GOING TO CONTACT
“My husband and I found a limping animal at the edge of the forest; at first we thought it was a ferret, but then from photographs on the Internet we realized that it was a stone marten,” says Odintsovo resident Eva M. “Such animals often make contact with people.
The couple felt sorry for the animal and decided to take it with them. As a precaution - the marten could be rabid - the couple did not touch the foundling with their hands, but wrapped it in a jacket. He immediately fell asleep in the car.
Not understanding how to keep a wild animal at home, the couple posted a post on social media asking for help. There were those who wanted to take the cute “fluffy” for themselves. Among them was a veterinarian who was ready to vaccinate the animal against rabies and take care of its health. The marten eventually went to her.
A Samarian who sheltered a marten at home: she likes to make stashes and listens to “Echo of Moscow”
ProGorodSamara.ru talked to Vladimir Pimenov, in whose apartment a small predator settled and made a mess
Unusual pets are not uncommon for residents of Samara . Regular readers of ProGorodSamara.ru probably know that city dwellers keep a variety of animals in their homes - monkeys, raccoons, and sometimes even lions. This list can be supplemented by security guard and cyclist Vladimir Pimenov. He cohabits with a marten. We went to visit Vladimir, who, as it turned out, was a regular reader of our portal, talked to him and looked at what the small, furry predator did to the Samarian’s apartment.
When and how did you get it?
— Last year, around August, my friend and I were riding bicycles behind the Kalinin hospital, where the 15th microdistrict is. I’m driving and in my peripheral vision I notice some movement. I stopped, walked up, and looked at the little animal playing. She, of course, was a little afraid, but I gave her a cookie and she came over. I just picked it up and that’s it. She struggled a little, but we put her in a backpack and took her home.
Why did you decide to take her? Do you love animals?
— Yes, it turns out that I love animals more than people, probably.
How did your relatives react to the fact that you brought such an animal?
“I live alone, so no one objected.”
Friends didn’t say anything, they say, she’ll destroy everything, why?
- Oh, no. With Andryukha, we rode bicycles, he took it normally. And another friend came, looked and said: “Vovan, I won’t come to you anymore.” Well, what can you do, let it be so.
When you brought her home, was there such a mess here already?
- No, she arranged it all. I dropped two chandeliers in two different rooms. She still jumps high. It turns out that the marten is a mixture of a squirrel and some kind of fox. She just doesn’t run on the ceiling, but everywhere else.
What was her name?
- Beady, because her eyes are like beads.
What is her character like?
- Very interesting. For example, she makes nest eggs. He hides food in all sorts of secluded corners. Sometimes she hides it so much that it’s unclear how she got there. Since I didn’t know her yet, I decided one day to take her stash, so she bit me like that! Bleeding, although a small animal. She is also very curious - she climbs everywhere, studies, everything is interesting to her. Of course, it is better not to keep such an animal in an apartment. She has so much energy that three rooms are not enough for her.
Have you tried making a leash for her?
- He is. I put it on her when we walk down the street, but rarely. She doesn't like cars and is afraid of street noise.
What does she eat?
- Absolutely omnivorous, eats everything. He loves meat, honey, vegetables, fruits, cookies - everything. I mainly feed her cat and dog food.
Do you give her what you eat yourself?
“And I practically don’t eat at home.” She doesn't give. It doesn’t even let me just cook something. Demands to be treated. The only thing is that once I brought eggs, she loves them very much. She goes crazy over them, especially the quail ones. For her it's just a delicacy. Immediately it starts to rumble. He also loves cucumbers.
What is she drinking?
- Water. I also give it kefir sometimes.
It's a big mess, and are you planning to continue living with it?
- For now, yes, but I'm going to release it. I’ll go to Ptichka in the near future to buy her a squirrel house - a special house for such animals, similar to a birdhouse with shelves inside. I want to go beyond the Volga with her, to see how she behaves there, in the wild. There are martens in the Podgora area, I already found out. I’ll go there, take a tent, and live there with it for three days. I'll put her in the house. I'll feed her for the first time, I'll leave the food for when I leave. I’ll leave her here in the house, and I’ll come back in a day and take a look; if there’s any left, I’ll take her home. If she runs away, then she must live in nature. It’s just that, for example, she wakes up at night at 2-3 o’clock, starts running, struggling, struggling - she still asks to be released, it turns out. I work as a security guard, I guard cottages, and then one day I decided to take her to see how she would behave there on the road and on the spot. I took it, rode the bus, it was in a box. I couldn’t find a place for myself, I ran around this box. She was under a lot of stress.
What is she afraid of?
- Noise. Most often street. Still doesn't like music, any kind. He starts biting and scratching when he hears songs. And if some talk radio is on, “Echo of Moscow,” for example, then she listens. He behaves more calmly.
Why did you decide not to give her to the zoo, for example?
- No, you definitely don’t need to go to the zoo. If three rooms are not enough for her. And in the zoo she will be given even less space, and so on for the rest of her life. Animals should at least have a chance to choose whether to live at home or better off in nature. She has an instinct because she was in the mood to mate. In winter she was furious, running around, but now she has calmed down a little. They, as I understand it, are born in April and by summer they are practically adults.
How long do they live?
- I read that about 15 years - in captivity if.
You didn't keep her in a cage at all?
- No, she came, she was so tiny, she was running around here. She left small piles, I cleaned up after her at first, but it was very difficult. Heavy animal.
Where is her sleeping place?
— She lives on my sofa. She chewed her way into the middle there and now lives inside. As soon as you move, she climbs out and starts running around. A very active animal. Let's just say that if a person has some kind of depression, then the marten is just for him. She will not let him be alone with his bad thoughts; she always jumps, runs, and climbs on you.
What other features do martens have?
“She’s predatory, curious, trying to get everything.” Now everything in my house is closed because she chews everything and makes holes everywhere. They gave me a coat at work - I was guarding a dacha and helped a woman collect leaves, and she gave me a coat. “From my husband,” he says, “carry it.” It’s a good coat, I hid it in the closet, and Bead jumped in and made holes in it. Now she is still changing color. I don't even know what it will be like in the end. In general, I can say that this is a little “monster”. She has so much energy. It creates great chaos.
How do people on the street react to her?
- With curiosity. They come up and ask what kind of animal this is. She arouses interest, but they didn’t ask to be photographed with her.
Do you know anyone else who keeps martens at home?
— I entered queries into the search engine. It’s about how fur coats are mostly made from it, but for someone to keep at home – no.
How do the neighbors treat the marten?
- They all know her. They are normal. She is nocturnal, she runs around, makes noise, stirs, creates noise, and at first I thought it was disturbing people’s sleep. I asked the neighbors on the floor and those above if this bothered them, they said that everything was fine. We didn't hear anything.
Does she perceive you as the owner?
- Not really. But she caresses me. I work for three days, come, she jumps on me, kisses me. He's bored, apparently. Starts kissing, but then starts biting. Her favorite thing is to bite her fingers.
Have you ever found out if her bites are contagious?
- I'm not afraid of it. When I went on a hike, I took mice calmly. It’s as if I’m not afraid of this whole nature.
How does she behave around cats and dogs? Do you have them?
“I don’t have them, but I wanted to see how she would behave with a cat.” But people say, “What are you doing? It’s dangerous for them.” The cats are stronger, they will bite her to death. At work, one man told me a story that his cat was fighting with a marten. Beyond the Volga. The marten—there was a male—gnawed off the cat’s tail, but the cat still defeated her.
That is, she had no contact with other animals?
“I brought her to the cottage that I guarded.” There are two dogs there, she was not afraid of them. And the dogs there are Labradors, kind. They treated her well too.
Tell us the most memorable incident with him.
- Well, this is probably the story with the chandeliers. He dropped two. And I assume that this happened at night. I just can't imagine what the neighbors thought there. I come home from work and the chandelier is on the floor. She probably jumped on her.
Have people ever had negative comments about your pet?
- Not really. It seems to me that I only evoke positivity among people. No matter how much I communicate with people, they somehow gravitate towards me. I do not know how to explain it. Even when I ride a bicycle, sometimes when you stop, someone starts asking me about the bicycle. Now, before the interview, I went to a glass shop where I like to drink coffee, people have a good attitude towards me. They treat cyclists with respect.
How do you call her to you?
- By name, “Busya, Busya.” Sometimes just “ks-ks-ks”, like a cat. But she doesn't really take it very well.
How does she sleep?
- Periodically, 2-3 hours. At night, her hunting time begins. She gets out and starts running everywhere.
What sounds does it make?
- It purrs, coos and growls, it happens.
Do you give her toys to play with?
- Yes, it happens, I go and collect. She will gut them.
What does she like?
— She likes it when you pet her. But you pet it for a while, and it starts to bite. She likes to bite her fingers. She bites to the point of pain. You start to throw it away - it comes back. It happened that I bit my fingers. Doesn't control himself sometimes.
Are there many martens in Samara?
- They say there are a lot of them beyond the Volga. Martens were seen in the Management Forest.
If she doesn’t want to live without you, have you thought about getting her a partner?
“I’ll start it if she leaves for me.” She will have to look for a male and allocate a room for them. You just need to put trees there so they can jump. In general, I'm very used to it.
RESPONSIBLE STEP
Experts warn: you should not pick up martens near the forest; you can become infected not only from a bite, but also when infected saliva gets on the affected area of the skin. Even if the animal is healthy, keeping it in an apartment will be problematic.
“Martens have a difficult time getting along with people and can be aggressive, especially if they grew up in the wild,” explains Irina Chernova, a livestock breeder at the Russian Sable enterprise located in the Pushkinsky District. – Sables or ferrets taken from special nurseries at an early age are more suitable for keeping at home.
According to the specialist, today many residents of the Moscow region and other regions keep fur-bearing animals as pets. However, such an acquisition must be a thoughtful and responsible step.
What is the danger of ferrets, weasels and martens?
The particular danger of the predator is the mass destruction of poultry. Having entered the poultry house, the ferret, having eaten, begins to store food for future use.
The entire chicken flock often becomes prey. The hunting pattern of ferrets, weasels, and martens is the same: fishing continues as long as there is a living bird in the chicken coop.
Be sure to read:
How to get rats out of a barn: effective methods of control using folk remedies and chemistry
If the predator is scared off, the hunt will continue the next night. It is important for the farmer to prevent such attacks.
Chicken coop after a visit from a predator
The skeletal features of the ferret and weasel allow the animals to easily penetrate through small holes and narrow cracks, significantly complicating the protection of the chicken coop in the habitats of these predators. It is easier to protect the poultry house from rats.
Important! Large aggressive roosters can kill ferrets while protecting the hens. The rooster is powerless against experienced hunters who regularly hunt poultry.
Feeding
The animal must be fed strictly according to the schedule; uneaten food must be removed from the cage. Usually, the animals get used to the regime in a short time and wait for food to be given. Subsequently, it is necessary to ensure that the animal is not afraid to eat food in your presence. It is advisable, at each feeding, to sit without moving near the cage, avoiding unexpected noise and sudden movements and noises. It is necessary to do this for a certain time, until the animal completely stops avoiding the person.
How to get rid of martens and protect your roof from martens
If you don't want martens getting into your attic, you need to properly design your roof and attic - prevention is better than cure. How to effectively block a marten's path to the roof? The most important thing is that there are no places through which martens can get into the attic. The entrance to the roof must be tightly closed. It is worth keeping an eye on roofers, because even a small leak in the roof will allow martens to get inside. In addition, ventilation and other openings should be covered with steel grilles or perforated metal strips.
In addition to the sprue installed between the cornice strip and the trim, use heavy-duty metal perforated tape. It will cover all inlet holes under the cover. Install tight screens in shingles and chimneys. The same caps are used along the ridge gap.
Soffit is an important element of roof finishing. Regardless of what material it is made of, it must be fastened firmly and tightly. Air enters the soffit through tightly spaced small-diameter holes. The holes can be replaced with fine-mesh metal gratings.
Insulating rafters can provide effective protection against martens. Mineral wool, laid on top of a rigid sheathing and tightly insulated with roofing felt, is an insurmountable obstacle. It is interesting to note that martens do not like polystyrene foam, especially XPS or PIR boards - they are annoyed by the squeaking noise that occurs when they bite or scratch holes in these insulating layers.
Breeding chinchillas as a business at home
Today, to start and develop your business, you need to look for new areas with little competition.
One such area is chinchilla breeding. The low level of competition is caused by high demand for the product, which is only growing every year. Care, maintenance and breeding of chinchillas is now becoming an increasingly popular business.
Buying a chinchilla for breeding in the modern world is not difficult. Chinchilla is one of the most expensive and exquisite furs in the world. This popularity is due to the high quality, density and uniformity of the fur.
The point is this: in other animals, only one hair can grow from one bulb, but in a chinchilla, 60-80 hairs grow, 12 microns thick.
Tips for organizing a mink farming business
What woman doesn't dream of a mink coat? The fur of this animal is highly valued on the market, so raising mink becomes quite a profitable business.
Over the past five years, the number of mink farming firms has increased fivefold, from seven to thirty-five organizations in sixteen regions of the country.
There are over three hundred different colors of mink fur. The most popular products are black, brown and sapphire animals.
Today, together with our readers, we will look at mink breeding as a business, we will present all the interesting figures and advice from experienced specialists. Contents First, you need to prepare a business plan for mink breeding. To avoid wasting your savings or investor money, count all the necessary expenses to start a business.
According to statistics, 80% of business failures are caused by incorrect calculations or ignoring them altogether.
After you have seen
How to Avoid a Predator
If there is a risk of a ferret appearing in the chicken coop, the poultry farmer should take preventive measures in advance and provide for the protection of the structure from penetration of predators during the construction process:
- Completely isolate the room. Make the foundation monolithic concrete, cover the floor under the boards with iron. Cover the walls of the chicken coop with fine mesh and seal the cracks with cement.
- The ventilation system should be installed at a height of at least 2 meters from the ground.
- Close the coop tightly at night. Place a lock or latch on the door: the hook can be opened by the animal.
- There should be no accumulation of things inside the premises: any shelter will allow a predator, entering the chicken coop during the day, to remain unnoticed.
- Equip the walkway around the perimeter with a concrete strip , which should go to a depth of 50 cm.
- In places where the risk of a predator is high, inspect the chicken coop and poultry run daily. Suspicions of the appearance of an animal require urgent additional protective measures to be taken.
House equipment
It is necessary to lay suitable bedding in the house, for example, you can use old rags or hay. Here the animal will be able to hide from unnecessary attention; if the cage is small, then you can secure the house outside rather than inside, which will save free space in the cage. Get ready for the fact that at first, while the animal has not gotten used to it, it will recover in the nest. After some time, he will get used to it and choose a suitable place for the toilet; more often he chooses one of the corners of the cage. In this place it is advisable to install a tray into which a special filler is poured. At first, it is advisable to place the animal’s excrement in a tray, using this to indicate the location. To prevent the animal from accidentally jumping out of the house when you are cleaning the cage, it is advisable to equip it with a special door or latch that can close the exit and entrance to the nest.
Taming
The next step will be to teach the animal to accept food from your hands. At first the animal will be afraid to eat from your hands, for this reason, at first you can feed it from a wooden spoon. You can achieve results faster if, in addition to simple food, you give some kind of treat, for example, sour cream or regular honey, but only a little. After a certain period of time, the animal will no longer be afraid of an outstretched hand and will independently approach you to get its favorite food or treat. After this, you can try to feed him directly from your hands. At first, the “savages” simply snatch the food, at this time it is necessary to do this carefully. After a while, you can let the animal into the room and teach it to take food right there, using the same methods discussed earlier. With the help of treats you can lure the animal back into its cage. It is strictly forbidden to catch the animal or scare it; because of this, the taming time may increase indefinitely.
The use of such simple methods of education will allow your pet to accept you as a friend. Subsequently, he himself will jump onto your lap, asking for his treat.
- Posted by fenix
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Fluffy business. Tips and tricks for breeding sable
Owning your own business is the dream of many people. However, only one person in a hundred moves from dreams to action.
In fear of losing their savings and remaining in debt, many abandon this idea, choosing paid work. However, for people who know how to plan ahead, approach their work responsibly and patiently, the danger of burning out is reduced to a minimum. It is best to start your own business with minimal investment, trying yourself as an entrepreneur.
Many aspiring businessmen choose farming as one of their business niches. The topic of our article today is sable breeding as a business.
This animal is considered the most valuable of the mustelid family; its fur is in demand both in Russia and abroad. Moreover, their breeding does not require much space, and therefore rental costs can be eliminated.
How to scare away a ferret, marten, weasel
Electronic devices have been developed that create ultrasound. It causes fear in the predator and forces the animal to leave the territory covered by the repeller.
Live trap diagram
The device does not bother other animals. The person doesn't hear him. The disadvantage of an ultrasonic device is the possible addiction of the predator, the disappearance of the scaring effect.
Low frequency repellers are not addictive. The sound always seems to be the animal signal of an approaching earthquake. However, the device has a negative impact on pets that sense low-frequency sounds. Chickens experience stress when the appliance is operating.
There are light repellers that have a motion sensor. When fixing a moving object, the device turns on a flashlight, the light of which, frightening, drives the animal away from the chicken coop.
The disadvantage of the light repellent method is the inability to completely cover the entire area around the building, so persistent ferrets will be able to enter the chicken coop through an unlit area. A light repeller, additionally equipped with a sound function, is more effective.
Marten at the dacha. How to get rid of an unwanted pest animal?
On the one hand, the marten is a harmful animal, but on the other hand, it can be our ally, because it effectively clears the dacha of all rodents, and above all mice and rats.
In nature there are domestic martens and forest martens. One differs from the other in the shape of a white spot on the chest. House martens are weasel predators that have been associated for centuries with human homes, where they find shelter.
The marten's body length is 42-59 cm, and the length of its bushy tail is 16-32 cm. Martens are excellent climbers, and through gutters or walls they get into the attics of the building, where it is warm and dry. Nests and communication channels are installed in the insulating material under the roof (most often mineral wool).
In addition, they tear off installations and cables, destroy the insulation of buildings and, in addition, bring food into their homes, namely rodents, pigeons, fruit and various garbage.
We usually become aware of a marten's presence in the home by hearing its noises and cries at night, the animal's most active time. Disturbed by night noises, we begin to look for reasons and find traces of looting - eaten wires, installations, boards, droppings and unpleasant odors (rodents always smell bad).
Fighting a marten that nests in the house is not the easiest. The most commonly used and quite effective method is live traps, in which animals are lured and, after capture, thrown out of the house.
A raw egg, which is a marten delicacy, is placed in the trap. When setting such a trap, you need to remember that you should not touch either the equipment or the bait with your bare hands, because the animals have an excellent sense of smell and they are very smart. If they just “make up” the threat, they won’t even fall into the trap. Everything must be done with gloves.
After the marten has been removed, it is necessary to close all the openings through which the animal could enter our house. There are also ultrasonic repellents on the market that produce sounds that are almost inaudible to humans. It is best to choose those that make as many sounds as possible at different frequencies so that the animals do not get used to them quickly.
Odor repellents in the form of aerosols, hangers or scented packets are also effective. They are especially recommended for protecting cars from martens. But you can also use them at home, for example in the attic. It also seems to be effective to place freshly combed dog hair (martens are afraid of dogs) or traditional moth balls in areas frequented by intruders.
If the marten is especially unpleasant when it destroys the attic, and we just can’t get rid of it, it’s worth turning to a good roofer for help, who will probably find a way to get rid of the intruder.
Taming and caring for mustelids in your apartment
Sometimes it happens that, due to some circumstances, it is necessary to keep completely wild representatives of the weasel family in an apartment. Perhaps this is a wounded or sick animal that cannot be released into the wild.
Some of them are very aggressive towards people; usually caught wild animals try to scare a person or even bite.
It is not at all easy to care for them, for the reason that you need to be careful while caring for them.
By bringing an animal into their home, people take on responsibility, which imposes responsibilities for upbringing and care. Contents Among wild animals you can find individuals that immediately begin to feed in the presence of people or can even take food from hands.
But what should you do if the animal is afraid of you and avoids any meetings? Is it possible in this situation to establish contact with it and make friends?
