rats getting in coop

[kbadkins]

heheh we rebuilt the coop today... I guarantee those lil buggers will not be getting into the coop anymore... they are eating my eggs !!!!!!! we will see how the new coop holds up..
it look soooo much nicer.. plus I took the food out but now that they know there are eggs I am certain they will be after the eggs.

 

[Autumn T]

put the food in a metal garbage can with a tight lid to keep them out

then work on finding all the little holes they are coming in

 

[Anny]

Rats can chew thru almost anything. Placing steel wool in holes where you think they are coming in can help.

 

[mightieskeeper]

Make a bait box and use sticky traps. I love sticky traps. A non-poison solution.

 

[conny63malies]

If it is through holes in the floor . Mix up broken glass and concrete or plaster o pris and smear it into the holes and then over it with a layer of plaster or concrete without glass. Digging on this will hurt them and they leave. THats what my grandma used to do.

 

[alleyesun]

After my dog got into some warfarin set out for rats and needed a $1000+ blood transfusion and almost died, I'm really cautious about using poisons. Plus, rats around my city are so used to the dang stuff (it's utterly ubiquitous) they've got immunities to it or else know to avoid it.

For my coop I put fine gauge chicken wire ALL around it and over the top of it so it is COMPLETELY sealed. I also BURIED the chicken wire at the bottom and dug a trench around the perimeter of the coop and buried scrunched up chicken wire in that. I don't have my birds in their coop yet. Hope to have it completely constructed by the end of the weekend.

Other than that, I know that there are rats in a pile of yard debris by my bike shed. I'm removing that, plugging up the holes near the foundation of my house they've been using to occasionally sneak in, and making my yard as uninviting to rats as possible.

Rats, raccoons, skunks, dogs and cats are all on my mind as I construct my coop/run. I'm not sure that the chicken wire I'm using along the run is strong enough to keep things from chewing through it. If they do, it would be pretty scratchy to go through and I'd patch it up/put another layer around. Gotta protect the babies!

To sum up: I don't think poison is your only option and I've encountered problems with it. Maybe if you're not in a city, your rats will be more susceptible to poisons. The only thing I've found effective is keeping the food inaccessible to rats to the best of your ability and eliminating their points of entry. This is a long term/safe solution where poison is a short term/dangerous one.

 

[MoodyChicken]

I had that two years ago when my lazy neighbor deciced that it was no longer necessary to clean her barn and it couldn't house the growing population of rats... so they moved up to my coops. They grew in number very quickly. Best to get the problem under control ASAP. When there are too many rats, they will start eating the chicken feed out of your birds' crops! Yes, they'll eat your birds alive. Gross horrible creatures. I used bait. It was a risk I had to take. I shoved it right into their burrows and put a big rock on top of the hole. No problems except one time when the rats moved all the feed out their burrow into the chicken run! I locked the birds up and found every poisoned seed. I really hated those things. What ultimately got rid of them was destroying their nests. They will leave if you consistently ruin their homes. Every time I'd find one I'd grab it by the tail, swing it around, bop it on the head, and strangle it. I rearranged everything, including the floor, in the coop at least once a week and lifted every bucket and rock around the coop. Eventually they left because they didn't feel secure in their environment... and I took care of the ones that stayed behind.

Supposedly instant potatoes are a good rat control item. Never tried it myself, but I was told that when the eat the potato, it expands in their gut and gets stuck. They eventually die.

 

[CrazyBirdLady]

Quote:
But what if your dog or cat, or chicken, eats the dead rat?

Is there a poison that will not kill the animal that eats the rat?

Not sure how the bait tubes are set up, but I would imagine if one is crafty enough they could make their own bait tube out of PVC pipe and fashion a "door" at each end that a rat could get in to, but not out of. Look at some of the live trap doors and you'll get the idea. Good luck!

 

[kristenm1975]

anyone actually have any luck with that instant dried potato trick? I've tried it twice now and have seen no results. Bummer. Was really hoping to find a nontoxic solution.

 

[Pug Momma]

I am finishing my coop out of an old shed and there were rats in there before. (Think many hours with face mask, goggles, and gloves up to the elbow, spraying Clorox water and being grossed out). I lined everything with metal mesh that you would use for screen doors and in some place made it two-ply. I lined the bottom with 2 x 6's that I dug into the ground (so the rats won't dig under) - I don't know if that will do it either, but it's worth a try!
Also, all the feed and sundry is in a thick plastic bin with a locking top.
I'll put them in there and watch to see!
Thanks for all the good ideas!