Rats, rats EVERYWHERE! ☹️

[HuffleClaw]

Good idea! They still went in the traps? That is a good idea!

I’m assuming they meant after the rats were in the trap

 

[Chiker]

what an absolute dope

 

[cmom]

I do use poison. I put it places the chickens, cats, dogs etc cant get to (behind or under things) and I deal with any carcasses that show up, but the stench of ones you cant reach goes away eventually.

I use the poison too after trying many other things.

 

[cmom]

Step one is deny them food. Step two is elimination. Elimination is pointless without cleaning and maintenance and food reduction. For that I started feeding the chickens only what they'd eat in a day, sweeping up every single spilled pellet, and being diligent about compost burying deeply.

RATX did almost nothing for me. What did something for me was keeping my dogs on a tight leash for 4 months and using bait boxes. Prior to this the dogs were killing up to 6 rats a night and it did nothing. They WILL start in on eating your chickens if their numbers get too large and they aren't getting free fed. The rats I had started with the baby rabbits, then the chicks, then the cockerels. I also patrolled my chicken pen daily for issues and cleaned up bodies.

The VAST majority of rats that die from poison go back to their holes to do it and die underground. The amount of poison left in dead rodents is trace enough that even if a cat eats a whole rat chances are good it won't die, and a dog certainly wouldn't. It would take a few rats for a cat to have problems. The bait itself is in boxes that nothing but a rat or smaller can access it. They're even IN the chicken pen with my birds.

You can TRY snap traps and glue traps but they must be moved every time you catch a single rat to not tip off the colony and you have to rotate baits. You can imagine how bad it is to get rid of hundreds of rats with needing to rotate traps every time you catch one. Especially because snap traps must be baited unset for a few days to encourage them. Bucket traps are the same.

If you won't use poisons... Well, I had no luck using any of the above methods and I used them all. My dogs, RAT-X, snap traps, bucket traps... They did not make a dent. Good luck.

I agree...

 

[cmom]

I had a severe infestation in one coop in particular. The rats had built nests in the ceiling and the walls. They even chewed a hole through the bottom of a 2x4 stud. I renovated the coop, removed the walls and ceiling. Dozens of rats of all sizes poured out. They had also made tunnels in the ground around the coops. I tried several different things such as traps, the bucket among other things and did catch a rat here and there. Our barn is behind the coops and I had seen some rats in the barn. Because I didn't want to poison my birds I bought the rat bait stations. I put them in my barn in places only the rats could get to. They didn't seem to like the bait that came with the bait station so I bought some other bait from the feed store down the road and they seemed to love it. The bait station has a little window above the bait so it can be checked regularly. I'm not telling anyone to use poison only that it worked for my infestation after trying many other thing to no avail. I have a lot of birds and coops. After a few days I noticed the baits weren't being nibbled on as much and I hadn't been seeing any rats. I did not find any dead rats laying around nor any dead critters from eating any dead rats. I suspect the rats went into their tunnels and died. You don't have to put the bait and bait stations where other critters can get to it. You could put the bait box in a cage where only the rats can get to it. Good luck with whatever you decide to do...

 

[MGG]

Good idea! They still went in the traps? That is a good idea!

Once they were all in it in the morning, that's when I put it in. It worked well. Then just dump them out, let the trap dry, and put it back in the desired area.

 

[HuffleClaw]

what an absolute dope

Huh??

 

[HuffleClaw]

Anyway, I bought JustOneBite. I’ll put it out tomorrow.

 

[HuffleClaw]

I had a severe infestation in one coop in particular. The rats had built nests in the ceiling and the walls. They even chewed a hole through the bottom of a 2x4 stud. I renovated the coop, removed the walls and ceiling. Dozens of rats of all sizes poured out. They had also made tunnels in the ground around the coops. I tried several different things such as traps, the bucket among other things and did catch a rat here and there. Our barn is behind the coops and I had seen some rats in the barn. Because I didn't want to poison my birds I bought the rat bait stations. I put them in my barn in places only the rats could get to. They didn't seem to like the bait that came with the bait station so I bought some other bait from the feed store down the road and they seemed to love it. The bait station has a little window above the bait so it can be checked regularly. I'm not telling anyone to use poison only that it worked for my infestation after trying many other thing to no avail. I have a lot of birds and coops. After a few days I noticed the baits weren't being nibbled on as much and I hadn't been seeing any rats. I did not find any dead rats laying around nor any dead critters from eating any dead rats. I suspect the rats went into their tunnels and died. You don't have to put the bait and bait stations where other critters can get to it. You could put the bait box in a cage where only the rats can get to it. Good luck with whatever you decide to do...

Great points! The poison pictured is the exact one I bought I have buckets with holes drilled in them ready to be used so that the animals (other than rats) can’t get to them. Thanks @The Moonshiner for the idea btw.

 

[Chiker]

Huh??

the guy who didn't check his stuff delivered