of the trap so that the bifurcated stems grab into the trap mesh thereby allowing the stem to dangle. With this method the bait has a very high exposure to the air around it. Other advantages lie in the techniques ability to reduce the loss of bait to hungry ants. By keeping the bait off the ground it is more difficult for the ants to find it. Finally, this technique allows the bait to remain active even if it rains. The small surface area makes it difficult for rain to wash it away and when it does then the bait can fall to ground where it may still be effective.

Downside of the Y Stick Baiting Technique

The downside to this method is that it works only with paste baits. If your bait or lure is especially liquid this baiting technique would not be recommended because it won’t cling to the stick properly. In addition, since the y portion extends above the trap, it may be affected by the trap cover. So if you use this method, be sure to check that the stick is still hanging properly after you cover the trap. Failure to consider this may allow the animal to grab the bait without having to get close enough to depress the treadle. Remember, animals are just as lazy as we are. If they can grab something by reaching for it rather than moving towards it they will. So be sure you hang the bait stick/wire towards the back half of the bait area.

Stephen M. Vantassel is a certified wildlife control operator and is available for consultation, speaking, and writing on wildlife damage management related topics.

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