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1/27/2010

Getting Your Service Business Listed on ICWDM.org

As webmaster for the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management, I receive a number of requests from nuisance wildlife control operators to have their businesses listed. I am happy to do it. But there are a few requirements in place that must be met before a company can be listed.

First, the ICWDM has two categories of businesses, service vendors and product vendors. This blog will only address the service vendors.

If you have a wildlife control company that you would like listed, then send me your FULL contact information. That means, name, business name, mailing address with zip code, e-mail address, and phone number.

As one can see from our site, we only list name, town, state, and phone number, so you will have some privacy. We do not recommend listing toll free numbers as it may encourage harassment calls from animal rights activists.

The next step you must take is to sign up for our free newsletter. To subscribe send an e-mail message to: LISTSERV@UNL.EDU

In the Message Field (NOT Subject line) type in: SUBSCRIBE ICWDM

That is it. I will be automatically notified that you have subscribed.

Please note that the e-mail you include in your full contact information must match the e-mail listed in the sign up. Otherwise, I won't know you have signed up.

Unfortunately, most businesses get waylaid by this requirement. Perhaps they are fearful of spam. Let me assure you that the ICWDM does NOT spam. Presently our newsletter is quarterly. So at most you might get 6 e-mails a year from me.

Beside marketing our newsletter, the purpose of the listserv is to keep track of businesses. So many people enter and leave the NWCO business that I needed a way to keep track so I don't get complaints from visitors that so and so company's phone number no longer works. If the e-mail you have provided bounces, we drop your name from the website. So it is critical that if you change e-mails or don't empty your inbox on at least a quarterly basis, you will be dropped. We do not necessarily notify businesses that they have been dropped.

Sometimes, NWCOs would like to have a link to their website included in their listing. We are happy to do this for 75.00 a year. We would make your name or phone number a hyperlink to the site. Display ads begin at 150 dollars/year.

Last year our site received 1.5 million visitors. So we think listing with us will bring value to any business.

Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 10:06 AM by CCEWEB\vantassel | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

1/20/2010

Plaigairism of ICWDM Material

Sadly, the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management has been discovering that its material is being used by other sites without permission.

While the using of our information without permission is bad enough, it is very disturbing to find our information used without acknowledgement. In other words, sites will take our information, sometimes edit out what they don't want the public to know, and then remove any reference that it came from the ICWDM or its principals.

This kind of abuse of our intellectual property is ironic given our willingness to license sites to use our material. A number of companies have licensed our material at rates that saved them hundreds of dollars in copywriting fees. Companies like Critter Control, Wildlife Control Supplies and others have purchased rights to use our material.

We would like to ask the public to help us identify sites that have inappropriately used our material. Here are some clues that a site has not received permission to use our material.

1. Images and text sound familiar to articles in the Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage and Nebraska Wildlife NebGuides.

2. Acknowledgement of the material's source and authorship is missing.

If you think someone has used our material without permssion, please let us know. We would appreciate it. You can contact us at svantassel2@unl.edu

Thank you.

Stephen M. Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 10:38 AM by CCEWEB\vantassel | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

1/12/2010

Rising Bird Strikes the Cost of Environmental Improvement

Recent news reports have noted the increase in bird strikes to aircrafts. (For details visit http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28679145/ and for the statistics visit http://wildlife.pr.erau.edu/BASH90-08.pdf )

Everyone is familiar with the Miracle on the Hudson where US Airways Flight 1549 on January 15, 2009 out of LaGuardia lost both engines to Canada geese forcing an emergency landing on the Hudson River. Unfortunately, similiar but thankfully less devastating strikes have been increasing since 1990.

The reasons are simple. First, improved conservation of wetlands have permitted waterfowl and the populations of other large birds to rebound. Second, planes have few engines (often only 2) and those engines are quieter making it harder for birds to "hear" the planes and avoid them. Fewer engines also raises the consequences losing one engine. Third, increased air travel (despite its recent decline due to the recession). Finally, reductions in hunting.

The point is that improvements in the environment are welcome but we should note their side effects. These side effects are why it is critical for the public to support consumptive hunting. For if populations are not adequately managed to reduce the risk of air strikes, then we will have to pay for them to be controlled or reduce our use of airtravel.

So if you have had a safe flight, thank a hunter or a wildlife damage manager because they helped.

Stephen Vantassel is project coordinator of the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management. http://icwdm.org

Posted at 2:16 PM by CCEWEB\vantassel | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

3/23/2009

Controlling Moles without Traps or Pesticides

I recently received a question asking for tips on how to control moles without traps or pesticides. I thought that others might want to know what I said. What follows is an adaptation of my comments.

By preemptively eliminating the use of traps and pesticides, you have essentially prevented any practical solution. Don't get offended. You do have other options, but you must decide if they are practical. I am just telling you now that it is highly unlikely that they will be. But here we go.

1. Flooding can kill moles.

2. Paving your grass over with asphalt.

3. Install exclusion. Which involves digging a trench around your property down at least 4 feet or below the frost line whichever is deeper. Install 1/4 inch hardware cloth and extend it up above the soil at least 6 inches (sometimes moles move on top of the ground).

You will see a lot of ads touting this or that non-chemical repellent, usually some sort of thumper. Buy one only if you like lawn ornaments. We are not aware of any solid research that supports their use. We know of wildlife control operators who trap moles in yards where these things exist. So at this time we cannot recommend them. (But we are always open to looking at research that provides evidence of their efficacy. We particularly look for peer-reviewed research).

Of course, if you change your mind, then visit Mole Control

Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 12:33 PM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

3/16/2009

New Products in the Wildlife Control Industry

Hi everyone, I have a presentation to make before a number of academics on the subject of new products in wildlife damage management. My goal is to inform the audience about the technological advances taking place in the industry that many of them won't be familiar with.

Here is what I need.

1. Names of products that you think constitute a positive step forward in effective and responsible WDC.

2. Images, manufacturers etc. stories about why the product is so valuable.

3. Don't tell me what doesn't work. I am only interested in what you think is good!! and tell me why. Brevity and clarity are appreciated. Thanks.

Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 5:28 PM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

3/11/2009

Opossums and Rabies

I recently received an e-mail from an individual who was a little upset over a comment found on our site suggesting that opossums could contract rabies. Here is a quote of what the person said,

"There has Never been a documented case of an opossum with Rabies. You should get you information correct before putting it on the Internet....Sorry to vent but your information is very misleading & will just make people scared of them."

While appreciating the person's love of opossums, I also have a fondness for them, there is a big difference between a disease being rare in species and the disease never occurring in the species. It is true rabies is rare amongst opossums but as the CDC notes, a few have tested positive for rabies. See and The U.S. Rabies Surveillance Report for 2007.

So while the risk of contracting rabies from an opossum bite is probably very low, low does not mean zero. I do not want to encourage panic. Opossums are not out to get you. If you stay away from them (most rabies exposures are due to the human approaching wildlife not wildlife approaching the human) then it will be exceedingly unlikely that you will ever have a problem with opossums at least as far as rabies is concerned.

Stephen Vantassel CWCP, ACP ICWDM

Posted at 12:51 PM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

2/27/2009

Prepare for Spring Wildlife

Although it may feel like Spring is a long way off, wildlife know that it is around the corner. For them, Spring means the raising of young and the need to establish den sites.

This means that wildlife will be interested in your home or property. What could be better? Your home is warm, dry, and has insulation for nesting already made available. Furthermore, it doesn't sway in the wind!

So the time is now for you to check out your building and repair any winter damage BEFORE wildlife take advantage of it. (Caution never secure a hole unless you are positively certain it is not being used). Securely cap chimneys, repair soffets, trim tree branches and bushes away from the house, and trench screen decks, sheds, and porches. Secure food stuffs. In short, make your home less animal friendly and you will save yourself from much pain and expense.

Further details on prevention can be found at ICWDM Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 5:49 PM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: Springtime Surprises | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

2/23/2009

ICWDM Newsletter

The ICWDM has launched a free newsletter. You can download your copy at ICWDM Newsletter We hope you enjoy it.

We also welcome ideas and submissions for future pieces. We know that a lot of research is being done on various elements of wildlife damage management and we would like to help get that information into the hands of the practitioner. Let us help you do that.

Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 11:20 AM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: New Issues in Wildlife Control | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

2/19/2009

Omaha Lawn and Garden Show

Stephen Vantassel, Project Coordinator for Wildlife Damage Management for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will be manning a booth at the Lawn and Garden Show in Omaha, Nebraska, Thursday through Sunday, beginning February 19, 2009.

If you are struggling with a wildlife problem, Stephen will be there to provide the information you need to responsibly handle your wildlife issue. There will be a variety of NebGuides available to provide written instructions on managing a variety of common wildlife complaints. Stephen helped write most of them.

Additionally, Stephen will provide visitors a demonstration on how to use mole traps for the control of moles that damage your lawn.

Stephen will be located alongside Douglas-Sarpy County Extension booth. He hopes you will stop by and say hello.

Stephen Vantassel, CWCP, ACP

Posted at 11:51 AM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: Outreach | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (1)

2/9/2009

15th Wildlife Control Technology Seminar

I recently spoke at the 15th Wildlife Control Technology Seminar in Indianapolis, IN. This event is perhaps the oldest continuous running educational opportunity for wildlife control operators to learn more about becoming better WCOs.

It was great. I was impressed with the wide variety of information available. Let me fill you in on what I considered to be a few of the highlights. But first, I wanted to explain how I decide whether a conference is "worth it." My grading system is quite simple. If I have learned one thing that in the course of a year would pay for the total cost of the conference than I consider the conference a success. You may think that such a standard is pretty low. In one sense it is, but you must understand that given the number of conferences I have been too, it gets increasingly more difficult to hear or learn something that is truly new. You must also remember that the standard is an economic one. The new piece of information must allow me to pay for the entire conference costs, which is usually around 1000 dollars when you factor in transportation and food.

By that standard, the conference was a smashing success because I learned at least three main tips that could definitely pay for the cost of the seminar. Let me list a few for you. First, Jason Reger's session on television advertising was easily worth a 1000 dollars. Next, Jack Ling's presentation on Canada geese was also good. While I don't think it would pay for the trip, his insight certainly helped me better understand the complexities of dealing with nuisance geese. Lastly Ron Scheller's lecture on the use of lifts in urban wildlife control was enlightening.

What is my point here? Well when WCOs say that they don't go to conferences because they won't learn anything new or it isn't worth it, I suggest that they think harder. Because frequently, the meetings are worth the time and effort.

Stephen Vantassel

Posted at 3:40 PM by CCEWEB\svantassel2 | Category: Outreach | Permalink | Email this Post | Comments (0)

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