Dried rabbit biltong jerky for bait on trap

[Tomdhu]

I bait my stoat traps with fresh rabbit but in warm/hot weather it goes off too quickly .

Does anyone have method for making dried rabbit meat? Wifey suggested it would involve salting it slightly than drying in a low temperature oven??? What about vinegar and honey?

Or what about using strips of pork rind or chicken as an alternative to rabbit.

I prefer to make it myself rather than use the Erayz product.

 

[C_Claycomb]

easiest thing is to try it.
Beef/venison biltong is made with salt to draw moisture and antimicrobial, vinegar is taste and antibacterial, pepper helps keep flies away if dried outdoors (in Africa)
I made beef biltong in a low oven with the door ajar.

 

[Chris]

I bait my stoat traps with fresh rabbit but in warm/hot weather it goes off too quickly .

Does anyone have method for making dried rabbit meat? Wifey suggested it would involve salting it slightly than drying in a low temperature oven??? What about vinegar and honey?

Or what about using strips of pork rind or chicken as an alternative to rabbit.

I prefer to make it myself rather than use the Erayz product.

I’d just stick thin strips of it in the oven (can keep it slightly open) at approx 70-80C for a few hours.

Rubbing a bit of beef (or other animal) dripping on it will give off a nice smell without mould becoming an issue.

 

[slowworm]

Do you have much problem with stoats?

 

[Tomdhu]

Me and many others.
They predate on ground-nesting birds and small mammals.

 

[Broch]

That's their role in nature. They keep the balance.

If there wasn't plenty of prey they wouldn't be around.

 

[Pattree]

@Broch Yes indeed. Most of these prey species have survived predation since long before the arrival of the naked monkey.

One of the foresters in Delamere hated magpies because they were predators. He seemed to think he was protecting songbirds but it sounded much more like some sort of misplaced revenge

 

[Broch]

TBH I am tired of us measuring conservation success based on songbird numbers it hides the real issues; but that's just my soapbox

 

[slowworm]

Most of us do not live in a natural environment though, so I'm not going to lecture someone on pest control unless I have a good understanding of the area in question.

Here for example magpies do seem to be a huge problem. They seem to build up numbers scavenging on farms. Last year I counted over 20 in a single tree as I drove past and some days there's over a dozen where we sometimes put food out for the birds. I often see large groups working the hedges and raiding nests. I don't regard their numbers as natural.

Stoats round here on the other hand don't seem to seem to have much that would artificially increase their numbers so I'm happy to have them about. I can also see why ground nesting birds need to be protected because so much habitat for them is being lost. Old pasture is being ploughed up, silaging is being increasingly intensified so there's a huge loss of habitat.

 

[Broch]

Stoats round here on the other hand don't seem to seem to have much that would artificially increase their numbers so I'm happy to have them about. I can also see why ground nesting birds need to be protected because so much habitat for them is being lost. Old pasture is being ploughed up, silaging is being increasingly intensified so there's a huge loss of habitat.

And that's the nail and the head - habitat loss is what we need to concentrate on (click on the link below )

We don't go around shooting blue tits and flycatchers to protect our declining butterfly and moth species. We have a very distorted conservation views in this country and every time we try to intervene we cause more problems.

 

[Chris]

Seems OP probably has a problem with too many stoats and is legally allowed to trap them as pest control. I'm hesitant to start judging them for how they're handling a situation I myself am not in.

 

[Broch]

If he has a ground nesting bird predation problem in London I'd be surprised if it's stoats to be honest. If there are stoats there are prey species in suitable numbers to support the population - that's how it works.

You can use a general licence to trap stoats to conserve the following wild birds:

• game birds in situations when they’re vulnerable to stoat predation
• native species of waders
• other native ground nesting birds

But not because they eat voles, mice, rabbit ....

 

[British Red]

I bait my stoat traps with fresh rabbit but in warm/hot weather it goes off too quickly .

Does anyone have method for making dried rabbit meat? Wifey suggested it would involve salting it slightly than drying in a low temperature oven??? What about vinegar and honey?

Or what about using strips of pork rind or chicken as an alternative to rabbit.

I prefer to make it myself rather than use the Erayz product.

The answer on must suitable bait depends very much on the trap type. DOC allow different baits to A24s for example. What type of trap & containment are you employing. That should allow me more informed answer to the best bait