Anyone have a problem with RATS?

[SportTees]

Quote:
I know someone who said her parents kept ferrets in their barn, for the same reason. I would not want to do that, but ferret poop is a good idea too and I bet pet stores would be happy to give some away! I'm definitely going to try both of those. Last year I had suspicions (but could never prove it) that rats were stealing developing eggs from under our broody hens at night.

I would have never thought of ferret poop- wonder why it works?

I have heard of permint oil working for other things - if I remember right it helps with fleas also

 

[chickerdoodle]

Quote:
I know someone who said her parents kept ferrets in their barn, for the same reason. I would not want to do that, but ferret poop is a good idea too and I bet pet stores would be happy to give some away! I'm definitely going to try both of those. Last year I had suspicions (but could never prove it) that rats were stealing developing eggs from under our broody hens at night.

Ferret poop maybe, but the ferrets themselves might eat the chickens! We have a terrier who goes insane if any rats near as she is so programed to kill them. We don't have chicks yet
(this spring

!!) but will have cement floor in coop/run and 4-6 inches of sand over that for cushion for the girls. 1/2 inch hardware cloth supposedly keeps out the rats too so I am hoping with this combination:

1. terrier
2. cement floor
3. 1/2" hardware cloth--everywhere
4. metal food storage in shed
5. no scratch when free ranging

we will hopefully remain rat free.

(might try peppermint oil too since its mentioned here)

 

[Lady Catrina]

Only thing I would recommend regarding using peppermint oil is this: check to see if you are using just the oil, or the essential oil. The EO is a stimulant, and also increases blood pressure. Direct contact full strength on the feet chickens may be detrimental (ie, as on humans, it can burn sensitive skin). I won't say don't use it, but please be careful

 

[LizFM]

I've posted on this before...I copied it here...

OK this may sound weird...but a couple of decades ago when I had chickens (live in a townhouse with no yard now)...wayyyy before the internet or any real way to hook up with others knowledgeable about backyard chickens (I read Mother Earth News and talked to my grandma to learn) I had a poorly constructed coop on our farm and ended up with a rat problem in the coop. It was a commercial farm with a dairy, hogs, etc so there was no way to actually eliminate rats. Barn cats mostly had detente with the big barn rats

...so they weren't any help.

Anyway...

I heard that the mere smell of ferrets will deter rodents. The smell apparently sends a message deep into the rat brain that says "You are About To Die. Get Out."

Of course, loose ferrets will kill chickens too so couldn't exactly move one into the coop -tho grandma said when she was a little kid (she was born in 1904) there were actually "ferret men" who came to the farms with armloads of ferrets, let them loose in the barns, waited while they went on their bloodthirsty killing spree for a few days, then collected the sated ferrets and headed down the road. She didn't mention them killing her chickens and she was a chicken fanatic from the time she was like 5 years old so she would have cussed about it

I had a friend with a ferret so for several weeks I collected the contents of the used litter box and scattered it heavily around the foundation of the chicken house. After what in memory seemed like a very short time...the rats were GONE and even tho I did not keep up with the litter scattering after that, I never saw evidence of another as long as we lived there (a couple of years)

So if you know people with ferrets and have a way to get used ferret litter...it sure can't hurt to try! Of course, there are lots of other things to do in proper coop design. But every little bit helps and I can't imagine but what used ferret litter would be free! lau it was sure easy!

 

[purpledonna]

I have used peppermint oil successfully with mice in a classroom I used to have but not around chickens and not for rats. Drop a few drops onto a cottonball and place in strategic places. Good luck!

 

[speckledhen]

I've used the peppermint oil to keep the field mice out of my car engine. Just soaked cotton balls with it and place between the spark plugs. Gotta find some more, though, or I'll be buying new plug wires again.