Found a brown mouse/rat in the coop, what should I do

[Bryce Thomas]

I saw the rat for the first time today. The rat was in the massive nest box I made for my 2 silkie hens and the rat just ran away, there was no chewing damage on anything and there was no food I think it was just checking things out but I just need to make sure the rat wont bite or damage my chickens and would it be wise to put a mouse trap just outside the coop

 

[Lemon-Drop]

The rats will multiply... I have a rat infestation I’m working on clearing out. I have not yet had a rat bite a chicken, but it’s always a possibility.

I have a Ratinator which is more safe for the chickens than classic traps, though I have some Victor rat traps outside the run.

(I pick them up when the chickens free range, you sure don’t want a chicken pecking the trap and getting hurt!)

Also try and figure out how the rats are getting in... is there a hole anywhere big enough?

The rat may be after the eggs.

 

[Cazook]

1/4 inch hardware cloth around the run. keep feeders off the ground, clean up spilled feed and collect eggs frequently. cat is a great deterrant to mice and rats, as long as you can find one that won't bother the chickens. never had that happen, but it's possible

 

[cmom]

I'm not advocating poison but that is what I use. I use rat bait stations with the bait inside and only the rats can get to it. In our barn I have them in a pet carried up on a shelf so nothing but the rats can get to the bait, rat are good climbers. Works well. The rats usually have tunnels and go into their tunnels and die. I haven't found any dead rats laying around.

 

[Geckolady]

What if a chicken decides to snack on a mouse that has eaten the poison? Does that happen?

I've been using sticky traps instead of snap traps because I can remove those from a bird with less damage than a snap trap.

 

[BlueBaby]

What if a chicken decides to snack on a mouse that has eaten the poison? Does that happen?

I've been using sticky traps instead of snap traps because I can remove those from a bird with less damage than a snap trap.

I would be afraid of that happening, as my flock will grab mice and eat them whenever they spot any in the run. One of my hen's just got one the other day, and the rest of the flock was chasing her trying to get it away from her.

 

[Sooner Magnolia]

The electronic traps are awesome. No poison, no chickens getting in. They humanely electrocute the rat. Some use batteries, others plug in. If using the battery kind, the AA ones might be more cost effective. We recently got a pack rat in the garage that had chewed a hole in my washing machine drain hose 3 different times!

 

[Geckolady]

I would be afraid of that happening, as my flock will grab mice and eat them whenever they spot any in the run. One of my hen's just got one the other day, and the rest of the flock was chasing her trying to get it away from her.

I hope she did a good job of teaching these two to catch mice! I hate mice.

Protein???

 

[BlueBaby]

I hope she did a good job of teaching these two to catch mice! I hate mice.

Protein???

They were catching both mice and bee's, so you should be all set.

 

[Chuckie chicken]

We recently got a pack rat in the garage that had chewed a hole in my washing machine drain hose 3 different times!

Sheesh, I think the gunk in our drain hose would kill rats!