I have 6 hens. Me and my dad built a chicken coop in the corner of our backyard away from our house. Lately, our hens have been attracting RATS! It has gotten to the point that when I go out to the coop in the middle of the afternoon, I actually SEE rats run for cover! We have tried live traps, but the rats can squeeze through the holes in the traps. We can't use snap traps or poison because it could hurt the chickens. Our backyard is rat paradise because we grow foods like corn, peppers, cucumbers, multiple types of berries, tomatoes and herbs. We also have a pond. That gives the rats easy access to food and water. The floor of the chicken coop and our garden shed gives them a sustainable home to live in and raise their unwanted rat babies. We finally had to get rid of our bird feeders because we were spending so much money on replacing the seed that the rats have eaten. That was sad for me because I really enjoyed watching all the varieties of birds eat. I have wanted to move our coop for a while because to me, it seems a little "run down," but my dad said no to that because he doesn't want those rats any closer to our house. I think moving the coop and building it more "rodent-proof" would help with our problem, but he doesn't agree. If anyone has any answers for me, PLEASE tell! We need help!
~Thanks
