Rats in my run!

[Chickies11]

Hi,

I've been finding rats in my run when I go out at night to check on my chickens. They were digging holes, so I layered the skirt with hardware cloth, and I think they are going under the skirt or finding little corners to go through. I started to take the food out every night and bring it back in the morning, as I found a rat in the food. I covered the outside with Saturday lime and set traps, which caught some rats. I thought the problem was resolved, as they stopped for a bit, but I just found some more rats and new holes! Any suggestions? The rats really bug me and I'm worried they will spread diseases to my chickens or attract other animals.

Thank you!

 

[Penpal]

You have to kill them. You put a bucket trap (look it up on YouTube.com) or you can use poison.

Fly Bait works well as a poison - red and white can. One Tablespoon of Fly Bait to 1 cup of Coke or milk. They love it. They eat it. They die. Just keep it away from your dogs, cats, and chickens.

 

[Al Gerhart]

Killing them works till they wise up and more would move in if you wiped all of them out.

Stop feeding them and they will leave. Search for Howard E.'s posts on rodent control in this forum or simply search using rats and chickens and hundreds of posts that already addressed this issue will pop up and you will find links to Howard's excellent posts.

 

[Titania207]

I have run that surrounds the coop which I thought had 1/2-inch hardware wire dropped around the perimeter but I guess the guys cut some corners as I have been finding holes around certain areas, a year after it was built. But some of the holes dont seem to have exit points - do rats dig extensive tunneling systems? They also got into the coop as it has a skirt on it but nothing across the dirt floor. I had no idea rats could tunnel like that. I was leaving the food out (bad, I now know). The ground is frozen here, and covered by snow, so I am placing hardware wire where I can and they dont seem to get into the coop over the last few days but they are still getting into the run. Will they go away if there isnt food (well, there is some food as the birds spill)? I really do not wish to poison or trap them. Also I think they are rats because the holes are about the size of a woman's fist but maybe they are mice? - I havent seen them.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

You have to kill them. You put a bucket trap (look it up on YouTube.com) or you can use poison.

Fly Bait works well as a poison - red and white can. One Tablespoon of Fly Bait to 1 cup of Coke or milk. They love it. They eat it. They die. Just keep it away from your dogs, cats, and chickens.

please don't use Fly Bait as poison, it has a bad effect of killing up the food chain. Best to use specific rat poison from a pest management company that has no secondary kill formula.

https://www.science.org/content/art...imit-wildlife-deaths-misuse-deadly-fly-killer

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

I have run that surrounds the coop which I thought had 1/2-inch hardware wire dropped around the perimeter but I guess the guys cut some corners as I have been finding holes around certain areas, a year after it was built. But some of the holes dont seem to have exit points - do rats dig extensive tunneling systems? They also got into the coop as it has a skirt on it but nothing across the dirt floor. I had no idea rats could tunnel like that. I was leaving the food out (bad, I now know). The ground is frozen here, and covered by snow, so I am placing hardware wire where I can and they dont seem to get into the coop over the last few days but they are still getting into the run. Will they go away if there isnt food (well, there is some food as the birds spill)? I really do not wish to poison or trap them. Also I think they are rats because the holes are about the size of a woman's fist but maybe they are mice? - I havent seen them.

one thing you can do is really try and eliminate all food. Make a frame under their feeder that has hardware cloth on it so anything that spills is not accessible. Perhaps if they are spilling a lot of food switch feeders or do a timed feeding where it's all eaten before more food is brought out. Rats are very smart. I respect them immensely (had them as pets as kids, they are amazing creatures) but they are a pain to have wild rats as pests because they are so smart. Eliminating all food and blocking access is a great starting point. Eventually they will move on to easier food spots. They are opportunistic and also very clever, so go above and beyond. Make sure the perimeter skirt is secured down along the edges with landscaping staples (I use these ones) and check it often. If you need to extend it a bit more out, go for it. Fill in the holes. If there is fresh snow, go take a look if you can see any paw prints to show you where they are accessing the run. You may have to use traps but you'll have to leave them baited and not set for at least a week for the rats to trust them. Sadly you may have to resort to calling a pest management company and getting LOCKED bait stations that you can place in places that chickens cannot access (and look often for any tiny pieces of bait that may have fallen or been dragged out of the station!). Make sure the bait, if used, does not kill anything if they eat the dead rats. Best of luck!!

 

[GirlsHuntToo]

When I had this problem I used rat traps and rat poison - the strong stuff - but you really want to keep that away from you chickens - I peeled back the chicken wire that keeps under the coop closed off and I threw some under there and closed the whole that I made back up. That took about 2 weeks of fighting all out war on the rats and they all were gone. Also, every time I would go out at night and put the chickens away I would bring the shotgun with me and sure enough every time there would be a rat and I would take care of that, get the shovel and throw the body in the weeds behind the chicken coop. And that would be that! After about a 3 weeks they were gone for sure! They will eat your chickens too so you have to get rid of them.

 

[GirlsHuntToo]

Also as mentioned before - locked bait stations are also good because chickens can't get in there but rats can!

 

[Titania207]

one thing you can do is really try and eliminate all food. Make a frame under their feeder that has hardware cloth on it so anything that spills is not accessible. Perhaps if they are spilling a lot of food switch feeders or do a timed feeding where it's all eaten before more food is brought out. Rats are very smart. I respect them immensely (had them as pets as kids, they are amazing creatures) but they are a pain to have wild rats as pests because they are so smart. Eliminating all food and blocking access is a great starting point. Eventually they will move on to easier food spots. They are opportunistic and also very clever, so go above and beyond. Make sure the perimeter skirt is secured down along the edges with landscaping staples (I use these ones) and check it often. If you need to extend it a bit more out, go for it. Fill in the holes. If there is fresh snow, go take a look if you can see any paw prints to show you where they are accessing the run. You may have to use traps but you'll have to leave them baited and not set for at least a week for the rats to trust them. Sadly you may have to resort to calling a pest management company and getting LOCKED bait stations that you can place in places that chickens cannot access (and look often for any tiny pieces of bait that may have fallen or been dragged out of the station!). Make sure the bait, if used, does not kill anything if they eat the dead rats. Best of luck!!

Thank you for the advice, appreciate it!