Another good few hours.....

[toka_shigazu]

Managed to get down the farm with Degsy and Belle today. Set off at 2.30pm and the fog was already closing in. We had done half the rounds with no luck whatsoever, but most of the cover was thin sheeting and with the temperature being so low we wondered if the rats would be tucked away in warmer holes. By the time we got to the bottom banking the light was closing in fast and the air was filling with fog, visibility was down to 75 yards or so.

 

The dogs were both keen on this mound and after the last trips success we had high hopes. Within 10 minutes Belle managed to disturb a small juvie rat, it flew out of its hole and into one a couple of feet away, before either dog realised anything moved. It seemed to be heading towards what we had found to be a metal housing of some kind buried under a load of earth and rubble. I got the smoker out and fired it up, within a few seconds some of the holes had started to smoke and suddenly a large rat exploded from a hole. It also managed to get away and into a nearby burrow. With our attention drawn to the hole it had come from, and I was only stood some 6 feet away from it, I noticed another head poking out, one eye on me and the other on its surrounds. I called both dogs over and it ducked inside. Not for long, with the smoke increasing it returned within seconds. It came out and made a run for it, Belle, ready by now, snapped it up almost as its tail exited the hole.

 

The next rat that exited gave us the run around, through the scrub and wooden boarding, over the top of the mound and away down the far side. After another 2 or 3 visits most of the cover that allows them to remain concealed, and slows the dogs will have been hacked away, it should give the dogs more of an opportunity.

 

I was on my way back to the smoker a few yards away, it was still idling smoke into the burrow and Degsy and Bell were approaching the top of the mound from the other side. I had a look round for Bilbo and as I turned back Degsy started to call Belle, she needed no other incentive, a rat had exited almost under Degsy's feet as he came over the mound. As he dealt with this one there was more movement from the hole and another rat appeared, I called Bilbo who was trying to play tug of war with Belle's catch. He must have realised and as he turned to look at me, the second rat had tried to get into a hole but its tail was protruding. Worrying that Bilbo wouldn't get to it quick enough I grabbed the tail with my gloved hand. The rat turned and bit my glove and I pulled it free from the hole. Once Bilbo realised he headed over and I threw the rat onto open ground. Bilbo had it before it had moved more than a couple of feet, he accepted a bite to the face and to all intense and purpose appeared unconcerned. I was expecting a shake and a lot of aggression, but when I looked again he appeared to chop down on the rat and its head flopped over. No shaking or messing, and not too bad a bite. I think he has started to realise he can kill quickly with little fuss using his jaw strength alone. He was carrying rat around, keeping one eye open for any other rodents.

 

We went back to the smoker but no more appeared there. The dogs were marking the odd hole but not with any great gusto. I think there must be a large central chamber under this mound, with a lot of exit holes all along the bank. Bilbo disappeared for a second towards the front of the turkey shed. He reappeared within seconds coming through the wooden slats chasing a smaller rat. As he slowed to get through the rat got under the shed and to safety. He must have found that rat in the front of the shed somewhere.

 

We checked around the duck pens and in a nearby feeder shed, although there was plenty of interest around the shed no rats exited. As Bilbo continued down the line of sheds, he stopped rigid with his nose in a 8 foot length of alkathene pipe. I blocked the other end with my spade until I could pick it up and shake it. A couple of javelins into the ground and the large rat inside shot out. It got less than a foot before both Belle and Bilbo had it in a death grip. As they were dealing with this one a large slow old rat exited the shed we had just passed and headed down the side. By the time both dogs got onto its trail it had vanished.

 

This left us near to the collapsed shed and both dogs showed an interest in the first grounded panel we came to, or rather what was underneath this panel. We lifted it at one end and the dogs shot under, another big rat ran along the bottom end of it and managed to get under the next panel before the avalanche of terrier could descend on it. It was not so lucky the second time, as we lifted this next panel, both dogs had taken up a place at either end, the rat headed out towards Bilbo who grabbed it quickly but calmly and headed away from us and Belle. Again, this one appeared to lock onto his cheek but he squeezed his jaws and then let the rat go onto an old roof panel where it landed dead.

 

We had a look through some of the sheds on the way back to the car, both dogs found a nest of baby rats in the first we came to, this seemed to confuse Belle a bit but following Bilbo's lead she soon accounted for two of them.