Rats, rats EVERYWHERE! ☹️

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I cleaned up this thread. Please stay on topic. If you don't have constructive advice for the OP please move on. Thank you.

oldhenlikesdogs

 

[HuffleClaw]

I cleaned up this thread. Please stay on topic. If you don't have constructive advice for the OP please move on. Thank you.

oldhenlikesdogs

Thanks, OHLD. Probably best I wasn’t online when something happened. You’re the best!

 

[HuffleClaw]

Update- I put poison out today in buckets with holes in them so that no animals can get to them. I have several cages setup on the back porch for my birds so that I could put poison in their coop. They’ll go back in soon, and I’ll make sure to clean up any particles of poison that I see.

 

[HuffleClaw]

Found a dead rat this morning. It was just 1 but hopefully more will die too.

 

[aart]

Found a dead rat this morning. It was just 1 but hopefully more will die too.

Is it easy to check the bait to see if it's been nibbled?

 

[HuffleClaw]

Is it easy to check the bait to see if it's been nibbled?

It actually IS fairly easy. I haven’t noticed a significant amount of change to the block yet though.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

oddly rats are nervous about new things near their homes. When I first used bait boxes to rid us of a rat population explosion it took nearly a week before they started taking it then it was gone in a day. Replenished and gone in two days, refilled and that lasted quite some time as the rat population was wiped out. To rid the population I used the chunx with bromine to be brought back to nests and feed to the young. Once that bucket was empty I use poison to kill the rodents before they take up home. Bait boxes are rather inexpensive. I keep one right in the run and one in the shed where feed is kept at nights.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/tomcat-rat-bait-station

Idea of what bait station is. Mine have key. The one above you can secure lid with your own wire twist or zip tie. Zip tie you've have to cut every time you check it, I'd use a short length of wire and twist it like a bread bag tie.

 

[HuffleClaw]

oddly rats are nervous about new things near their homes. When I first used bait boxes to rid us of a rat population explosion it took nearly a week before they started taking it then it was gone in a day. Replenished and gone in two days, refilled and that lasted quite some time as the rat population was wiped out. To rid the population I used the chunx with bromine to be brought back to nests and feed to the young. Once that bucket was empty I use poison to kill the rodents before they take up home. Bait boxes are rather inexpensive. I keep one right in the run and one in the shed where feed is kept at nights.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/tomcat-rat-bait-station

Idea of what bait station is. Mine have key. The one above you can secure lid with your own wire twist or zip tie. Zip tie you've have to cut every time you check it, I'd use a short length of wire and twist it like a bread bag tie.

VERY helpful, thank you!

 

[Howard E]

oddly rats are nervous about new things near their homes. When I first used bait boxes to rid us of a rat population explosion it took nearly a week before they started taking it then it was gone in a day. Replenished and gone in two days, refilled and that lasted quite some time as the rat population was wiped out. To rid the population I used the chunx with bromine to be brought back to nests and feed to the young. Once that bucket was empty I use poison to kill the rodents before they take up home. Bait boxes are rather inexpensive. I keep one right in the run and one in the shed where feed is kept at nights.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/tomcat-rat-bait-station

Idea of what bait station is. Mine have key. The one above you can secure lid with your own wire twist or zip tie. Zip tie you've have to cut every time you check it, I'd use a short length of wire and twist it like a bread bag tie.

I'm assuming that bait station has pins or some other method of securing the bait blocks from being removed? If so, I hope you are using them.

A common objection to using bait blocks from folks on BYC is the risk of harming non-targets. Harm comes in two forms. Secondary poisoning, if an animal ingests the rat or mouse that died from eating the bait block. Primary poisoning is when a non-target animal eats the actual bait block. Primary poisoning posing a much greater risk than secondary as the non-target gets the poison full force. Secondary poisoning.......has been greatly diluted by the target animal.

The reason for pinning the blocks in place is rats are notorious for taking these out and scattering them around. A simple 5 gallon bucket with holes drilled in the side and bait blocks thrown in loose is gonna get them scattered to the wind where anything can find them. So pins are used in the bait stations to force consumption in an area protected from entry. Locked in fact. Risk then is limited to secondary poisoning. If it matters to you.

So best advice is if you are going to use bait blocks, use a bait station......and keep the blocks pinned in place.

 

[HuffleClaw]

It’s been raining but here is the dead rat / mouse... In case it died of poison, it has been disposed of.