is there a weasel in my loft?

[triplemoondaisy]

hi....

i just moved into an old farmhouse in ireland. for the past few nights we've heard noises in the loft like scratching and thumping.....then we heard a sort of mewing.....of several young. We first thought it was rats, but were not sure if young rats made any noise...so, we ventured into the loft...its cramped up there and not used. I noticed rat droppings, and some larger droppings that were definatly fresh....i have 3 ferrets of my own and the droppings are very alike. over in the corner i found 2 young. Not rats. They are covered in light grey fur, are about 3 - 4 inches long, blind, ears on the side of the head (like a ferret) and a short tail about the length of my little finger. I did not touch them or stay long incase i scared the mother away. At night the noises in the loft are loud, and i know the mother has moved the young a few times because i found a few obvious nests that are empty.
What do i do??? I think they are mink, or weasels......ive googled images and am still unsure what they are. it is sunday here and the ispca are closed. Im worried the mother will abandon them now.....or that they will hurt my chickens when they grow up. I sound so silly i know, but my parents chickens were killed by mink. Im an animal lover and hate the thought of destroying any life.....I was just wondering if i should leave them be and let nature run its course, i dont know...i am so confused. im worried if i go up there to take pictures i would scare the mother away.....please help....thanks xxx

[paulthomas]

Originally Posted by triplemoondaisy

hi....

i just moved into an old farmhouse in ireland. for the past few nights we've heard noises in the loft like scratching and thumping.....then we heard a sort of mewing.....of several young. We first thought it was rats, but were not sure if young rats made any noise...so, we ventured into the loft...its cramped up there and not used. I noticed rat droppings, and some larger droppings that were definatly fresh....i have 3 ferrets of my own and the droppings are very alike. over in the corner i found 2 young. Not rats. They are covered in light grey fur, are about 3 - 4 inches long, blind, ears on the side of the head (like a ferret) and a short tail about the length of my little finger. I did not touch them or stay long incase i scared the mother away. At night the noises in the loft are loud, and i know the mother has moved the young a few times because i found a few obvious nests that are empty.
What do i do??? I think they are mink, or weasels......ive googled images and am still unsure what they are. it is sunday here and the ispca are closed. Im worried the mother will abandon them now.....or that they will hurt my chickens when they grow up. I sound so silly i know, but my parents chickens were killed by mink. Im an animal lover and hate the thought of destroying any life.....I was just wondering if i should leave them be and let nature run its course, i dont know...i am so confused. im worried if i go up there to take pictures i would scare the mother away.....please help....thanks xxx

Pine Marten is a possibility. They have been known to nest in lofts.

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by paulthomas

Pine Marten is a possibility. They have been known to nest in lofts.

Pity like _many_ people (you know who you are!) on this site, that 'triplemoondaisy' doesn't state their location - it would be so much help. For all we know they could live in the Scottish Highlands or Central London! It would make a difference.

Jim

[triplemoondaisy]

hi...thanks for reply.....pine martin? are they the large orangy brown guys? they have a yellow chest i think? andre quite big.....erm.....what would be my plan of action?
Sorry Jim, i live in southern ireland, near cavan, almost in the middle of ireland.....i know this is a uk site, but thought i would give it a shot... thank you x

[thunder]

Originally Posted by Jim Ford

Pity like _many_ people (you know who you are!) on this site, that 'triplemoondaisy' doesn't state their location - it would be so much help. For all we know they could live in the Scottish Highlands or Central London! It would make a difference.

Jim

Jim, did you get up late after a hard night? Triplemoondaisy quite clearly states the location as Ireland in the first post!

I think they are either Stoats (Mustela erminea) or Pine Martens (Martes martes), as Mink are very unlikely to nest in a loft. Just to clarify, the Weasel (Mustela nivalis) does not occur in Ireland, though most Irish people call Stoats "Weasels", for complicated linguistic reasons.

Both Stoats and Pine Martens give birth in March/April. From the size my guess would be Pine Martens.

henrya

[triplemoondaisy]

Thanks henrya......i do think they are pine martens.....the size of the kits, the stocky build and the length of the legs fit....i just googled images and i do think thats what we have.....any suggestions? I think i shall call out the ispca tomorow maybe......

[thunder]

It's hard to say whether the Martens will cause any problems. They do eat quite a high proportion of birds, but they also eat small mammals, beetles, fruit and nuts. Some develop a partiality for jam sandwiches (fed to them by people). Perhaps your neighbours can tell you if they have problems with chickens being taken, though as the Pine Marten is mainly nocturnal, if the chickens are securely shut up at night, any problems should be minimal. Both Stoat and Pine Marten are protected in Ireland under the Wildlife Acts of 1976 and 2000 (unless I have missed an amendment), so the ISPCA may not be able to offer much help, but by all means contact them. Martens will move their young if disturbed.

henrya

[stigofthedump]

Any body know of the legal status of Pine Martens in Ireland? Might be best if you did get in touch with the ISPCA in the first instance.


Vince

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by thunder

Jim, did you get up late after a hard night? Triplemoondaisy quite clearly states the location as Ireland in the first post!

Yeah - you're right! I will say in my defence that I generally expect the poster's location in the heading. Also Ireland was spelt with a small 'i' so it didn't jump out! Still, my apologies.

My general gripe still stands - lots of 'wabbers' give no clue as to their location. It makes a difference if a poster thought they saw a Lulworth Skipper and they live in Caithness, rather than Dorset!

Jim

[dampflippers]

I just wrote a long reply and it disappeared!

When this lot of kits have left, you could consider putting in a little security camera ready for next year so you can watch them on TV. If this is allowed with their protected status.