Mole Traps
I was disgusted to find out that Caravan Club Policy is to trap and kill moles.
I saw a man setting mole traps along the external and internal perimeter hedge at the entrance to Old Hartley Club Site on Sunday 19 September 2021.
I enquired if he was setting mole traps and he said yes. I asked if that was ethical and humane. He said it was better than seeing mole hills. I said 'is it really?'. He said it was Caravan Club Policy.
As Members surely we have the right to decide whether we'd be happy seeing mole hills, or whether we'd prefer to trap and kill moles, sometimes not immediately killing them and leaving them to suffer.
I wonder why the Wardens can't just remove the erupted earth if it's deemed unsightly?
On top of this, what if a dog dug them up and got injured. Many terriers and hounds would be very interested in digging where something like a trap has been buried.
Moles are not the enemy, they aerate soil and eat pests...see link below:
I would like to see Members being given the opportunity to vote on such cruel practices and whether they feel their Club should continue with them.
In my opinion, if people think natural occurrences like mole hills are unsightly they should question why they want to go caravanning - isn't it getting out into nature, not being in pristine, bowling green like sites?
I'd be interested to hear other people's views on the subject.
Comments
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Interesting ,that is the first time in many years of using club sites and having several staff members as friends ,that catching moles has been mentioned?
maybe an email to the clubs sites department asking why may return the reason?as it will not get picked by EGH when posting on here
bywe have been on sites that have been inplaces covered in mole hills numerouse sites have signs about rabbit holes
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Well spotted & your complaint too👍🏻. Killing wildlife to make a grassed area pretty is not my idea of a company that is ethically responsible☹️.
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I doubt snares would be sanctioned due to running children becoming trapped & wounded. They are indiscriminate killers are snares-cats, dogs, any small creature really. Totally disgusting😤
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Thanks for your responses everyone - it's great to find that other people feel the same as me.
JVB66 please can you clarify where you want me to send a complaint - I'm not sure where you mean by Site Dept at EGH. I'll complain to anybody, anywhere, and hope others will too!
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I agree with you no need to kill wildlife in this way. You can see how it has happened, worried they may face a claim If someone trips, etc over a mole hill on site they have decided to remove them quickly. The wardens probably haven’t been consulted if they are prepared to flatten instead. However, having seen how quickly and how many mole hills can be made in a night this would be a busy and extra task for them.Having been told there is a problem someone at the top has taken the decision to remove the moles in this, the ‘easiest, old fashioned, most barbaric way’. Probably also the quickest and cheapest way. I’m no expert but are there not other kind effective ways of doing this.
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No, except gassing and poison which is equally horrible. Moles in excess can leave trenches and tunnels which collapse underfoot. We've got them at home, we live with them but it's not an easy problem to resolve when the general public are involved.
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The thing is, there were only visible mole hills on the grassed area outside the site, which I think may not be CAMC land, as the bin there is emptied by the local council. Please see attached photo...not great, but it may help you see what I mean.
I'm sure there are many more tripping hazards on Club sites than mole hills, rabbit holes etc, and like natural disasters, I'm fairly sure no insurance company would ever pay out if someone hurt themselves falling over a mole hill.
Some of the speed hump warning paint is so badly faded on the sites you can't see them. I actually helped a poor lady that fell over one last year - flat on her face! Also, all steps and kerbs aren't marked, and it would be ludicrous to expect them to be wouldn't it! So, if the CAMC want to go down the tripping hazard excuse, they have a lot more issues to address first...ones which insurance companies would be more likely to listen to.
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Going down the route of speed humps, my OH now needs a mobility scooter for any thing more than short distances ,and have found that her boot scooter grounds on most club speed humps ,and when speeking to othe users of the same type of scooter they have had the same problem ,but none had thought about speaking to site staff or contacting the club ,not that i have had any sort of reply apart the auto reply
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You & me both A👍🏻. It really is a disgusting practice☹️
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Push the soil back in with the foot a pinch of grass seed on it-jobs a gud un Debs👍🏻
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I have used a lot of Club sites and I can't say I have ever seen traps being set for moles so it can't be that common. Seen a few mole heaps. One of the reasons you should contact the Club direct is the establish the facts of the situation. There could be a perfectly sound reasons for the need to eliminate moles from the area where the traps were being set. This could be to do with personal safety of members and staff or possible damage to site infrastructure. I understand Old Hartley does suffer from subsidence so perhaps this plays a part in the decision? Its all very well being sentimental about these little creatures but if they are creating real damage they need dealing with.
David
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East Grinstead House. The contact us option at the foot of the page gives you several options for emailing.👍🏻
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I have had the occasional mole but it depends on the number and activity in an area as to whether I would consider trapping. If the damage were greater I might well have done.
The back lawn is full of trip hazards where the local corvids have been caching food
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Yes, David thank you, I have contacted them direct, and will await the facts.
I'm sure you meant no offence but I did find your wording 'Its all very well being sentimental about these little creatures...' unnecessary and rather patronising. It was the kind of derogatory response I was afraid of receiving, and would have expected more from a Moderator.
If you look at the photograph I uploaded you will see the area in question is at the entrance to the site and would be unlikely to cause a subsidence issue, but I will await the official response on this.
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have spoken to site staff on sites that the speed humps are the full width of the roads,and suggested it just needs one panel ,removing to give space at one end to enable mobility scooters to get past and it would not ,reduce the effectiveness for what they are there for ,but as all have said ,they have been installed as per instructions from EGH
,When contacting EGH via email ,and a comment/suggestion is given they do say because of the amount of emails we recieve we cannot reply to them all? what a get out to ro not to reply to anything that may be a bit controversial or beyond any stock reply/excuse they may have
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Good Afternoon
Firstly, it is not club policy to trap moles at all. The guy that said that was telling porkies. I work in the south west and there is no trapping of moles on the sites down here. I can only see the need if as a result of mole action there's a chance of subsidence causing a hazard. There's really no need to destroy any kinds of wildlife on site. When we worked at Godrevy we were plagued with rabbits. Part of the daily routine was filling in holes, you just got on with it, all part of being in the countryside. We closed the site here yesterday and we had the muntjac deer grazing last night, lovely creatures.
I spend quite a while in the spring shoveling up mole hills, makes good soil for the summer planters!
To the OP, send your email to enquiries@camc.com and title it "complaint". That will go to the relevant person a bit quicker.
JK
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Any gardener knows that the soil heaps left by moles are like gold dust. Perfect for sowing seeds. When I worked as a volunteer for EH, we used to collect it to use later for seed trays.
I hate seeing wildlife killed for no good reason. I see a rare White Fallow Deer has been shot dead on outskirts of Liverpool. RSPCA advised, but Police took the easier option. ☹️
Exeter Racecourse regularly has signs up warning visitors about the deer culling. It’s called “wildlife management”, to sanitise the process. Nothing to do with Club, Racecourse policy.
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+1👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻. Some humans are quite disgusting☹️
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Evening
The deer cull didn't used to go down too well with the hippy convoy down the road ttda. Fun to watch their "protests"
I often used to see herds of 30+ deer grazing at the bottom part of the course in the evenings, usually with the big majestic stag at the front, so nice to observe. I guess the racecourse manage their grass with horses in mind not other animals.
JK
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When I was at PE college, the Estate were always putting mole traps in around the playing fields. We caught them gassing as well, which didn’t go down well with the students, there was quite a ruckus at the time. We all got our own back when the local hunt met in front of the big house, that got all 400 of us banned from local village pubs..........until the profits plummeted, they u turned on that one pretty sharpish😂
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