How TO Combat Rabbits, etc. 



323 



In case there is no rabbit-proof wire fence to be used as above de- 

 scribed, woven wire may be attached to ordinary pasture or field fence 

 posts. If there is any farmer in the community who is buying woven wire 

 to fence a field he should be induced to first loan his wire fencing to 

 the community for use in a rabbit drive. Sometimes hardware dealers 

 will rent fence wire to the farmers for this purpose, the farmers each 

 contributing to the cost of the loan while the merchant deducts the rental 

 from the sale-price of tiie wire on account of unrolling. Usage for this 

 purpose does not ordinarily damage the wire. 



Where a large number of people engage in a drive many rabbits may 



be killed without the use of wire. The people form a large circle and 



gradually close in. In this way the rabbits are huddled together in the 



center where they become confused and can be clubbed easily. No guns 



should be nlloived. 



TRAPPING 



An effective trap can be made by using a pen similar to the one men- 

 tioned for the drive, but smaller ( 10 x 14 ft.) and with a "goose-neck" 

 entrance, as shown in the following figure: 



Fig. 4. — Pen trap with gooseneck entrance. 



The opening at A should be about 3 ft. wide and the end of the en- 

 trance alley B should be narrowed down to 8 inches. The rabbits enter 

 this trap and are unable to find their way out, unless they be left in the pen 

 for several days. These traps may be made along garden fences, in which 

 case C orD may be the corner of the fence. Attractive bait such as alfalfa, 

 corn, sweet potatoes, etc., should be placed in the runway and inside the 

 pen. This form of trap is more effective for jackrabbits, but will also often 

 catch cottontails. 



For cottontails the following is a very effective trap: Nail 4 pieces 

 of 1 X 12 inch boards, 2 ft. long, together to form a box without end 

 pieces. A goods box may be used for this. Set the box in the ground 

 directly under the woven wire fence, so that the bottom wire of the fence 

 is 4 or 5 inches above the top of the box. Have a trap door on the top of 

 the box as illustrated (Fig 5). The rest of the fence should have the 



