Rats, rats EVERYWHERE! ☹️

writerskramp · Dec 5, 2020

Feeders off the ground.. not even on cinder blocks.. Hang em' high.. Chicken high. On a chain or rope suspended. Use one of them thar squirrel shields above on the chain you see on some bird feeders.. They'll fall off.. and actual rat traps like mouse traps on steroids.. and nail them down!.. or the buggers will crawl off with trap and all.. DO NOT USE POISON! Your chickens eat meat.. a dead rat is meat.. SO DON'T! Plus the chickens will eat the poison.. ask my neghbors late dog. A garden hose down their hole will drive them out.. like a chipmunk or ground squirel into a milk jug.. Rats tend to be larger. Perhaps you can work that problem out.. A five gallon bucket over a hole in the ground with a baited 'rat trap' works wonders.. Try it, you'll like it. Mickie P. S. You can also use the ole walk the gang plank over a bucket of water.. It works great on mice, but rats are smarter and larger. Be the Pied Pipper and hope the vilagers pay you, if not. You know what to do.

writerskramp · Dec 5, 2020

aart said:
Just watched all of this...and part two here:

Fascinating to watch the dogs and the mink..
Wonders if the dogs ever go after the mink, he must train them all to work together.

HuffleClaw said:
This sounds silly but I’ve even tried putting black pepper in the rat holes. Apparently that helped none.

Red pepper as in crushed red pepper flakes ground to a powder, I have heard.. Some patience and a .22 or high power pellet gun works better.. but who has that much time or ready when you see one.. but that fattest chipmunk in the world raiding my egg house met his maker.. Right time wrong place for him.. no more problem.

BirdLady14 · Dec 5, 2020

You have many responses and rats/mice require a multi-pronged approach, as I'm sure you're understanding by this point. I have a Grandpa's Feeder and I hemmed and hawed over buying it for several years (because of cost) before I finally did. I love it, the birds love it. No more waste feeding wild birds or vermin. Cats will help a little. Wild cats are better than house cats BUT if you need to catch a lot of rats because of an explosion in population, I would refer you to the Ratinator Rat Trap. It too is not a cheap item but will last you many years. It will catch many vermin in one night. Yes, it's a live trap so in the morning, you'll have to think of sinister ways to dispatch but your trap will be full and soon, you will have relief. Good luck!