Outside where the ducks & chickens are kept, (right on the side of our house) I almost stepped on a mouse. But, the Problem is the HUGE RAT that I seen out there. Now I get freaked out if I'm still out there & it's getting dark. The only food left out there is the regular dry duck/chicken feed. No other food scraps.~ IS there a way to Remove the Rat without me needing to remove the ducks & chickens from their area? We used a "Sticky Glue Trap" to catch VERY Sneaky mice IN side the house. The GLUE Traps are a piece of paper with super sticky Glue on it, the mice are attracted to the paper & when they come in contact with it there is No Way Off. In a short amount of time, 2 mice & 1 coat hanger were stuck to the trap. ~Do Rats steal & eat duck eggs from the ducks nests? I might have an empty nest now, I need to check. Thanks, Julie
I think they will but I don't know for sure. Rats will eat anything so it seems eggs wouldn't be out of the question. Sounds like time to get a trap.
Buy a couple of rat traps, and put them under a box the birds can't overturn. Cut a couple of holes just big enough for the rats to go in, and set it along a wall, with the holes as close to the wall as possible. Wrap some sewing thread around the end of the trigger and put a few drops of bacon grease on it, and you won't have to keep rebaiting since they will pull on it but it can't come off
You can also drill a hole in a five gallon pail lid, large enough for the rat to get in. Place a baited trap in the pail, then recover it with the lid, then spread a little cracked corn on the lid. I use this method effectively to target mice and rats and I can even leave the pail upright and secure it to a fence post so the is no chance your duck will get his head and neck into the pail. You can also simply place the bucket outside the pen, the rats and mice will find it, believe me. I usually have 2 or 3 with either poison or traps in them depending on the weather. Your OP sounds like the rats freak you out, so you can just open the lid and dump the rat without touching it. There are bucket lids for paint, or oil, and the pre cut holes are perfect for mice. You can get them at Lowe's.
Rats do take eggs. The first thing I would do is take all the leftovers of food, and save them at night. If your chickens are messy eaters, put a small tarp under their feeder. No food will get on the ground for the rats to eat. Then at night wrap it up. Put it in a trash can and cover the lid. No rat can get food at night. Cover any holes in the coop. Then go get some rat repellent. Spray it around the coop every once in a while. Put traps all around the pen. NOT INSIDE. Collect eggs as early as you can so you don't get any stolen. Make sure you don't leave any food on the ground. Then, if you see it again, smack it on the head with a shovel.
Oh my, Rats are the last thing you want around!! Get some lg. traps and put them out at night after dark when the chickens are gone to roost and get them out in the a.m. before the chickens come down.
