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Author Topic: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)  (Read 5089 times)

backora900

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Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« on: May 22, 2012, 04:11:29 pm »

Well, I haven't been playing since .04 version and I found that you can actually tame and train pets better than before. :D :o

Now in my new fortress I managed to capture peregrine falcon and tiercel peregrine. As wiki says those two are good vermin hunters (something about messing up your refuse stockpile if refuse is gathered from outside). So can I tame them and use them instead of those bloody cats?

And what other pets can prevent catsplosion?
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FuzzyZergling

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #1 on: May 22, 2012, 04:37:47 pm »

Yes, those can be a cat substitute.
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Garath

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #2 on: May 23, 2012, 12:27:19 am »

some birds now have DIVE_HUNT_VERMIN. Falcon is one, I think some owls as well. You'd have to check the raws yourself though, i don't think anyone did that yet
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kingubu

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #3 on: May 23, 2012, 02:03:51 am »

Did a quick grep of the raws, Peregrine Falcon is the only one with a DIVE_HUNTS_VERMIN tag.  Well that and the Giant version that inherits it.
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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #4 on: May 23, 2012, 03:47:11 am »

If only there was a way to deal with flies...
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weenog

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #5 on: May 23, 2012, 04:09:13 am »

How did you manage to trap those?  Was there bait involved?  Did you restrict the wild birds' paths somehow?
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KrazyDocK

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #6 on: May 23, 2012, 08:44:05 am »

I once captured a peregrine falcon.  She was an awesome fast vermin killer.

As for how I caught her: totally by dumb luck.  I had a bunch of cage traps in various different places on the map and I guess she just randomly hit one.

On that map, I also caught a tiercel peregrine.  I had hoped to breed them, but the female just wanted to go kill vermin rather than take the nest box.  I suppose I could've set up some sort of locked room for that.  Oh well, next time.
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Garath

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #7 on: May 23, 2012, 02:09:52 pm »

I've tried breeding falcons, also to give them to dwarves as pets, since flying creatures could make good ambush distractors, but they're a pain to breed
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Quote from: Urist Imiknorris
Jam a door with its corpse and let all the goblins in. Hey, nobody said it had to be a weapon against your enemies.
Quote from: Frogwarrior
And then everyone melted.

Fredd

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2012, 05:50:58 pm »

Kiwi's and hedgehogs have both have the tag [GOBBLE_VERMIN_CLASS:EDIBLE_GROUND_BUG], which would help with vermin control problems.
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backora900

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #9 on: May 23, 2012, 06:07:28 pm »

How did you manage to trap those?  Was there bait involved?  Did you restrict the wild birds' paths somehow?

Well I dig a hole in a ground with 1tile wide path to my fort (also 1 z-level high). Then cage traps into this corridor. That is pretty much of my effort.
Also my dwarfs vere constantly running outside to fetch something and maybe when they were returning they scared these falcons right into my traps. (weirdly it happened twice - 2 females and 1 male)

What is bothering me is that they don't want to breed. 3 eggs are for about 2 years in a nest boxs with both parents nearby but they just don't hatch. I even get general familiarity on them but still no success.


Good location for capturing animals is also river (not brook). Then make one tile wide floor over it with cage traps. (Or weapon traps if you don't want train hunters) Fliers only need roof.
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weenog

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #10 on: May 23, 2012, 06:17:51 pm »

I don't know about the falcons specifically, but for birds generally: You don't want parents nearby the nest box, you want the mothers on the nest box, until the eggs hatch.  You also don't want dwarves hauling the eggs off to the food stockpiles.  Try making a bunch of 1x1 rooms with doors, making them each their own pasture with a nest box, and having a female in each one (you might have to shuffle 'em around a bit, birds sometimes claim a nest box outside their own pasture).  When they're claimed, lock the doors so dwarves can't get in looking for eggs, and wait.
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Listen up: making a thing a ‼thing‼ doesn't make it more awesome or extreme.  It simply indicates the thing is on fire.  Get it right or look like a silly poser.

It's useful to keep a ‼torch‼ handy.

DTF

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #11 on: May 23, 2012, 07:06:21 pm »

Layed eggs arent necessarily fertilized. If nothing hatches about a couple of months, take the eggs away and let them lay new ones.
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kingubu

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #12 on: May 23, 2012, 11:34:31 pm »

More grep-fu
Code: [Select]
$ grep -B20 GOBBLE_VERMIN_CLASS * | grep CREATURE:
creature_birds.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_KIWI]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_CHICKEN]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_DUCK]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_GOOSE]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_GUINEAFOWL]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_PEAFOWL_BLUE]
creature_domestic.txt-[CREATURE:BIRD_TURKEY]
creature_small_mammal_new.txt-[CREATURE:HEDGEHOG]
creature_tropical_new.txt-[CREATURE:PANGOLIN]
I like blue peafowl because they are colorful and pretty.  Plus they are made of tasty meat.
http://exoticmeatmarket.com/peacockmeat.html Yummy!
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Garath

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #13 on: May 24, 2012, 12:06:51 am »

your trainers, when they stop by to reinforce training, usually will either move on the animal, making it crouch, or drag it one step. Both will prevent eggs from hatching

edit: small spelling error
« Last Edit: May 24, 2012, 07:17:41 am by Garath »
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Quote from: Urist Imiknorris
Jam a door with its corpse and let all the goblins in. Hey, nobody said it had to be a weapon against your enemies.
Quote from: Frogwarrior
And then everyone melted.

backora900

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Re: Alternative vermin-catcher (pest control)
« Reply #14 on: May 24, 2012, 06:59:23 am »

your trainers, when they stop by to reinforce training, usually will either move on the enimal, making it crouch, or drag it one step. Both will prevent eggs from hatching
Thanks, thas seemed to be the problem. :) They just needed a little privacy.
Now back to training. ;D

Oddly they inherited father's training status and not mothers despite how it is written on wiki.
« Last Edit: May 24, 2012, 07:03:11 am by backora900 »
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