Geeze, those colonists in the 1600's, what would they think of what we deal with these days? At least the government wasn't coming in and killing their chickens like happened in California a few years back. Tain't no new world to run to these days.
What state or country does the OP live in? Might make a difference in the advice, it reads as non U.S. perhaps? Most communities will have laws requiring yards and gardens being kept in a manner to deter rats, usually by having stored items like wood piles up off the ground to allow natural...