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A wombat has found its way inside the house yard and dug its burrow under the 15000 litre fiberglass water tank. I can see where it has lifted the rabbit wire in the fence and where it goes in and out at night time. I don't want to hurt it but I fear for the tank which sits on the ground.
I'm looking for a design which will trip some sort of gate when he goes out which will prevent him coming home. Or maybe a scent which will send him packing.
Any thoughts?
mick
You can't relocate Wombats they are territorial and will be most likely attacked and killed by other Wombats as you suggest built a one way door which will allow him/her to leave and not gain re entry, you may have to bury some mesh around the location they are very determined and will attempt to dig under the door.
Have you thought about an electric fence, it'll need to be wire not tape. Probably need two wires (inside wire, outside wire), they've been known to get a bit grumpy and charge the source of shock. Which means that it needs to be resilient. Best to keep it above echidna height, they're curious little creatures, they'll want to have a sniff. Zapp, dead echidna.
Short of turning the wombat into road kill, I suspect your best approach is to encourage the blighter to burrow somewhere else.
if you flood his burrow with water, he, or she, is likely to relocate somewhere else within the home paddock. Mixing a small amount of cement into the water should slow down the transpiration rate enough to keep the burrow flooded for a few days.
I ended up completely digging the warren out and backfilling it and placing logs, rocks, mesh etc where the entrance was and it came back but gave up.
I’ve yet to try it it, but I’ve been told that sprinkling lime around the entrance and under the fences discourages them, appearantly it burns their skin.
A hot wire would certainly prevent re-entry and also stop the cattle from leaning over the fence to eat shrubs. But first I have to get it out of the house yard.Quote:
Originally Posted by HUON
mick
Lots of helpful suggestions, so thanks to all. If it didn't pose any damage to the bottom of the tank, I'd leave it alone because most of the burrows on the property are only used for a year or two before they become unoccupied. The last thing I want is for the next one to go under the house.
Here's the plan. First I'll lay a metre wide strip of reo around the perimeter and peg it down. The grass will grow through it and eventually it'll disappear from view and still allow mowing. Then late one night I'll wire an old steel screen door across where the rabbit mesh has been lifted to prevent its re-entry. I'm assuming it (or they) goes out at night to feed.
There are plenty of wombats on my country so I have to imagine that there's plenty of territory available for the evicted one to stake out, and it's all marked out with skat on rocks and logs. They know the drill.
mick :)
p.s. Thanks Rick, for the link. I should have heeded my elder daughter's advice about on-line research. "Put .gov or .edu onto the end of any serious questions. That will bring filter out most of the rubbish posted on the topic."