LGBTQ+ Poultry Keepers

[Sally PB]

Has anyone heard from @JacinLarkwell recently?

 

[fluffycrow]

It really is an ongoing battle and we just do what we can to patch up holes when we find them. The edges of my coop doors have been reinforced with pieces of metal. It’s brutal stuff. My sister got a barn cat since then (I don’t agree with outdoor cats, but we genuinely tried to keep her indoors but it wasn’t possible. She’s lightning fast and she’s going to get out no matter what you do. Also it’s ultimately up to my parents. My birds live on my parent’s property, as me and my partner rent), and the cat seems to at least reduce rat activity. It also rained like crazy this year which was terrible for my horse, nonstop thrush and rain rot all winter that I couldn’t do much about, but I think it drowned many of the rats because usually things would be crawling.

That’s what we’re doingn as well. The “coop” and half of the run aren’t on dirt, so it’s only the newer half of the run that they can dig under. Even so, all the walls are reinforced with cement under the soil, so they would need to dig a fair bit before being able to access it. The small holes on the wire is an ongoing issue.

We had quite a stable population of feral cats in the forest below, and for years we had no rats, and no foxes.
About two years ago, boars moved into the forest and scared the cats away, I imagine (our guard dog also HATES cats). Since then we have nothing predating on the rats, and the foxes have been making a comeback. I can’t free range anymore, as the fox visits daily, if not multiple times a day. She doesn’t have an appetite for rats, though

 

[fluffycrow]

Has anyone heard from @JacinLarkwell recently?

No, unfortunately. Was thinking about it this week, Jacin hasn’t posted in a while.
Clicking on the profile you tagged, it looks like mid January was when they last visited the site.

Hope Jacin is ok

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

If they’ve built extensive tunnels that bring them directly inside

I had them tunnel into my really well built coop after 8 years! So i poured concrete over my dirt floor, I really like the dirt floor for the coop. So that coop is now a shed. I built another and put hardware cloth down and dirt over it, time will tell if it works I guess.

I am way over my counties ridiculously low limit for chickens so I do not want neighbors complaining I am attracting rats.

 

[KikiDeAnime]

I did in fact find a hole underneath the coop floor, which is just the dirt ground with hardware cloth covering overhead.
And I know many may end up getting upset but I poured a bunch of water into the opening of the hole to flush it back where it leads.
The floor had 2 layers of the 1/4" sized square hardware cloth but I've added another layer and I'll be doing both the bedding pellets and pine shavings this time to cover it.

I'm hoping the neighbor's outdoor kitties continue their hunting. I saw them months ago around the beginning of fall hunting mice so I'm hoping they move onto the rats this time.

 

[fluffycrow]

I had them tunnel into my really well built coop after 8 years! So i poured concrete over my dirt floor, I really like the dirt floor for the coop. So that coop is now a shed. I built another and put hardware cloth down and dirt over it, time will tell if it works I guess.

I am way over my counties ridiculously low limit for chickens so I do not want neighbors complaining I am attracting rats.

I just might have to poor cement on the rest of the run. I really don’t want to. The birds love having access to dust bathing spots, it’s the only thing they’ve been able to keep from their ranging days.

Hopefully the rats won’t come back and settle in your new coop.
How are the chicks doing, by the way? Growing nicely, I hope!

 

[KikiDeAnime]

Also this may be a bit silly but the pages of this thread are getting closer and close to my birth year (1997)