4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Hi All,

 

I always like to pass on good thoughts & recommendations about people, and I am a great believer in "word of mouth" advertising (it works so well on here!!), so here goes;

 

On Friday I took all of your advice and tried to order a Flitrap to go near my chook run, in the hopeful anticipation of some hot weather & the expected arrival of flies in the run with the chooks. We didn't have a problem in first few days of having them, as the eglu & standard run was easy enough to move around daily, however since DH has extended it x2 with a piece of weld mesh he bought and bent himself, I can't move it all on my lonesome, so they are staying in one place for several days before they are moved. ( the flies seemed to arrive today for the record & much of the day was spent watching the girls running at the odd pile of poo with a fly or six on, trying very hard to catch their next snack, usually with no success, but it was funny to watch!!!)

 

Back on the subject of Flitraps, unfortunately, I couldn't use my Switch/Maestro card to pay on the website (http://www.flitrap.com/default.asp), so I sent a message thru the given site, enquiring why etc. On Saturday morning, I got a phone call (which DH took and forgot to pass on!!!) from Andy to say he had put 2 Flitraps in the post & could I ring him back with my card number when I had 5 minutes so he could put the charge thru manually! I duly did this today, once DH had told me..... and I picked up the email Andy had followed his call up with, oops!!

 

Where, in this day and age, do you get anyone who is willing to send out a parcel, to a totally unknown customer ON TRUST?! Andy, thank you so much for restoring my faith in human nature! I look forward to getting my Flitraps up & running when they arrive in the post!!

 

Sha x

 

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[alexgirl73]

What are these and where can I get one from?

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Hi Alexgirl,

 

They are a container in which you put the protein "bait" to attract the flies, which you can hang up in a tree etc, a bit like a wasp catcher. Have a look at the website (link is in original message)

 

Judging by the comments I've read on here over the past few weeks, people are really impressed with the results. I have yet to try them obviously, but am very impressed with the customer service - a rare commodity these days!

 

Sha x

[Mutrix Farmers]

We've had a bit of an issue with flies this last couple of days, and I remembered someone mentioned Flitraps before. Thanks for the receommendation Wild Mum!!

[bokbokbok]

Mine arrived today - super service for sure!

[Cyber Chook]

Like you, I bought some after reading the recommendations here. They seem to work well but boy! do they stink!!

 

Caroline

[Chook n Boo Mum]

I suppose you have to weigh everything up:

irritating, infecting flying things vs a stink which I assume takes a week or two to develop & which goes when the container is emptied and the bait replaced?

 

Hope it won't be a problem as our chooks are near trees where I'll hang the Flitrap, away from the house.

 

Sha x

[Duckmomma]

The Customer service from the fli trap people is brilliant, I hope they can manage to maintain it.

As for the traps themselves, it does take a little while to get going but once it does you will be amazed at how quickly it starts to fill up

The thought of that many flies visiting my garden and producing more flies really made me stop and think.

Just by putting out Two Fli traps in my garden I must have prevented the creation of millions more flies.

As for the smell I have found you have to be pretty close to it to smell it.

I am told it's pretty awfull when it comes to emptying it tho, some people just throw it away and put a fresh one out.

[Bondinho]

The smell is definitely only noticeable when you are right next to it as my garden isn't huge and the trap is right next the chooks run and I can't smell a thing. And mine is rammed already after 4 weeks so I would have thought a smell would have shown itself by now.

 

I'm dreading emptying it though, perhaps I'll let my girlfriend do that as a special treat!

[Totty]

Today I came home from work to find my garden and the chicken run

filled with hundreds of flies. It was truly disgusting and a bit upsetting for my young daughters.

 

I have been faifthfully every morning spraying a solution of Citronella, lavendar and Eucolyptus but it would seem to no avail. Even when I get home I wash the run down and re-spray again (chickens are then free ranging in the garden)

 

I came onto the website to post about the severe problem and found this link. It would seem to be the answer to my problem but my husband is so fed up with me spending money on the chickens as there is always something else that I say they need.

 

Can someone tell me if the trap can attach to the run..

 

Thanks

Does it really really work??. Cos I need to sell the idea to my hubby!

He likes the chickens but not that much and is seriously fed up with flies

and chicken poo around the garden.

[chickenlass]

Great service is so rare these days isn't it?

I shall send for one or two of these now after reading this.

[Duckmomma]

You can hang them or leave them freestanding

I think hanging them up is prob the best Idea cos you definatly don't want one to get knocked over and spill everywhere

And I think Egluntine had one carried away by a fox , so they are better hung up out of the way

I just banged a nail in the fence post and hung it on that.

 

They do take a little while to get going, I thought I had wasted my money for the first week to ten days, then the fun started, It must be good in there cos they are queing up to get in

 

It's just a thought

But I am wondering if you are making things worse by being too clean

If you are maybe hosing it down every day? damp warm weather seems to bring out all the flies, so you could be creating the humid conditions flies seem to love.

[Cyber Chook]

Can someone tell me if the trap can attach to the run..

 

Does it really really work??

 

Hi Totty

Yes, I think it does work. I have two, one near the house and one near the Cube at the bottom of the garden. It's strange that other people don't find the smell a problem - I used to work on a farm, and am an ex-veterinary nurse and human nurse, so I think I've got quite a strong tolerance for a wide and interesting variety of smells! But I do find that the Flitraps smell terrible!! I think you probably just have to be more careful than I was where you place it - maybe there's a prevailing wind that brings the smell to the house.

 

And you can tie the handles together and fix the Flitrap just about anywhere, Totty.

 

All in all I would recommend them and will carry on buying them.

 

Caroline

[Bondinho]

They do definitely work, but you do obviously still get some flies if your girls free range and poo all over the garden.

 

I still have to poo pick or flick into the flower beds at least once a day to get rid of some of the flies. However the Flitrap has actually made it so I can go in the garden and eat without constantly swatting at flies so well worth the money in my opinion.

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Hi Totty,

I think they are very reasonably priced personally, and as a "bargaining tool"/guilt trip (!) for your hubby, can you really put a price on the health & hygiene of your chooks - and failing that tack, your small daughter?! Flies are definitely one of God's little jokes I think, I know they do a job, but they really are revolting!

I ordered two, with however many bait packs that comes with, and P&P for £18.50. The bait packs are available separately too. Andy said that he puts a special offer note in with the order so you save money on your next order, or pass on to a friend to benefit from.

Good luck!

Sha x

[chickenlass]

I did order two yesterday ...how close will I need to place them mear the chicken hous though for them to help with the flies there?

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Mine have arrived!

 

And yes the bait is a bit pongy, smells a bit like cat or fish food actually. I've put it up about 3 feet from the door end of the run where their food is served, up in a tree, where it hopefully won't get knocked by DH's head as he wanders over to converse with the chooks!

 

Maybe there were already flies buzzing around the tree before I put it up & I didn't notice, but I've just been out to replace the chooks dust bath with a cat litter tray of sand/soil (Snowdrop almost leapt in before I'd put it on the floor!), and saw a few bugs already in the vicinity of the Flitrap. I hope this is actually because of the trap, not just me being u"Ooops, word censored!"servant earlier!

 

Don't notice the smell outside, although we do live in a bit of a windtunnel, so maybe it just gets blown away.

 

It's amazing what we get excited about these days isn't it; bug catching equipment, poo, cat litter trays of dirt....does this mean I'm growing up?!!

 

Sha x

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Oh the joys of greedy labradors!

I left the spare bags of bait on the draining board when I rushed out to pick up the children, I'd put them right to the back thinking they'd be safe - how wrong was I?

Very as it turns out, DH phoned me to ask what had been in "zipper bags"? Fly bait, phone Andy for advice. He thought they might get a bit thirstier than normal, but should be fine!

I thought that 4 packs between 2 dogs was possibly too much even for labro-bellies (Daisy was locked in her cage, so probably as miffed as hell that she wasn't sharing in the spoils!), but we've had no ill effects - yet! My house does stink of the fish heads & bones that the bait contains but no lasting damage, thank goodness!

There are several bodies in each Flitrap though, so they are working already - success!!!!

[Egluntyne]

At the risk of repeating myself...I am convinced that they attract foxes, so I'm not surprised to hear that your dog found them irresistible.

 

I hope he's OK.

[Chook n Boo Mum]

She's fine, might have a bit of a runny tum tomorrow though I'd have thought!

 

She's a bit of a s*d for whipping things off the top, so I should have know better, but having got myself in a bit of a tizz before I left on the school run (Snowdrop had been in the new, deeper dust bath for anything up to 2 hours, with her eyes "glazed" & in a very strange position. She must have been in ecstasy, rather than in trouble, in her new bath as she sorted herself out in order to munch on her new favourite snack of sweetcorn throwing the most enormous cloud of dust up in the air as I approached the run!) I just shoved the pack to the back of the drainer instead of boxing it up & putting it in the shed!

One day I will learn from my mistakes!!

 

Sha x

[Cyber Chook]

Sha, I do hope (mostly for your sake) that your dogs won't have too many problems at the other end of the digestive process, but I laughed out loud at the image of your greedy labs tucking in to that revolting stuff.

 

They really are the greediest dustbins on four legs

 

Caroline

[Mutrix Farmers]

I am told it's pretty awfull when it comes to emptying it tho, some people just throw it away and put a fresh one out.

 

Mine is hopefully arriving on Friday when OH goes back to work to pick it up (no-one at home during the day). He asked me how do you empty them and I had to confess I didn't know!! Not very environmentally friendly to throw it away!

[Tottya]

I need to empty one of my Fly traps anyone any ideas where I can dispose of it please???? Down the loo??? Ewwwww

[Egg Lou]

I need to empty one of my Fly traps anyone any ideas where I can dispose of it please???? Down the loo??? Ewwwww

 

Me too.. been putting it off for last few days! Father did his at weekend and lifted up manhole cover on outside drain.. ran hose at same time as pouring it down.. he said it wasn;t too bad this way.

 

I haven't got a drain like this so no idea how to do either..bin..loo.. mixing with hempcore to soak up?? all sound yuk

[Chook n Boo Mum]

I have to admit I hadn't really thought about it, although DH did instantly say "down the loo!"

 

I'd have thought if you went this route , flushing as you empty & rapidly follow up with a bucket of disinfectant or bleachy water, the smell shouldn't hang around too long - but don't quote me on this for heaven's sake!!

 

I think Andy suggested dumping it on the compost, although I'd have thought the local rat population would have a field day with that, maybe a green cone would be better????

 

I seem to remember someone saying they'd buried their contents, which had been dug up by a fox? (Foxwatch/flitrap thread?)

 

Sha x