How to get rid of rats?

[Nats Chickens]

Okay, so I have found rat turds in the nest boxes and have seen rats around. The unwelcome little buggar's tunnels are found around the edges of the coop. Any ideas on how to get rid of them without killing the chooks?

 

[The Phantom]

If it were me I would club them. Idk what your setup is but could you poison them?

 

[jvls1942]

rats: for each one you see, there are 100 that you don't see.
traps, traps, traps.
it can take lots of poison. we had an infestation once after someone tore down a barn close to our property..
for a few weeks we were going through 5 pounds of poison per day..
If you use poison, be alert of rats crawling across the driveway and yard during all hours of the day. don't let your pets get to them..
put the poison where only the rats have access to it.. and set pans of water for them to drink..
feed the chickens during the day and put the feed away at night. clean up any spilled feed. or the rats will..
I also sat up in the hay mow with a .22 rifle and shot rats on the ground..
good luck, it takes time to eradicate them,
once you start, stick with it until the last one is gone. otherwise they will just multiply again ..
turn a ferret or two loose..

 

[Nats Chickens]

If it were me I would club them. Idk what your setup is but could you poison them?

I can't really get hold of the to club them. The chooks would be able to get at poison, so that is ruled out, they are only in the coop area.

 

[The Phantom]

I can't really get hold of the to club them. The chooks would be able to get at poison, so that is ruled out, they are only in the coop area.

Maybe make a trap in like a corner so you can club them.
I know it sounds horrible but my friend had rats in her coop and they were eating her chickens and quails vents out.

 

[Naser]

Try rat proof feeders, they pay for themselves, something like trigger happy chicken feeder is cheap and very helpful.

 

[The Dapper Duck]

Your best bet is to trap, but rodenticide in combination might help (more on that in a minute). Don't use snap traps, rats are too smart for that and you'll only get a couple of them before the others figure it out. Use cage traps like this one and bait with coconut or smear virgin coconut oil on whatever else you want to use for bait. Are there coconuts in NSW or is that too far south? Have a 5gal bucket already filled with water so when you catch rats you can just drop them in. That way there isn't any blood in the trap and the urine will rinse off, which will make other rats less wary.

If you want to use rodenticide along with the traps, please please please do NOT use an anti-coagulant type of poison! That stuff works its way up the food chain and you have a chance of poisoning wildlife or neighbors' pets. Use cholecalciferol and put the blocks in a protective case to keep non-target animals out. This poison is basically an overdose of vitamin D3 (it's actually used in human joint supplements) and it causes calcification of the rat's organs and it dies of heart or liver failure, BUT that's only after the chemical has been metabolized so it is inert and won't harm scavengers.

Good luck!

 

[The Dapper Duck]

Try rat proof feeders, they pay for themselves, something like trigger happy chicken feeder is cheap and very helpful.

Yes! You can also remove the feeders at night if the rat-proofing is out of your budget. And do a bedtime sweep for eggs for that matter. Eliminate the reason rats want to be there in the first place.

 

[jvls1942]

the rats are not only in the coop.
snap traps do work , over and over.
a very small live trap does work, too.
it was not made clear about dumping them into a 5 gallon bucket.. You have to immerse the whole trap with the rat in it . do not just dump the rat into the bucket, it will get away..

 

[WhoDatChick]

Have you seen the five gallon bucket filled with water? You put a bar across the top and smear peanut butter on it.. when they try to get it they fall into the water a drown... google it or go on YouTube...