37 gone!!!!

[Mom 2em All]

so do you suppose that weasels or mink killed them, but then the rats carried off their carcasses?

Good luck on preventing future attacks.

 

[manwithnoname]

just got done dropping rat bait down holes in gap at edge of concrete. found these holes the other day with blood and feathers leading to them. hope they like their treat. after walking around and looking over the pen where the crime took place i determined i need to build new coop else where. way too many holes and gaps. dont think i will ever be rid of rats totally, so i need tighter quarters for the chickens. i have a 9'x9' concrete pad that used to be for a outside feed bin next to other barn i have sheep in. i will build a coop on that i think.

 

[sunnyvera]

Building on concrete sounds like an excellent plan - decent size too. Sorry for your loss. I would be stunned for weeks.

 

[elevan]

I am sorry for your loss.

I lost 10 of 11 birds to a mink attack a few months back, so I definitely feel your pain. I built another coop...just couldn't bring myself to put birds back in the old one. One thing you learn from these types of events is to build the chicken fort knox. Building on a concrete pad is great. And use hardware cloth (min of 1/2") not poultry wire. If a hot dog can go in the hole it's too big and a predator can get through.

Best of luck to you!

 

[DinosRBirds]

I am so sorry for your loss. I know sorta how you feel. An oversized rat with a burglar''s mask and ringed tail killed mine a few days ago, and I just got week old chicks and ducks. I put them in my garage to keep them safe.

 

[manwithnoname]

sorry to hear about your chickens DinosRBirds and Elevan. I have my replacements in the garage right now too. In fact, I let my 5 and 2 yr old take them outside to play in the grass since it was nice out today. Not sure who enjoyed it more the kids the chicks ... or me

My son even had the idea to use last years sunflower stalks and make roosts for the chicks. it worked awesome! smart kid!

 

[soap&eggs]

an old trapper told me many years ago, rats only run their tunnels every third day. so dont expect anything for 3 days, i caught the one we had on day 4. i had poured loose rat pellets down holes that kept appearing overnight in barn. covering hole with upside down tin can..didnt stop holes from appearing. i finally got so upset i poured a cup of lye down holes...then a cup of ice cold water. we found 2 wet dead rats next day. nothing after that. BTW..all 3 we had were males, once heard rats send out scouts to find food,safe area to live, then others come. so far was only time we had them. knock on wood last time.