ratting with ferrets

[dpb82uk 138]

i no that rats will fight to the deaf to protect its self and its young .i don't use my 3 on rats as i think for rats the moor ferrets the better 6 or moor i wood use

[pritchy 2]

i use my 3 jills on rats and rabbits and what you find is you have to ferret rats exactly the same as rabbits quiet!! if they know your out there it takes a while for them to bolt but i enjoy the sport with the ferrets and we also have a smoker just incase they hard to budge hope this helps

[Sighthound 49]

I used to do a lot of rat ferreting on an old piece of ground where the local turkey farm used to dump carcasses.

It was great fun bolting them for the dog.

Most of the ferrets did however only last a season or sometimes less before they refused to enter to them, I also had a couple of ferrets that had abscesses caused by rat bites.

I did have one polecat jill that I used for several seasons and would always enter she seemed to have a hatred for them.

[stones 23]

I was wondering how many folks use their ferrets to bolt rats. I am into ratting and I think using a ferret would be more rewarding. Is there a specific type or will any ferret do the job. Any advice would be much appreciated, cheersd Ted

Have used ferrets on rats myself for over 25 years and would advise anyone doing so to only use small/medium sized jills (never seen a hob small enough to fit down a rat hole !) and never force your jill to ground cos if she isn't willing to take the battle to the rat and she can't retreat she'll come out ripped to bits. I only use jills after they've had a season (roughly 1 year old) and never try to force them should they quit (they'll still work rabbit and breed next years ratting ferrets ). I personally think the terrier/ferret combination when the rats are bolting well takes some beating for sheer excitement and you'll find ratting permission alot easier to come by than rabbiting permission and once the landowner/farmer sees you tackling his rat problem it can be a door opener for you with other landowners they know.Best of luck mate should you try it..........it's more sporting than packets of poison down the holes !

[rushty 1]

thaks for replies lads , I think I will use ferrets but I will def keep an eye out for them as I know rats are are formiddable opponent.Perhaps I might use them in easy places like straw and hay etc , or where I can get to them quickly if need be. Now for the question does anyone intend breeding any this year, cheers Ted

[longdog13 36]

thaks for replies lads , I think I will use ferrets but I will def keep an eye out for them as I know rats are are formiddable opponent.Perhaps I might use them in easy places like straw and hay etc , or where I can get to them quickly if need be. Now for the question does anyone intend breeding any this year, cheers Ted

 

i'm sure you will find plenty on the pinned board when the time comes mate, i personally need to let my young stock prove themselves before i consider breeding