Rat - Chicken Pests - How To Protect Your Chickens From Rats

Terrific article! I have tree-rats. They live underground, coming up at night to eat the citrus fruit in our trees. Several eggs being incubated disappeared on successive nights. The weather was warm so I left the coop hatch open. When I closed the hatch, no more eggs disappeared. Of course the run was protected with hardware cloth, but I'm sure the vermin got in some other way! I've tried live traps and glue traps to zero avail. They ignore the live traps and run right though the glue traps. I'm going back to snap-traps in a cage with openings too small for the hens to get through. Of course, even with the greatest bait, the rats are wary. I was even thinking of a BB gun, but they move so quickly and the foliage is so dense, I doubt that I would hit any. Problem also is they look really cute and I honestly don't want to kill them. (But I have to get them to stop hanging around my girls!)

Good, but does need some more vital details. We've had a bad rat problem and they can get through ANY sized hole. Hardware cloth over the coop floor, around the perimeter of the coop outside including the door can help prevent them chewing through. Smells can also deter rats. They hate the smell of certain herbs. Not fool proof, but another layer you can add to defending against them. 100% agree with not leaving any food out though, that is the number one thing that attracts them as well as easy-to-get-to water sources.

I would also add, if you are okay with "disposing" of rats and other rodents in a non-toxic way, setting out those big grey buckets, filling it with water, and sprinkling a thick layer of sunflower seeds on the water acts as a very efficient trap. Just make sure your chickens/pets can't get to it.

1/2 " hardware cloth EVERYTHING

I need this. I think I have a couple. They only eat some food, not really much of a harm, but I can't afford to be feeding rats!
Thanks for the interesting article!

Good start but could be more in depth.

Well written over view of protecting poultry from Rats

Rats are truly awful and can give a prolonged period of attack. They can burrow under coops and runs. IMO they are the worst and most difficult to eradicate.