Rats!

[Hazelbunny]

This morning I was walking into the coop when I heard somthing in the feed bin and out came a little rat. I thought to myself that it was just one juvenile rat and it wasn't going to be that hard to get rid of, so I didn't think of it much. Just a few minutes ago I went to close up the coop and do a head count the chickens and then, two rats ran and slipped into a little hole they made! One rat is small and one is adult sized and I have no idea how to kill two rats.

Any suggestions for getting rid of Them? Or if you had rats, how did you kill them?

 

[Naser]

Deny them food and use rat proof feeder and they will disappear, for the young one, any trap will do, for the old one poison

 

[Stayc]

First please cover all the inconsistencies in the coop. Do a skirt or apron.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hardware-cloth-to-bury-or-skirt.660746/
We dug 1 ft. Deep with hardware cloth and went 1 ft out with it, put gravel we found on the property on top. Rats can be a concern. If you dont have those means here is a chicken proof rat trap.

 

[Hazelbunny]

First please cover all the inconsistencies in the coop. Do a skirt or apron.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hardware-cloth-to-bury-or-skirt.660746/
We dug 1 ft. Deep with hardware cloth and went 1 ft out with it, put gravel we found on the property on top. Rats can be a concern. If you dont have those means here is a chicken proof rat trap. View attachment 1249352

Thank you so Much!

 

[Stayc]

Thank you so Much!

Your welcome! We have them too! I once went out at night and thought it was a possum!!! Nope just a big scary rat needless to say, that was my last night visit to the coop!!

 

[Lalo Moreno]

The most effective method i have found is shooting them. You can drop a rat with most air rifles. First remove all chickens from the coop and run and wait as the rats come to feed. Once they are eating take the shot. I got rid of over 50 rats. Best of all a good air rifle runs for about $200 and can be used over and over. Plus pellets are a dime a dozen.

 

[lazy gardener]

If you've seen one rat, you have a serious infestation. Time to get super agressive: be sure no feed is left out for them to get into. That you are seeing them in the middle of the day says you've got a big problem. Store all feed in a metal tightly closed bin/trash can. I would not put out more feed than your birds can eat in a single day, and be sure to remove it at night. If you are in the habit of tossing scratch for your birds, stop. You might consider switching to fermented feed. Time for rat traps, and I'd do some homework on how to use poison and bait stations safely. Start with the anticoagulant poisons. Any rats you trap must be killed.

 

[Stayc]

The most effective method i have found is shooting them. You can drop a rat with most air rifles. First remove all chickens from the coop and run and wait as the rats come to feed. Once they are eating take the shot. I got rid of over 50 rats. Best of all a good air rifle runs for about $200 and can be used over and over. Plus pellets are a dime a dozen.

If you've seen one rat, you have a serious infestation. Time to get super agressive: be sure no feed is left out for them to get into. That you are seeing them in the middle of the day says you've got a big problem. Store all feed in a metal tightly closed bin/trash can. I would not put out more feed than your birds can eat in a single day, and be sure to remove it at night. If you are in the habit of tossing scratch for your birds, stop. You might consider switching to fermented feed. Time for rat traps, and I'd do some homework on how to use poison and bait stations safely. Start with the anticoagulant poisons. Any rats you trap must be killed.

 

[Lazy Farmer]

I HATE RATS!

We make our own bait stations and use live traps.

these work well..

tractor supply sells them.

Drilled a hole in the side of the bucket bottom.
Wedged a strip of wood inside of the housing. I screw down lightly a couple of TOM CAT BRAND RAT BAIT BLOCKS sold at TSC in a economy size pail. The bait has a hole already in it. 2 screws, 2 washers and seal the top of the bucket with the lid. Keep them away from areas with small chickens.
This bucket had the bait placed in it only 3 days ago. They ate it already.
The rats dehydrate from the bait forcing then to leave to find water somewhere else.

 

[Folly's place]

Rats also kill chickens; I lost three nice bantam pullets last year to rats.
The only sure thing, besides tightening up your coop defenses, is poison bait.
If rats can enter your coop, so can a weasel, and one weasel can kill all your birds in a short time!
Make sure that the bait is totally unavailable to your animals, and pick up and put in the garbage any dead critters so no other animal eats the carcass.
A warfarin type bait is slightly safer than any others, but takes more bait to kill. The other products are faster kill but also will kill non-target animals easier.
Do eliminate them ASAP!
Mary