snake problem...will this kill them

[GBov]

I had eggs going missing and turns out it was a RAT doing it, moved the floor of hte hen house and found its stash of eggs down in its burrow. If it were me I would keep the snake esp as there are products to keep snakes out of your hen house yet leaving them alive to eat the real horror beasties

Oh, and NO animal deserves to die by plaster of paris

 

[Country Living Farm]

I thought about rats, but I never see any durng the day. I know I have some as I just killed several. I go hunting every few days...I just found slither marks in the pen as well....

 

[GBov]

Quote:
I never saw a wisker till we moved the floor of the coop, not a dropping or anything, just missing eggs. I was blameing it on all sorts of things but turns out rats are sneakier than I thought and very clever at stealing eggs!

 

[rufus]

Quote:
But they can undigest...In other words throw up what they just ate....Its true I watch Animal planet

Try dead light bulbs. I have seen them disgorge golf balls, but the light bulbs stay in. I suspect it has to do with their shape. Dead light bulbs are free; golf balls cost money.

Rufus

 

[FaereChicken]

I figure an egg every now and then is a small price to pay for keeping down the other vermin. We've had a six foot black snake who will eat an egg and hang out in the upper nest box to digest. We just drag him out and put him back in the woods, being careful to avoid the mouth (ow) and the undigesting caused by picking him up.

If it was poisonous I might feel differently, but heavens, people! It's just a critter! And one of the less troublesome critters, at that.

 

[GBov]

Quote:
And a REALLY USEFUL critter at that

 

[ranchhand]

We have at least one 6" yellow rat snake that steals eggs. I race him every day to grab the eggs. But the other 2 pens are wrapped at the bottom with hardware cloth and he doesn't bother with them. I do have a stick by the pen just for shooing it away when I see it.

We do kill venomous snakes when they are too close to the house. My one claim to fame is having vaccuum packed a dead copperhead after it bit my dog- wanted the vet to see it! Caused quite a stir at the clinic,

I am all in favor of not killing non-venomous snakes- they keep the rats and mice attracted by feed and scratch grains under control.

 

[GBov]

Quote:
I had a copperhead in the freezer, it caused many members of the family to yell and throw it when they were rummaging for something to cook for dinner

and once turned a 6ft yellow rat snake loose in my mums house because she had rats in the walls. Funny thing, the rats all left after that

 

[gsim]

In Florida you might consider a pet mongoose, but they probably are a chicken pred too. I wonder if antifreeze in an egg would work? Have to be careful not to let pets get at it tho. Also, rat or mouse poison pellets might be put into an eggshell some way.

 

[Country Living Farm]

I will try some of the suggestions and see what happens. I found a few dead today from rat pois. I put out. I know I have some in or near the coop, I just can not get to them. Well, it's 8:24 and time to go hunting again. Maybe I will get a few....