Dead animal in pipe

[plowhog]

Two marmots took up residence behind my rear barn. That's bad news since they will burrow under foundations, etc. Plus multiply.

The other day, they ran into a 8" irrigation drain pipe with only one opening. I sealed it off and trapped them in. I occasionally see them through a metal grate at the other end, but they mostly stay somewhere inside the pipe. I would like to humanely kill them, but trying to do that is too risky that they would escape. They have been in there about 6 days now.

Once they finally die, how can I get them out of the pipe? I don't have enough water flow or pressure in that area to flush them out. A garden hose would be inadequate as they are probably 10lbs +. The pipe is about 130 feet long, so a 100ft plumber snake wont work.

Any ideas?

 

[DarkBlack]

Drown them?

 

[fatjay]

130' plumber snake?

Actually a 100' snake would work if they didn't die in the last 30'.

If the entry way is capped, filling with water should drown them assuming the grate is on the high side.

 

[JeepHead]

throw some food inside with rat poisoning in it. Better than them starving to death. use a string with plastic bag tied to it and suck it through with a vacuum then possibly use a kayak anchor to drag them out?

 

[plowhog]

throw some food inside with rat poisoning in it. Better than them starving to death. use a string with plastic bag tied to it and suck it through with a vacuum then possibly use a kayak anchor to drag them out?

Thats a good idea with the rat poison. Not sure if I can get a vacuum in a 100ft 8" pipe-- maybe a shop vac would pull enough?

 

[JeepHead]

A shop vac is what I meant. I use this method to pull wire through long conduit runs.

 

[Yander]

Put a T fitting on the end of your 8" pipe with a #160 body grip trap in each opening of the T fitting. You will get them both. Make sure you don't have critters around that would get in them. They will kill anything that sticks a head in them. You will need to use sticks to hold the trap in place.

Might even be able to get away with a #110

 

[plowhog]

They will kill anything that sticks a head in them.

My neighbor put a grip trap outside his fence and gate very near where irrigation water drains off between our two properties. I was cleaning the ditch and almost stepped on the trap ... yikes.

 

[MossRoad]

Two marmots took up residence behind my rear barn. That's bad news since they will burrow under foundations, etc. Plus multiply.

The other day, they ran into a 8" irrigation drain pipe with only one opening. I sealed it off and trapped them in. I occasionally see them through a metal grate at the other end, but they mostly stay somewhere inside the pipe. I would like to humanely kill them, but trying to do that is too risky that they would escape. They have been in there about 6 days now.

Once they finally die, how can I get them out of the pipe? I don't have enough water flow or pressure in that area to flush them out. A garden hose would be inadequate as they are probably 10lbs +. The pipe is about 130 feet long, so a 100ft plumber snake wont work.

Any ideas?

You could put a live trap at the entrance to the pipe. Box around it with cinder blocks or plywood so it's the only way out. They'll run through the trap and you'll get at least one of them. Then dispatch humanely. NO chance of killing the wrong critter and better than letting them starve to death and get stuck in the pipe. Good luck.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Why get them out? Their bodies will decompose and weigh almost nothing. When enough water builds up in the pipe, the remains will be washed out.

 

[BlueKnife]

Any ideas?

Shoot them.

 

[plowhog]

Shoot them.

I've thought of this but the only realistic shot is down through a narrow opening in a metal grate, with concrete on the bottom.

I don't think the neighbors would be an issue with gunfire, but I might be with a ricochet.

 

[2manyrocks]

If you can figure out what they like to eat, you could bait a live trap at the end of the pipe and see if you can trap and release them somewhere else.

I've had good luck with live traps from Tractor Supply, but see that Harbor Freight also has one. https://www.harborfreight.com/32-in...=747&msclkid=ff58d75dc2bb1a556239b1d9cc7e0405

 

[plowhog]

Good idea but the only pipe opening is below grade in the side of a narrow irrigation ditch. (18" wide?)

Rigging a trap to that would be difficult and I'm concerned about crazed marmots if I pull the weighted down plywood barricade out.

 

[BlueKnife]

I've thought of this but the only realistic shot is down through a narrow opening in a metal grate, with concrete on the bottom.

I don't think the neighbors would be an issue with gunfire, but I might be with a ricochet.

I'm not there to see what you mean exactly, so obviously I can't say for sure. From what you describe though, it sound like you could just stick the barrel through the grate and shoot them at close range. The bullet isn't going to ricochet if you hit them and unless the neighbors are right next to you they'll never hear it. A .22 bullet that travels a few feet or inches and then enters a soft body makes less noise than a hammer hitting a block of wood.

 

[fishheadbob]

But if you kill them in the pipe you have to get the bodies out. The possibility of some maggot gagging mess looms very large. Find out what they love to eat, use that to get them out, and then send them off to their eternal reward.

 

[WinterDeere]

Once they finally die, how can I get them out of the pipe?

A little hairspray and a grill ignighter. World’s coolest spud gun!

 

[bigtiller]

Call roto-ruter, that's their name and away goes trouble down the drain.

them or some like them can walk a high pressure walking nozzle down the drain and flush them out.

it is done around here in field drainage tile plugged with corn stover.

 

[DarkBlack]

I still don’t get why you can’t just drown them. Plug up the far end and fill it with water. They’ll run or float out the close end. Unless there’s something to the actual situation I haven’t envisioned

 

[Fixastuff]

A .22 bullet that travels a few feet or inches and then enters a soft body makes less noise than a hammer hitting a block of wood.

Not in my experience, maybe if using subsonic rounds.