No more rats! Whee hee!

[aprophet]

I am glad this thread came back up...........considering all the other things we have done to kill rats.

I think most of our current problem is coming from the pair of falling down garages, both ours and the neighbors. We tried using instant mashed potatoes and bowls of water for the same effect.

As far as the poster that suggested coyote pee to ward off ground squirrels, lol they have clearly not lived with coyotes and ground squirrels! I have photos of the dogs and the coyotes peeing in the squirrel holes. Trust me, they squirrels do not care!

Add to the many things they like to destroy-anything rubber on your cars engine! And they have no worries about building their tunnels near people. I have 2 holes in this apt building complex courtyard! They are undermining carports, driveways and very important banks that keep the buildings from shifting. When you watch on the news homes falling in to the sea in CA from bluffs..........look for the maze of squirrel holes that helped the ground to become unstable. The squirrels do not cause the ocean to erode the bluff, but they sure do help it speed it up!

most urines ARE attractants I use fox pee and coyote pee and B'cat pee to ATTRACT predators during trapping season

 

[FoxholeFarm]

Can I use quickcrete instead of plaster of paris? Its what I already have around. Also, my rats wont touch PB. I think too many traps have been set with it. Any other ideas?
Thanks

 

[bucky52]

thanks for the information.I do have mice and rats in the winter months.i worry about putting rat poison under the coops.I will give this a try this winter.

 

[Jobele]

There are a number of squirrel repellents available (including fior ground squirrels) - googling brings up a number of choices, including coyote or fox urine and cayenne, white, black and chili pepper. If one or more work, any risk of pets or other unintended victims turning into rocks or getting poisoned is eliminated.

I have had gray squirrels cause all manner of work for me (chewed wires, taking up residence in my outbuilding along with the mess that created etc. ) but I'm not really upset with them. I have seen them do really heroic acts to save their babies from harm and I have seen them hug each other in friendship and I have laughed at their play. No hard feelings.

However, in empathy with those of you dealing with holes in the ground, I just found that something created an enormous hole near my house foundation - didn't see it sooner because it's camoflaged behind overgrown plants. I am assuming groundhogs but I have seen not a one on the property so I'm very mystified.
I read that groundhogs hate castor oil but that it won't harm them or others so I bought some today to try after I research a bit more about it....

JJ

I've tried all the natural....safe remedies! They don't work! Especially the Coyote and Fox Urine! Those nasty rodents walk right by a gallon jug of the Coyote Urine! Stinks to high heaven....think SKUNK smell! Also, these urines (coyote and fox) will bring a worse problem knocking on your door......coyotes and fox! You will notice that you have them around your place all of a sudden! I've tried the Mint extract (FULL STRENGTH) to the point of giving me a headache....do you think the rats and mice were turned away.....nope! I think they appreciated me making their quarters smell good! Also....the sonic contraptions that emit a sound they don't like....save your money.....at $100 per unit.....it doesn't work!

I've tried the poisons too and they eat it like candy here! Kills a few....but not many. Also, when you kill several rats....they have a survival instinct and will produce more like crazy!

I've tried the live traps too and they don't even go near them with pure peanut butter in them.

The only think that is natural that works for me is CATS CATS CATS! I have 4 outside, but still see some running around...because they multiply so fast! Also an OLD time method works...but doesn't kill them all and it's safe for other animals should they get near it:

Use a 5 gallon bucket...fill it half full of water....sprinkle black sunflower seeds in the water and put a board to the rim of the bucket (secure it with duct tape to the bucket, so it doesn''t get knocked away. The rats and mice will crawl up the board and try to get to the sunflower seeds and fall into the bucket. Since the bucket is plastic....they can't get out of the water and drown.

 

[amenfarm]

well, I read this on Tuesday, bought everything and after putting a doz on my feed lid in the feed room the last 3 days, not the coop, i did not have any droppings in the feed tube this morning. I will be putting out the mixture until I no longer get any takers. I did forget to put out water, will do it tonight. Going to get my DH to make a 5 gallon bucket mouse trap too. I have sooo many droppings that i had to sweep the floor of the barn walk way clear. Would like a barn cat, can't have one-corgi kills cats and donkey hates cats- J.J. tossed our neighbors over the fence when it was trying to flee.

 

[19disbre]

This guy makes it way complicated and acts like mice have brains , it doesn't take this much effort but he shows the idea well

whoops didn't read all that above

 

[ndgeller]

If my chickens find one (obviously I will do everything I can to keep this from happening) will they be tempted to try eating it?

 

[lauragutknecht]

...

I have a question. If the rats balls dehydrate the rats & shut down all that stuff how is it different then D Con? Ive heard from several people that DCon dehydrates the same way as plaster of Paris & its an EXTREMELY painful way to die.
[/quote
If a rat dies from Dcon and your cat eats the dead (or sick) rat, the cat could be poisoned. The cat would not eat the plaster of Paris in the rat's gut.

 

[Rivenwood]

Does anybody know if the peanut butter ball method is safe use around goats?

My Nigerian Dwarves and Pygoras are all little Houdinis and get out of everything (and into everything else!). I have a few places rats are going that the goats and other animals do not, but I don't want to risk a thousand dollar surgery to de-block one of my goats to get rid of a few rats.

I wouldn't mind a barn cat or two but everybody I have contacted who has advertised "free cat, great for a barn" wants to come out on a regular basis and see how the cat is doing. I run a working farm, not a drop-in petting zoo! Plus there is always the concern the cat will think the chickens are for killing. We do have some 'neighborhood' cats (strays) around that leave my chickens alone, but we see them on an irregular basis so they're not keeping up on rodent control around here.

So this method sounds great if it's either safe for goats, or if I can keep goats out of it. I refuse to poison, too much chance a dog or cat will get at the remains and end up poisoned themselves. I will have my dad come out with his .22 before I consider poisoning.

 

[bucky52]

It did not work for me.I seen holes going under the coops.in the winter months.i removed all the food every evening after my girls went to roost.toss my peanut butter balls under the coop.and than a month later I was gathering up my hens feed.and a mouse ran between my feet.So I mixed up another batch.So I filled in the holes going under the coop.several days later.all the holes were cleaned out.