I've Been Bamboozled !

[Ascholten]

last year the ants were really bad, I NEVER seen their nests so overfilled with eggs, it must have been tens of thousands of them, Id kill the same nest sometimes 4 to 5 times before it died off not to mention the progeny nest(s) that popup when t hey scatter after the poisoning. HOpe this year is not as bad, i got an early start on control, lets hope it works.

Aaron

 

[Al Gerhart]

The simple method is to stop feeding the rats and they will leave. Get a treadle feeder, spring loaded door, heavy counterweight, no plastic or aluminum, no over head doors that need blocked open for weeks for training. Do your research and read the negative reviews very carefully as most feeders are sold as just chicken feeders and advertised as rat proof when they are not. The negative reviews will most likely be the ones bought to stop rats or squirrels or pigeons. You know how people are, there will be few dunderheads, but a well designed feeder ought to work 95% of the time or more.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Many many years ago, I was taking leave and visiting my parents in Cape Coral Florida. I was helping my dad one morning and opened the garage door. You know how garage doors have like those, I guess you could call them ledges that run across. them? Well unknown to me, there was a snake on the ledge thing. As the door opened, this SOB slithered off and right down the back of my T shirt.

You think Hulk Hogan and those WWF sissies are impressive ripping their shirts off? Oh I can guaranTEE you I had them beat by any stopwatch in the world!! It's not so much that I am afraid of snakes but not knowing what TYPE of snake it was... THAT was the fear factor. In my tiny little hillbilly mind, I am picturing this 40 foot rattle snake, copper head, water moccasin, coral snake, Cape Coral Serpent of Death... snake, etc etc down my shirt heading for other unspeakable regions to do the unthinkable!! Me running down the driveway screaming and ripping my shirt off while doing the heebie jeebie dance. Thank god there were no camera's around to capture THAT magic moment....

Aaron

You reminded me of the time I was gardening & suddenly felt several stinging sensations of European Fire Ants on my thighs & upward towards my underwear, you know that tender area of skin, where leg meets body...yeah, I never tore off a pair of pants so fast in my life! Right there smack in the middle of 2 acres, in broad daylight, then I commenced to doing a version of a Chicken Dance, trying to brush those little stinging bast@#ds off, which isn't easy because they hang on while still stinging!

Of course, all 10 of my Roosters saw me going nuts & naturally began sounding the warnings, Full Blast! CROWING & BAAACH, BACH, BACH, BOCK BOCK BOCK, COCKLEDOODLE DOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!
All hens simultaneously joined the symphony CLUCKING AS LOUDLY as they possibly could.

Naturally, Any neighbors or passerbys would've undoubtedly turned to look, why every critter here was raising such a ruckus...and would they have seen? A crazy bird lady jumping, flailing & running around with no pants on! Pale sunless legs, too. Quite noticeable.

Well, at least I always took mom's advice seriously, you know about making sure ya wear decent looking undies, so when you get in a car wreck & they go to put you in a hospital gown, they have a better opinion of you, due to your fresh, clean, new looking underwear.

I honestly don't know which time is most embarrassing for me or most memorable to my neighbors...this Fire Ant incident, or the time I was chasing off a hawk, running around swinging a broom yelling, while wearing only a towel, cuz I happened to just get out of the shower after sweaty gardening & caught a glimpse of Mr. Hawk zooming in for the kill, after my young Pigeons. Luckily, I managed to swing a broom with one hand & hold the towel on with the other. Yeah, I remember as a kid how funny Streaking was in the 1970's, but I was never tempted to join in. I nearly did that day, though.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Down the rabbit hole and read this whole thread.
Thank you all for the very descriptive depiction of your unfortunate incidents with various varmints. Great way to start Sunday with a good laugh!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

@Ascholten how did you finally solve your rat problem?

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

Down the rabbit hole and read this whole thread.
Thank you all for the very descriptive depiction of your unfortunate incidents with various varmints. Great way to start Sunday with a good laugh!

Well, I followed right behind you! Great laugh!

 

[Ascholten]

I went through that a few times myself. Something set off the coop and I come running out from a sound sleep at like 1 am in a set of tighty whiteys, maybe, to go 'deal' with whatever is out there that is NOT supposed to be.

I can see the mental evaluation report now. he was running around in his yard, screaming in the sky, bare ass nekkid, except for the pair of boondockers he threw on with the laces untied.

Don't even get me started on those fire ants. The Florida ones are not any better. I hear they can all get on you, and basically on command, they release a pherome and all at once, start biting you. Not sure if its true or not but the little pussy puss filled blisters they leave a few days later and the scars are NOT fun. Whenever I come across them, I stake them and poison them. The only way to get rid of them is stay on them until they are dead. You kill one big nest, it'll scatter in 3 to 5 smaller nests, kill them off and you may get 2 to 3 others, kill those off and that should be it for them.

If you want to have fun though, and got two big nests of them. Scoop one up with a spade, walk over and plop it onto the other nest. They will goto war with each other and do most the killing for you!

Too bad not even the chickens will eat them miserable things.

Aaron

 

[Ascholten]

@Ascholten how did you finally solve your rat problem?

It took a little time. I set a number of snap traps, they got one or two but not too many. I eventually got them with an electronic trap and one of those bucket dunk type traps where you bait it and they fall in.

I would also go out with a 22 pistol and some lower power rounds in it and go over to the one compost bin they were fond of, rip the cover off it and as they scurried, shot them on site.

Rats I always threw in the trash. Mice, I have a few snakes so never really seen many mice, wish they'd get the rats but nope, but mice and smaller ie baby rats, pinkies /furries, Id feed the chickens. THey actually LOVED them.

Aaron

 

[Ascholten]

The one thing I can't get rid of for the world, and its already starting to be BAD is the fgn moles. I have a feeling im going to have to hit that with propane and hope i don't blow up too much of the neighbors yard too but they are VERY bad already. Miserable things.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I went through that a few times myself. Something set off the coop and I come running out from a sound sleep at like 1 am in a set of tighty whiteys, maybe, to go 'deal' with whatever is out there that is NOT supposed to be.

I can see the mental evaluation report now. he was running around in his yard, screaming in the sky, bare ass nekkid, except for the pair of boondockers he threw on with the laces untied.

Don't even get me started on those fire ants. The Florida ones are not any better. I hear they can all get on you, and basically on command, they release a pherome and all at once, start biting you. Not sure if its true or not but the little pussy blisters they leave a few days later and the scars are NOT fun. Whenever I come across them, I stake them and poison them. The only way to get rid of them is stay on them until they are dead. You kill one big nest, it'll scatter in 3 to 5 smaller nests, kill them off and you may get 2 to 3 others, kill those off and that should be it for them.

If you want to have fun though, and got two big nests of them. Scoop one up with a spade, walk over and plop it onto the other nest. They will goto war with each other and do most the killing for you!

Too bad not even the chickens will eat them miserable things.

Aaron

We have fire ants here too, they call them “tiny fire ants” and have become a big problem. From what I understand if you see any ants you actually have to kill the queen and this requires poisoning every month for a year.
We’re supposed to report any ant sightings and then somebody from the county comes out with the poison and instructions. Not sure about toxicity to chickens. We thankfully haven’t seen any on our property, yet. Pretty sure I have rats up in the attic though, I haven’t seen any during the day yet but I hear them rearranging the furniture in the middle of the night.