Rats???

[Howard E]

Whatever the case, they are not starving. And unless all that on the neighbor is less than 75 feet from your coop, they are not likely making that journey. They would move first.

But the point remains, for rats to survive.....they need three things. Food, water and shelter. Eliminate those (sanitation) and life gets hard for a rat PDQ.

Now might be a good time to again mention a rat removal trick used by a pest removal guy I used to know. When he wanted to take out a colony of rats, he did his best to remove the existing foods rats were living on, and to replace that, he placed easy and abundant food some distance away from their currently location. Starting with the first move of about 100 feet, then another and maybe even one more. Moved they way out in the distance.....far enough they would not come back. When he was certain they were out there and dining steady, he took up the food and replaced it with poison bait blocks. With nothing else to eat, they would they go for the bait......and died way out there in droves. Generally, wiped out the entire colony. BTW, the bait he relied on was Contrac, from Bell Labs. Available to consumers, and highly effective, but kinda pricey.

 

[WindingRoad]

When my neighbor walks her dog in their enclose fence I can tough here. Maybe 3 feet away. The rats were living in the leaf litter right near the fence this summer. My chickens just watch them walk through the run. Chickens are not predators in my book.

I was seeing dozens of them earlier only see one or two now and then. They are getting into the coop at times because they are chewing on the wooden threshold. So every time I know they've been inside I block another hole. I'm only putting out food for a day at a time. They don't come around when the chickens are in the coop they wait until the birds are up on the roost. No waste on the floor anymore. I think they are on subsistence rations. All food is taken into new garage which they can't get in. And water is dumped.

ETA: most times when just a little food left that is dumped in metal trash can with tight lid.

 

[Flat Earth]

Tom Cat doesn't work either.

 

[Sushihig72]

I have had a critter(s) underneath my coop for about a month now. From the 2 tennis ball size holes and the fan-shaped discharged dirt outside of the holes, I'm thinking RATS.
They avoid the snap traps and enclosed baited traps. I've also tried putting onions, black pepper and peppermint on cotton balls down the holes and covering it in. Every morning, the holes are open again! My unwelcomed visitors have so far been content to staying under the coop but I'm sure they will soon try getting inside with my chickens. On top of that, the holes are inside the run and right beside the hatch door where the chickens come out. I don't want to open the hatch because I'm afraid "whatever" will sneak inside the coop.
As a last resort, I've thought about pouring a jug of bleach down the holes in the hopes that it will gas them out or kill them. Has anyone ever tried this? Will the bleach fumes come up through the wooden coop floor to my flock?

We have a rodent issue as well. We are getting feral barn cats from the humane society and we purchased and installed a barn owl box to attract rodent eaters. They say one barn owl will control 10-12 acres! Good luck.

 

[WindingRoad]

Opps answered myself. LOL

 

[WindingRoad]

We have a rodent issue as well. We are getting feral barn cats from the humane society and we purchased and installed a barn owl box to attract rodent eaters. They say one barn owl will control 10-12 acres! Good luck.

Let us know how the cats do. I have two feral cats that hang around my coop and do NOTHING to the rats. I've seen them just watch them. Had skunks earlier in the spring they did NOTHING. I tell you these rats are a PIA...

 

[Fowlingalong]

I had rats,used wire 1/4 holes.screwed,then screwed with washers to secure screen.also u can use sos pads screen over so it’s safe.really good poison for critters Is called Just One bite.throw under coop.just make sure pets can’t get to it.stuff isn’t cheap but it works.order on line Walmart,has best price.i also use crack fill,as well.good luck

 

[schmedlap]

Thanks for the replies. I've thought of smoke bombs but because of the warning label, I'm afraid of catching the coop on fire. I live in the country in southern Ontario, surrounded by farmland. We've always had a small barn but I never noticed holes like this until I built the coop, although it could be just coincidence. Def not a skunk. There are opossums around also. I won't be able to flush whatever it is, out with a water hose until spring because we winterized our outdoor plumbing already. I can try buckets of water into a big funnel for now and see what happens. I've thought about the smell factor if I do kill something under there. I was thinking maybe lye or stall-dry and shooting it in the holes via reversed shop vac hose. But I'll worry about that later.

get a motion activated trail camera so you can make sure that is what you have.
follow the directions on the smoke "bomb" package. light the fuse and drop it in the hole. cover the hole right away with a flat rock big enough to completely cover it. brick or piece of cinder block might work. make sure before you start, and have everything ready when you do. you won't burn the coop down. you might see smoke coming out someplace else if they have another way in to their nest.
I had rats and tried the plaster of paris and peanut butter method. went thru a whole package of plaster. I think they liked it. they avoided any type of trap I put out. (I don't know why you would want to use a live trap. what are you going to do with them if you do catch them?) I will not use the glue traps. that seems cruel.
the smoke bombs and regular rat poison worked. so far I haven't seen any sign of them.

 

[IronMike]

For weeks I thought they were chipmunks. Until I got a good look at one. Got some poison bait. That’s the only way, I think.

 

[WindingRoad]

get a motion activated trail camera so you can make sure that is what you have.
follow the directions on the smoke "bomb" package. light the fuse and drop it in the hole. cover the hole right away with a flat rock big enough to completely cover it. brick or piece of cinder block might work. make sure before you start, and have everything ready when you do. you won't burn the coop down. you might see smoke coming out someplace else if they have another way in to their nest.
I had rats and tried the plaster of paris and peanut butter method. went thru a whole package of plaster. I think they liked it. they avoided any type of trap I put out. (I don't know why you would want to use a live trap. what are you going to do with them if you do catch them?) I will not use the glue traps. that seems cruel.
the smoke bombs and regular rat poison worked. so far I haven't seen any sign of them.

With a live trap you drown them.