California - Northern

[JerseyGiantfolk]

Woooooah!

All in one day!

A rat in the feed shed, a bobcat, and a juvenile Coopers hawk walking on the ground chasing flies!

I've never seen a live rat before until now.

So yesterday, I was using a natural rat repellent; mint to scare it out of the shelf on top (suspicion of a nest up there). And sure thing the rat jumped out immediately and ran into another box.

I screamed to my sister and she came out with her bow and arrow. Bit by bit we raked everything out of the feed shed and finally found it. It jumped down I poked it with my cattle show pole and it wobbled over to the other side of the feed shed. It was the PERFECT SHOT! So my sister shot it right smack dab in the neck and it died instantly.

Woo! I had to wear tight jeans so it wouldn't run up my jeans, boot size is 6 btw.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Ok, now I noticed it this morning on a couple more of my roosters. Any ideas?

Is he lethargic too? I understand the combs can turn blue/purple like that when they have poor blood circulation.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Woooooah!

All in one day!

A rat in the feed shed, a bobcat, and a juvenile Coopers hawk walking on the ground chasing flies!

I've never seen a live rat before until now.

So yesterday, I was using a natural rat repellent; mint to scare it out of the shelf on top (suspicion of a nest up there). And sure thing the rat jumped out immediately and ran into another box.

I screamed to my sister and she came out with her bow and arrow. Bit by bit we raked everything out of the feed shed and finally found it. It jumped down I poked it with my cattle show pole and it wobbled over to the other side of the feed shed. It was the PERFECT SHOT! So my sister shot it right smack dab in the neck and it died instantly.

Woo! I had to wear tight jeans so it wouldn't run up my jeans, boot size is 6 btw.

Ewwww.

My dog (German Shepherd) caught a rat once - not in the coops, it was actually before we got chickens. Sucker was huge - I always thought my mom was joking when she said that rats can get as big as cats.

 

[zooweemama]

not sure if you can see this picture but any thoughts on the comb. This is one of my new adult roos and seems to have bluish grey coloring on the tips of the comb. I just noticed it yesterday. any thoughts?

Did you look up blue comb? It's a disease in my chicken health handbook... Excuse my typos. Sent from my iPhone.

 

[Hangtown Farms]

I used to work at Yardbirds in the Nursery in San Rafael. we had so many rats I remember a tree swaying one night and it wasnt breezy. shinned a flashlight up that direction and 100's of eyes looked back..
I thought i was going to live the movie Ben

Woooooah!

All in one day!

A rat in the feed shed, a bobcat, and a juvenile Coopers hawk walking on the ground chasing flies!

I've never seen a live rat before until now.

So yesterday, I was using a natural rat repellent; mint to scare it out of the shelf on top (suspicion of a nest up there). And sure thing the rat jumped out immediately and ran into another box.

I screamed to my sister and she came out with her bow and arrow. Bit by bit we raked everything out of the feed shed and finally found it. It jumped down I poked it with my cattle show pole and it wobbled over to the other side of the feed shed. It was the PERFECT SHOT! So my sister shot it right smack dab in the neck and it died instantly.

Woo! I had to wear tight jeans so it wouldn't run up my jeans, boot size is 6 btw.

 

[zooweemama]

Quote: Is he lethargic too? I understand the combs can turn blue/purple like that when they have poor blood circulation.

I checked my chicken healthy handbook and I can up with blue comb, aspergillosis, cholera, ergotism... Just a few things that have blue combs as symptoms. You can look them up and see if you have any other symptom matches? Excuse my typos. Sent from my iPhone.

 

[Hangtown Farms]

so another option on some coops. I built this 3x3x5 grow up pen I attach to the small coop I made for the youngsters. I was thinking of using this plan. adding a pitched roof to make it a few feet taller on the sides. making it nicer. maybe enclose it completely with redwood fence boards. metal roof. ( I built this in 3 hours and it is solid) think I could make some pretty nice oops out of the same frame.. hmmm will keep this one as my grow up pen.

 

[Happy Chooks]

I found these Papa Brooder:


Quote:

And these 2 on a disease called Blue Comb disease:
http://animal-health.library4farmin...ND-PARASITES-AFFECTING-poultry/Blue-Comb.html
http://www.mofga.org/Publications/M...er/Summer2012/Poultry/tabid/2194/Default.aspx

 

[chickee]

Rats and mice are such a problem around and in chicken yards/houses

I read that they hate the smell of Irish Spring soap so I tried it and NO more mice and rats in my chicken houses! Just put pieces of the soap (not within reach of the chickens) where the mice like to hide or sit at night. I still have to put everyone's food and water up at night though, but it keeps them out of the storage bags/boxes and window sills.

What a crazy predator day you had!

This morning a young Bobcat was down at my chicken yard. I have it so they can't get over the fence anymore thank goodness!

Woooooah!

All in one day!

A rat in the feed shed, a bobcat, and a juvenile Coopers hawk walking on the ground chasing flies!

I've never seen a live rat before until now.

So yesterday, I was using a natural rat repellent; mint to scare it out of the shelf on top (suspicion of a nest up there). And sure thing the rat jumped out immediately and ran into another box.

I screamed to my sister and she came out with her bow and arrow. Bit by bit we raked everything out of the feed shed and finally found it. It jumped down I poked it with my cattle show pole and it wobbled over to the other side of the feed shed. It was the PERFECT SHOT! So my sister shot it right smack dab in the neck and it died instantly.

Woo! I had to wear tight jeans so it wouldn't run up my jeans, boot size is 6 btw.

 

[Papa Brooder]

Quote: Neither of them seem to be affected in any other way that I can tell. They are still running around. couldn't be sunburn as they rarely actually have direct sun.. just a few hours in the morn and evening.