Solway Feeders - Help & Product Guides

HPPA

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:52:40 GMT

File: HPPA Safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Kilcox

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:48:05 GMT

File: Kilcox safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Kilcox Extra

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:46:52 GMT

File: Kilcox extra safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Mamba

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:45:54 GMT

File: Mamba safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Ratimor

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:44:42 GMT

File: ratimor safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Staldren

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:42:58 GMT

File: Staldren safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Staldren (Directions for use)

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:40:58 GMT

File: Staldren directions sheet for Solway Feeders

Superkill msds

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:36:12 GMT

File: Superkill msds safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

Virkon S

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:34:05 GMT

File: Virkon S in safety data sheets for Solway Feeders

A Guide to Crow Identification

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:51:02 GMT

Raven – huge crow with glossy blue/black plumage and a large, powerful beak. Voice is a wide variety of croaks and clocking sounds. N.B. Ravens are protected by law.

Carrion Crow – familiar crow with a whiskered top beak. Voice is a classic, far reaching “caaw”. In the highlands of Scotland, carrion crows have a grey body with black wings and head. These birds are known as “hooded crows”, but they are the same species as carrion crows.

Rook – large, foolish looking crow with blue/black plumage, shaggy trousers and a bald grey face. Strongly gregarious, these birds nest in noisy colonies at the very tops of trees. Voice is much the same as the carrion crow, but lazier and often interspersed with shrill mumbling.

Jackdaw – small black crow with a grey head and blue eyes. These crows are so gregarious that it is rare to find one alone. Voice is a series of argumentative “chacks”.

Magpie – distinctive black and white crow with a long tail and striped wings in flight. Often in pairs during the spring, magpies search hedgerows and woodland for the nests of songbirds. Voice is a harsh chattering, like the sound of a matchbox being shaken quickly from side to side.

Jay – Beautiful crow with pink body, speckled crest and prominent blue wing bars. Jays are secretive birds and are easiest to find in oak woodland in October or November. Voice is a harsh, rasping screech. N.B. It is illegal in Scotland to use a jay as a decoy in a Larsen trap

if you need help or advice with trapping crows, please feel free to contact us on 01557 500 253

Opening the AF Bait Box

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:11:22 GMT

For security reasons, the AF Tunnel Bait Box can only be opened with a key. This is to reduce the risk of pets, children and non target species from coming into contact with poisons and baits. Keys are supplied with all orders, but there is a certain technique required to use them reliably.

The key is used to pull two plastic tabs back simultaneously which releases the moulded hooks responsible for keeping the box closed (See Fig. 1)

Using the twin pronged key, feel inside the locking mechanism for the moveable plastic tabs (See Fig. 2)

Once you have found the tabs, hook the prongs over them and lever them downwards and towards you by raising the key upwards (See Fig. 3) This may take a few attempts, but when you have done the job correctly, you will hear a hollow click and the box will swing open.

Candling Eggs at 4 days

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 14:49:11 GMT

After the incubator has been running for a few days, it's possible to scan the eggs with a bright light to see inside the shells. This will give you a good idea of whether or not an egg is progressing according to plan, and it will also allow you to follow the process of embryo development at first hand.

Traditionally, a candle was used to scan eggs, and the process became known as candling. Obviously, complications could arise when eggs were held up to hot candles, so thanks to recent developments in technology, brighter and cooler light sources are available which do not carry the risk of harming the development of the embryos. By shining a High Intensity LED Candling Torch through the shell, you can often make out signs of progress as and when they take place.

After four days, a living embryo will reveal a complicated system of blood vessels which appear to be growing around a dark blob of matter, as shown in diagram 1. This blob is the embryo itself, and the network of blood vessels will develop as the days go by. A conspicuous air space at the the fat end of the egg will also be clearly visible, and this space will expand as the process continues.

Any problems early in the incubation process could well kill the vulnerable embryo, and this will become clear during candling. Early death is often recognised by the presence of a narrow smear of blood inside the egg shell, which will develop in time into an unbroken loop of rotten blood, as shown in diagram 2. The loop may swill back and forth as you move the egg, and this is a fairly certain sign that the embryo is dead.

It may be that the egg is infertile, in which case you will see no sign of development whatsoever. If you see no progress, don't despair. Put the egg back into the incubator and scan it again in a few days. All embryos develop differently, and it could be that a second scan will reveal obvious signs of progress.

Incubators are used to develop the eggs of a wide variety of different bird species, and all eggs are different. Pheasant eggs can be any colour from blue to brown, and guineafowl are renowned for having very thick eggshells. A number of factors play a part in the candling process, and you will have different results not only between different species, but also between different individual eggs. While the High Intensity LED Candler is one of the brightest torches on the market, don't be disappointed if you can't get clear results every time.

If you are unsure as to the results of any scan, always put the egg back into the incubator and leave it for a few days. Scanning eggs with a candler is fascinating and it helps you to learn more about eggs, chicks and birds. However, don't be tempted to scan them too often, because an unnecessary amount of tampering could harm the development of the embryos.

We have recently produced a video which we hope will help you candle your eggs after four days in the incubator. It can be found by clicking Here.

An Introduction to Game Attractants

Wed, 08 Jun 2011 12:02:00 GMT

One of the most frustrating problems for gamekeepers is being forced every year to watch as pheasants which have been painstakingly reared into poults wander away from their rearing woods and into the cover of neighbouring ground. In an area where there are a number of shoots in operation, you will usually gain as many birds as you lose from your neighbours, but a shoot in isolation will suffer a depressing drain of birds throughout the shooting season.

A good gamekeeper has a number of different methods to keep his birds on his patch, but one of the most effective methods is to treat the pheasant food with a pungent herb or spice. Attractants have been used by generations of gamekeepers, and at one time, every man had his own jealously guarded recipe for success.

A key ingredient for these formulas was aniseed, and modern techniques have capitalised on extracting anethole, the smelly compound contained in aniseed so that it can be used commercially.

Pheasants have a well established affection for aniseed, and you can use this to your advantage by mixing an oily solution of aniseed in with wheat, barley or pellets. Some of the strongest and most pungent aniseed oil can be found in liquid Concentrate Form, which can either be poured directly onto wheat or pheasant feed or wiped around the inside of a feed bin before grain is added. You can also spray this solution onto feed using a Finger Pump Spray Dispenser.

Many of our aniseed products are so powerful that they can be diluted with vegetable oils without losing their rich and pungent aromas. Even a well diluted solution of aniseed oil will be enough to give pheasants an attractive treat, and a little goes a long way with some of the more concentrated brands of attractant. We supply aniseed oils prediluted in 5 Litre Tubs, but mixing your own solution is easy and cost effective.

As a variation on a theme, some attractants are supplied in powder form, with a complex and secret list of ingredients. Gamekeep Bird Puller Powder is easily stirred in to feed or grain to provide an alluring scent, and this product is proving to be more and more popular amongst customers every year.

By spraying attractants onto feed or mixing it with powders, you will see a visible increase in interest amongst your birds, and even pheasants which have wandered over from your neighbours’ land will want to stay in your woods around your feeders.

An Update on Legal Snaring in Scotland (including the contents of the WANE Act 2011)

Thu, 19 May 2011 16:11:22 GMT

Recent changes to the law in Scotland will make a big difference to snaring, and this article hopes to keep readers up to date with current legislation.

It is important to remember that, at the time of writing, the Wildlife and Natural Environment Act (WANE) 2011 is still up for discussion, and while everything that will follow in this post is currently law in Scotland, some of the finer points will be tweaked and altered as this year goes on. Updates will be posted on the Solway Feeders website as soon as they are released.

It is now adviseable that everyone using and setting snares in Scotland should have taken the GWCT or SGA course on fox and rabbit snaring. The course takes half a day and is followed by a simple exam and practical assessment.

After successfully completing the tests, the organiser of the course will send you a certificate by post which you can then use to apply to your local Police Wildlife Crime Officer for a unique reference number.

All fox and rabbit snares will have to include a small metal tag which features this I.D number, as well as the name of the species that the snare is set to catch. Legislation has not yet been passed on the precise details and specifications of this tag, so until it becomes law (at some point in the next few months), this part of the new Act can be ignored.

A record must be kept of all snares, and detailed notes must be kept of their precise location. If you find that your snares have been damaged or tampered with, do not be afraid to contact your local Wildlife Crime Officer. Interfering with legal pest control is an offence, and keeping in touch with the police may prove to be a real advantage in the long run.

In order to reduce the accidental capture of non-target species, current "best practice" guidelines insist that snares should be set between seven and ten inches off the ground, and that they should serve only to hold a fox or rabbit in place until it can be humanely dispatched.

Self-locking snares, kill posts and snares which are set in a location which could result in the hanging or drowning of the target animal are totally banned.

Snares should be checked not once a day, but at least once in every twenty four hours, and all captured target animals should be dispatched immediately. Non-target species can be released by using wire clippers.

Snares must be anchored either to the ground or to an immovable object such as a robust tree root, and a stop must be fitted to prevent the loop from closing fully. The specifications for stops are set at 9" from the eye for foxes and 5" for rabbits.

A detailed description of snaring law is delivered on the snaring accreditation course, and there are opportunities to discuss certain cases and situations with experts.

Owing to the change in the law, many people will be reluctant to continue snaring, but Solway Feeders aims to work with experienced professionals to design new snares and ways of using them which are not only legal, but which are more humane than ever.

As a final point, it is worth noticing that one of the main reasons why snares are at such risk of being banned outright is because of the weight of letters sent to MSPs demanding that snares be outlawed.

It does not take long to write a letter to your own MSP, explaining how snares can be a real asset to the countryside, promoting national biodiversity through vermin control. If a significant number of people write to the MSP in defence of snares, the situation will be greatly improved next time the question of snare legality is raised.

Please visit again soon for more information, and in the meantime, look into when the next snaring course is being run near you.

An Introduction to Automatic Feeders

Thu, 19 May 2011 14:48:14 GMT

Some of the first products ever sold by Solway Feeders were Automatic Feeders, which we tried and tested almost twenty years ago.

Our automatic feeders were originally designed to give keepers a great deal more control over their birds, allowing them to harness the pheasant’s itchy feet for the good of the shoot.

Since the beginning of driven shooting, gamekeepers have been forced to come up with ways of controlling their birds, maintaining the tricky balance involved in keeping pheasants on their property, but not feeding them so much that they become lazy.

It is far better to train your birds to move back and forth from their cover to their rearing pens independently, so that when you come to drive them on a shoot day, they know where to go and they are fit enough to present a testing target for the guns.

This is where automatic feeders come in. After looking after his poults through the summer, the keeper will want to limit his contact with his birds as the shooting season approaches, since he doesn’t want them to be too tame when the beaters arrive.

Having given his birds an introduction to an automatic feeder when they are still being fed by hand, they will begin to associate the horn with feeding time.

Feeding the birds out from their rearing wood to the drives by hand can gradually be phased out as the autumn approaches, until there comes a time when they are called out of the wood in the morning by the sound of an automatic feeder's electric horn, then called back into the rearing wood in the evening by a second automatic feeder.

You will have a good idea of whether or not your birds are receiving the correct amount of food by watching their behaviour. If they hang around the roosting pens in the morning, despite the sound of the horn, the automatic feeder in the rearing wood is being too generous. The same is true of the feeder in the drive if the birds are reluctant to return to the roost wood in the evening.

With a little care and attention, a good keeper will soon have all of his birds moving back and forth between their drives and rearing woods when the shoot day arrives.

Not only will he have birds which are reliable and well trained, but they will also be wild and wary of human presence, quickly becoming used to seeing humans only when the feeder drums need to be filled.

The concept of an automatic feeder goes far over and above bringing the simple advantage of being time saving. With careful thought and planning, a system of automatic feeders can give birds an artificial structure which will benefit them and you.

If you are already using traditional feeders, it does not take much to adapt a feed hopper into an automatic unit. With the addition of an Accu Feed Unit, any container can be made to work as an automatic feeder.

A Guide to Bit Compatibility

Tue, 17 May 2011 15:45:07 GMT

This guide aims to help you decide which bits to use on your birds as they grow and develop. It applies mainly to pheasants, but some of the larger bits are often quite handy for chickens and other species of poultry, particularly when close confinement brings about feather pecking.

One to three weeks old: A Size Bits

One to four weeks old: A Size Bitfitter Bits

Eighteen days to seven weeks old: B Size Bitfitter Bits

Three to six weeks old: B Size Bits

Three to six weeks old: Chunky B Size Bitfitter Bits (with added flexibility)

Six weeks onward: C Size Bits

Six to twelve weeks: Maxi Bitfitter Bits

Six to eight weeks: Bio Bitfitter Bits (which fall off and biodegrade)

Adult birds: Flexi spex

A Guide to Leg Ring Compatibility

Tue, 17 May 2011 14:47:30 GMT

We sell a variety of different leg rings, and we hope that the information below will help you to decide which is most suitable for your birds. Remember to let us know which colours you would like when ordering.

For Pheasants:

Day old chicks: Flatband 5.5mm leg rings

2 weeks old: 8mm Clip leg rings

4 weeks old: 10mm Clip leg rings

Adult: 12mm Clip leg rings

Large adult: 14mm Clip leg rings or 14mm Flat band rings

For Hens and Ducks:

Day old chicks: Flatband 5.5mm leg rings

2 weeks old: 8mm Clip leg rings

4 weeks old: 10mm Clip leg rings

Poult: 12mm Clip leg rings

Small adult: 14mm Clip leg rings or 14mm Flat band leg rings

Standard adult: 16mm Clip leg rings

Large adult: 18mm Clip leg rings

For Bantams:

Day old chicks: Flatband 5.5mm leg rings

Poult: 8mm Clip leg ring

Small adult: 10mm Clip leg ring

Standard adult: 12mm Clip leg ring

Large adult: 14mm Clip leg ring or 14mm Flat band leg rings

For Partridges:

Day old chicks: Flatband 5.5mm leg rings

Poults: 8mm Clip leg ring

Adult grey: 10mm Clip leg ring

For Pigeons:

Day old chicks: Flatband 5.5mm leg rings

Adult: 8mm Clip leg ring

For Young Geese / Turkeys:

18mm Clip leg ring

An Introduction to Rat and Mouse Control

Mon, 16 May 2011 20:12:11 GMT

Rats and mice can be a longstanding problem for farmers and smallholders, destroying millions of pounds worth of animal feed, stored crops and domestic foodstuffs in Britain every year.

Around half of all farm fires are caused wires and electric cables which are chewed by rodents, and in extreme infestations, buildings can begin to subside and drainage systems can collapse.

It is important that all farmers and smallholders understand the risks presented by rats and mice, and understanding how to deal with vermin species is part and parcel of country life for many people across the nation.

Country rats spend the majority of the year in fields and hedgerows, where colonies can expand over large ranges and cause damage to ground nesting birds and wildlife.

During the summer, the damage that rats cause can be controlled where needed with a system of Spring Traps, but when the weather turns cold, these tenacious pests will look for a warm and secure place to spend the winter.

The majority of damage caused by rats and mice will take place during the winter months when they concentrate into close knit colonies, so as autumn comes in, you should begin to look at your property with a view to minimising the damage caused by these problematic invaders.

The first thing that you should consider is the general tidiness of your property. Take the time to clear up scrap metal, sacking and spilt foodstuffs which will draw rats and mice in to your area.

Rats need daily access to water, so it is a good idea to fix any dripping taps or dodgy drains well in advance. This will limit the number of places where rats can drink, making it easier to work out where they are moving.

Even the best prepared farmyard is still vulnerable, and as soon as you see any signs of rat or mouse presence, it is time to start using poisons.

Modern poisons have advanced in leaps and bounds over the past few years, and many of the leading brands of rat and mouse poison are now safer and more efficient than ever before.

Most poisons now use a second generation anti-coagulant, which prevents the blood from clotting.

Consumed in sufficient quantities, these poisons are deadly, and a well established baiting programme will quickly clear out entire colonies of rats and mice.

Poisons take a variety of different forms, and some are more suitable for use in some locations than in others.

Solway Feeders’ own brand of Mamba Whole Wheat Bait is perfect for situations in which rats and mice are already feeding on whole grain foodstuffs, and problem pests will soon switch to the poison if they find it more convenient. The poison is supplied in 100g sachets which should be left in a good number of dry locations throughout the infested area, being replaced and topped up whenever they are removed.

Cut Wheat poisons like Roban Cut Wheat is better for mice which have been feeding on wholegrain cereals, since mice will often nibble off the skins of whole wheat grains and ignore the bulk of the poison. Cut wheat poisons are available loose in containers, and they can be carefully piled into small mounds across a baiting area, or even poured directly into a hole.

Extruded poison blox are great for damp areas where cereal poisons would soon spoil and become useless, and these waxy shapes last for extended periods near water. We sell Roban Blox which contain the active ingredient difenacoum, a second generation anti-coagulant which will even kill rats and mice with an acquired immunity to older poisons such as warfarin.

Pasta Bait Trays are relatively new in Great Britain, and they are made from a mixture of wheat flour, chopped grain, soft lard and synthetic peanut flavouring which rats find very hard to ignore. In fact, rats and mice find these baits so attractive that they can be used to draw rodents away from their main food source, and the fact that they are sold in sachets makes them safe and easy to use.

You should always take care to ensure that your poisons are inaccessible to non-target species, including pets, livestock and children, and baits should either be left in a purpose build Bait Station, or placed in such a spot that nothing but rats and mice would ever be able to access them.

Many baits are dyed blue or red so that you cannot confuse them with anything edible, and most have been treated with a chemical “bittering” agent which makes them taste extremely unpleasant to humans.

The above guide should be treated only as introduction to the various different kinds of rat and mouse poison sold by Solway Feeders. Different circumstances call for different poisons, and you should always follow the printed instructions as they relate to the specific properties of each bait.

Keep a record of where you place all baits, marking where poison was taken most frequently. In time, this information will help you to identify "hot spots".

If you have any questions or would like to know more about rat poisons, why not call us or send us an email?

Using a Larsen Trap

Tue, 10 May 2011 20:27:59 GMT

Larsen traps are an efficient way of controlling crows and magpies, but every user should be aware of the various laws which apply to their operation. Legislation surrounding Larsen traps was not passed with the intention of “catching you out”, and if you follow some simple guidelines, you will be able to operate the traps efficiently, legally and humanely.

With the exception of ravens, all members of the crow family can be killed under a General Licence which allows landowners or people authorised by landowners to protect their livestock and crops, as well as to conserve vulnerable wild bird species.

Updated General Licences are issued every year for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and minute variations spring up now and again between their issue. Care of call birds falls largely under the Animal Welfare Act (2006), and although this is a commonsense piece of legislation for anyone with an interest in wildlife and animals, it may be a good idea to familiarise yourself with its contents. The whole text can be found on the HMSO website.

You do not need to apply for a General Licence, but it is a good idea to keep an eye on the current Licence for your home country, so that when changes come in, you are up to speed and do not risk getting it wrong. This guide was written in 2011, but legislation in Scotland, England and Wales changes on the 1^st of January every year, and on the 11^th September in Northern Ireland.

Solway Feeders sells a variety of different Larsen traps, and the dimensions of these cages conforms to basic guidelines to ensure that call birds and trapped birds have sufficient space to move around and make themselves comfortable. It is worth remembering that the larger the call bird’s containment area is, the more likely it is to move around and be spotted by other target birds.

It is a legal requirement that all traps should have a solid panel above the call bird compartment to provide shelter from the prevailing wind and rain, and these are built in to our traps. The importance of these panels should not be forgotten when building homemade Larsen traps.

Call birds should also be provided with a perch, which should protect their feet from irritation and discomfort.

DIY traps can be extremely effective, and we supply Springs for anyone who wants to experiment with their own designs. The GWCT have published helpful plans for the home construction of Larsen traps, and any variation in design should be at least as large as what they state to be minimum dimensions.

All call birds must have their food and water topped up at least once every twenty four hours and any birds caught in the catch compartments should be despatched quickly and humanely. Ideally, this should be done after dark, since walking or driving directly over to check your Larsen trap during the day will soon arouse suspicion amongst local birds.

Crows are astonishingly observant creatures, and you should not make the mistake of assuming that, since you cannot see them, they cannot see you. A little careful planning should mean that you can operate your traps effectively without ever approaching them during daylight.

Two different types of larsen are currently for sale on this site, the Multi Larsen, which is a side entry trap, and the Solway Larsen, which is a top entry. The two traps use different mechanisms to catch crows, and it may be that side entry traps are more effective at catching crows in open areas, where there are no trees or fences nearby. By comparison, the top-entry traps appear to work best in open woods and in areas where wild birds will approach from above.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, any member of the crow family can be used in a Larsen trap, but Scottish Larsen traps may only contain carrion crows, hooded crows or magpies. Scottish traps must also be registered with the local police constabulary and display a registration number on the outside of the trap.

When not in use, all traps must be rendered incapable of catching birds. Top entry traps should be turned upside down, and side entry traps should be stored indoors.

Aside from your legal and ethical responsibility to provide good care to your call bird, you should remember that they will work best when they are fit and healthy, and the presence of ample quantities of food and water will bring about terrific pangs of jealousy from local crows. You should also be aware that the sight of a dead or ailing call bird in a cage can be very damaging to the reputation of these important traps, and you have a responsibility to preserve their use by operating your Larsen trap responsibly.

Trapping Grey Squirrels

Tue, 10 May 2011 20:02:07 GMT

The quality and simplicity of many modern squirrel traps has made it easier than ever to control the worrying advance of the grey squirrel in Britain, but without following a few simple guidelines, even the most determined trapper will struggle to make an impact on these pests.

Perhaps the most important thing to consider when planning an attempt to catch grey squirrels is what other animal species are present in the trapping environment. Dormice, polecats and pine martens are all protected by law, and many trapping regimes are designed to protect the native red squirrel.

If you plan to trap in an area where any of these species are present, it is a good idea to use a humane cage trap. This way, you can selectively release any non target species as soon as they are caught.

Cage traps come in a variety of different shapes and sizes, and we supply a Double Entry or a Single Entry trap, both of which are made from long lasting galvanised steel mesh.

In some situations, grey squirrels will be coming into gardens where they are used to seeing shiny metal, and in these locations, little camouflage is needed.Simply position the trap in a spot that is easy to check, then bait it with bread crusts, peanuts or bird seed.

All traps need to be checked at least once a day, so plan a convenient way of checking your traps, and take some time to make them easily accessible.

In wilder and more secluded woodland, you will have to pay more attention to the appearance of your trap, and you may want to camouflage the cage with local leaves, vegetation and sticks.

Before using your trap, leave it outside for a few days so that it will lose its human smell, and once it has become "weathered", handle it with gloves.

In an environment where there are no protected species, and where red squirrels have vanished, lethal spring traps are extremely efficient.

The mechanism of a Solway Mk.6 Spring Trap has been scientifically demonstrated to kill quickly and humanely, and these traps are an affordable and efficient way of taking control of grey squirrel populations.

Lethal spring traps must be used in tunnels so that they do not pose a risk to birds, pets or humans, and a simple open ended wooden box is quick and easy to make.

Driving pegs vertically through the mouths of the tunnel will stop even the most inquisitive cat or dog from coming to any harm. As with cage traps, spring traps need to be weathered, and this can be done artificially by boiling them in a pot with tea for an hour, then allowing them to steep overnight in the brew.

The following morning, the traps will not only have lost their oily grease, but they will also have become mottled and brown, camouflaging them perfectly against the natural surroundings.

Spring traps can be set in boxes which are mounted on trees, and provided that they are well baited, they should account for grey squirrels from day one.

A more advanced trap than the standard Solway Spring is the Kania 2000, which can either be camouflaged, baited and used on the ground, or mounted in a custom built wooden box and placed in a tree.

One of the most important things to remember about trapping grey squirrels is that whether or not you use lethal spring traps or humane cage traps, all captured squirrels must be humanely despatched. When you consider the damage caused by grey squirrels to our native flora and fauna, this is without doubt the correct course of action.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981) made it illegal to release grey squirrels into the wild, and anyone caught doing so is subject to an unlimited fine. You should always plan how you would dispose of a live squirrel well in advance to reduce stress and suffering in the captured animal.