Non-Timid Rat hanging around coop in day time!

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

Last week I came out to feed our chickens some scraps when all of a sudden this huge rat freaked out and ran into some rocks we have in the garden. I sighed and thought, GREAT, watch him figure out how to get into the coop...
Part of me hoped that he wouldn't come back after I scared him but boy was I wrong. Now every other time I go out he either sits at the end of the run (on the outside of course) and watches me or pokes his head out of the rocks. (I will take a picture next time I see him) He seems pretty content with me in the garden and so far I've had no signs that he's managed to get in to the actual coop with the chickens. There are no claw marks on the coop, no holes in the run etc. He has dug under the run but it's not possible to get in that way as the bottom of the run is protected with Chicken wire.

I'm just worried he may be able to get into the coop even if he hasn't managed too already?​

 

[kazoo1111]

well rats are pretty small so they can get pretty much any where. KILL THE RAT!!!

 

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

This rat is NOT small... he was the size of a large guinea pig or small rabbit with a long tale. I was really taken a back when I saw it.

 

[PeaChick C]

Do you have a dog? Our blue healer-Aussie shep lives for moments where she can prove her worth versus a foe like a rat!

 

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

weird thing, we're not allowed indoor pets but we were allowed to have chickens lol So no dog, but may be able to borrow one.

 

[chooks4life]

There's thousands of species of rats, and only a small few are any problem to people. The vast majority prefer to remain on more natural diets than those who move right in and give us trouble. But they are a very adaptive race, and if it's moved into your yard it may be there to stay unless you do something about it, if you can be bothered to. Sounds like, from the size, it may be a water rat. Only recently my old 3-legged cat with two canine teeth managed to kill a rat longer than herself, which was an imported water rat on a deer farm.

Over the years I've confronted many different native species of rats and generally I don't kill them and they don't give me any trouble, other than justifiably increasing in population if I give too much food so there's some left for them to clean up, which is rather like the situation with ants: they're only there because I left a mess to clean. Fix the excess and the 'pests' will go. Leaving excess and trying to kill the 'cleaning crew' is a waste of time. The introduced species of rats on the other hand are those that move into your home, destroy things, and kill or harm livestock. Unfortunately these can cross-breed and make sterile hybrids with the natives.

I named one huge lumpy destructive ugly one Queen B*tch because she terrorized me and my livestock for years before I managed to get her. She was the only one of her sort on that property and none of her mix-breed offspring lived long. She was too smart to trap or poison and preferred to maim rather than kill, and cross bred with the cute little harmless native males until there was a constant population of short lived young mid-size ugly and dangerous rats. If you have a rat or mouse that's too smart to trap, be generous with chocolate, especially dark chocolate. Once it's addicted, tape its fix to a trap. Even if it's always dealt with traps or avoided them before, it will get itself killed trying to get its addiction fix. In QB's case she broke her back in the trap because she was too big to get killed by it, and I got my dog to finish her off. The evil b*tch had move into my bedroom! Nothing I could do would keep her out. I couldn't sleep soundly.

 

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

So far it's not even attempted to get into the coop, it's more interested in other stuff in the garden and doesn't come near the house (Thankfully) S/he is not causing trouble (yet). It's almost like she enjoys watching the chickens, because s/he often brings food (from where I have no idea) and sits and eats just outside the run with them? The chickens don't seem to mind either? So I don't really want to kill it unless it threatens my chickens or their health, so really it's more a question of making sure there is no way it can get in the run/coop.
I love that you named the rat Queen B*tch !! That's hilarious, annoying rat, but hilarious story!

 

[chooks4life]

lol, glad my tale of woe and terror is funny.

I wonder if there's a chance the rat was someone's pet? It's certainly behaving very strangely. Lots of people in Australia keep rats as pets. How big is it exactly? I think it's good you're not killing it out of hand, often it's not needed. It's not like you're encountering it nibbling on sleeping chickens. Hopefully it stays uninterested. It'll be interesting to see how this plays out.

 

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

I started to wonder if it was maybe someone's pet that had been let loose/escaped, as like you said it's behaving rather strangely for a wild rat. I don't like killing things unless it's needed and in this case it's not needed at the moment (or hopefully ever). lol Yes your tale of woe was funny, even though it felt wrong to laugh as it sounded a rather stressful event.

 

[TheGoodLifeGirl]

Just now went to collect the eggs in our coop. Discovered that the rat has dug underneath the coop (Our coop is raised) and underneath the run (which is protected by chicken wire for this very reason) I looked over everything to see if it had managed to get in from underneath the coop and there is no sign that it has. I think it's just using the coop as protection but not actually wanting to get in the coop/run as there is no scratches on any of the coop or run, we're still getting eggs and the chickens seem to be well fed and watered and aren't concerned about the rat??