Whats living under your workshop?

[dedee]

Just in case anyone needs reminding of the benefits of building your workshop on a thick deep concrete base.

Due to a couple of distractions I have not been down the side of my shed (not workshop) for probably 2 years. When I did I discovered one huge pile of earth between my shed and my neighbours

I have probably removed 2/3rds of the soil from the heap which as you can see was right up to the 4th shiplap and about 5 feet across.

The soil came in handy for earthing up the potatoes but I am going to struggle to get rid of much more.

This main hole is just below one of the pads that the shed is resting on. The grass clippings have been dragged there since this morning and are, I am told, a big clue as to the occupants.

There is another larger hole at the rear of the shed

with another not so large heap of soil - this heap is growing daily.

There is also another large hole and heap of soil at the other side of the shed. My neighbour is understandably concerned that her shed may collapse into the hole, or fall onto mine.

Next door but one feeds the darn animals and has photos of them on his patio. Although I would love to see them, I am also glad they are not under my shed.

If you've not guessed by now badgers are the culprits and as they are protected it could be a long drawn out, and expensive process, to get them removed.

They have been snuffling my lawn for weeks now and made a right old mess in the greenhouse uprooting 2 young tomato plants.

If I manage to take a photo I'll post it but they seem to come out way past my bedtime.

Andy

 

[PowerTool]

Guessed it was badgers by the second photo - and yes,they normally come out after everyones bedtime :wink:

Old mate of mine wrote his car off once,when travelling home in the early hours,and hit a badger in the road.It jammed the front right wheel,causing the car to veer to the right,through a hedge,and roll down a 20 foot embankment :shock: (Mate was okay,car was a write-off!)

And if you see one,remember that they can be very vicious if cornered,and are immensely strong for their size.(My great-uncle was attacked by one once,when gardening,in full daylight - heard a noise,looked round to see a badger,which hissed and leapt at him;being a)old, and b)crafty,he used to sharpen his spade to make digging easier,so was lucky enough to have something to fight it off with)

Cute little animals ?


Andrew

 

[Shady]

No help, but the grass cuttings reminded me: one of our boy's schoolfriends is the son of a farmer here in the cotswolds: he planted an acre and a half of maize this spring... There are 10 setts on his 500 acres of land, and they stripped the entire field: cobs for food, and all the stems/stalks for bedding... He's not too fond of them right now, either...

 

[Alf]

Don't get talking to cattle farmers concerning badgers either. It's been decreed that it makes more sense to cull the livestock that get TB than the badgers that are the carriers of it. Any farmer with badgers on his land is sitting on a time bomb, if it hasn't already exploded. :roll:

Should you feel like a wallow in the good old days, tales from a friend of ours might cheer you up. Her father used to be gamekeeper on one of the estates down on The Lizard and keeping the badgers in check was one of his duties. This resulted in badger "hams" hanging from the rafters and badger skin rugs by all the beds... 8-[

Cheers, Alf

 

[RickT]

I know that badgers are protected, BUT, if by chance you had a dustbin full of water that you were to accidently spill into the set on a regular basis, I would think that the conditions would be too damp for them, and they will move on.

The above scenario is only hypothetical, But.....

 

[RogerS]

Don't get talking to cattle farmers concerning badgers either. It's been decreed that it makes more sense to cull the livestock that get TB than the badgers that are the carriers of it. Any farmer with badgers on his land is sitting on a time bomb, if it hasn't already exploded. :roll:

I thought that the scientific jury was still out on that one?

Dedee - there may well be a local badger society/group who will assist in relocation if you need it.

 

[CHJ]

,,,snip...If I manage to take a photo I'll post it but they seem to come out way past my bedtime.
Andy

It might surprise you how early they may be out, but their hearing is excellent and will retreat at the slightest sound, eyesight is pathetic though so if you can keep still and are downwind they may even walk over your feet.

No help, but the grass cuttings reminded me: one of our boy's schoolfriends is the son of a farmer here in the cotswolds: he planted an acre and a half of maize this spring... There are 10 setts on his 500 acres of land, and they stripped the entire field: cobs for food, and all the stems/stalks for bedding... He's not too fond of them right now, either...

Something wrong there, sweetcorn planted this year in the cotswolds can only be about 30cm high at the most. It is not frost tolerant at all, and it will be August/September before it is developed enough to warrant cutting for silage etc. And yes I acknowledge Badgers will harvest it as will the Deer no different to here in Bavaria where the headland rows are denuded to stumps every year.

Don't get talking to cattle farmers concerning badgers either. It's been decreed that it makes more sense to cull the livestock that get TB than the badgers that are the carriers of it. Any farmer with badgers on his land is sitting on a time bomb, if it hasn't already exploded. :roll:

It is a waste of time culling the Badgers if you do not also cull the Deer etc. which also graze the same pastures. (at least thats the case in the cotswolds)

Several beasts that showed positive for antibodies in a local herd this winter had not been out on pasture for several months. Two that were slaughtered had no sign of lung lesions etc. on autopsy so the chances are they never 'had' TB.

My comments from a previous threadhave some relevance I think in this war of words re: TB.
What the current justification is for not inoculating british cattle, and the wildlife against TB is beyond me, I belive it is just an entrenched philosophy from the days when we exported live breeding stock with a claim that it was TB free.
It is a good job that we do not apply the same logic to Humans, almost every person carries the antibodies for TB, either because they were deliberately inoculated with it or like myself must have been exposed to it enough at some time and built them up without serious symptoms. (One Youth from the farm supplying us with unpasturised milk did loose half a lung)