The ONE pest I didn't prepare for.

[Mishyk]

Paper wasps are nesting in my coop. I knocked the nest down but they are hanging out in the rafters. I thought with no nest they would leave overnight. It is not a large coop. What can I do to get rid of them? My babies are 5 weeks old and I wanted to give them some outdoor time in their coop today.

 

[Mishyk]

I am seeing info the chicks will eat them. I got stung by one last autumn and I was 100% positive I was saying calmly to my husband, "go get me baking soda, ice, and the first aid kit that is on the table".

My husband and other witness all confirm was was actually coming out of my mouth was a string of expletives that would make a sailor blush. F...f...f-ity f. F-ing f...f. All the while I was getting more and more angry that he wasn't complying with my obviously clear and precise instructions and was instead laughing at me.

 

[Mishyk]

Ha. Someone in another forum said they HATE the smell of peppermint so I put a tablespoon in a bowl amd set it inside the coop. In half an hour the vacated the premisis.

 

[DukesDucks]

As a person severely allergic to wasps I have had to learn a lot about them.

The most effective way to kill a nest is with a foaming pesticide that you spray directly into the hole at the bottom of the nest. This needs to be done at night when the majority of the wasps would be there. Even at night, have an escape plan ready.

Soap and water does kill individual ones but it would be difficult to get enough into the nest to be effective. Peppermint is an alternative if they are just setting up the nest but I found if ineffective once they were established.

I do use the fake paper nests but they have to be put up very early in the spring before the wasps have built their nests. Wasps ignored them the first years because they had already moved into my siding and eaves. As soon as I see the first wasp around my house I put them up.

If you destroy a colony in a nest, leave the empty nest in place. It then serves the same purpose as a fake one. I have an impressive, empty one in my coop and no other wasps have ever moved in.

Wasps are a beneficial part of the ecosystem but they have lots of other places to live other than my house, sheds and coop.

 

[CoopsNPoops]

Will wasps hurt the chicks? I leave wasp nests up. They help control the fly population. Haven’t had any issues, giving them space.

Idk if they'd hurt the chicks, but they'd hurt me! Lol. Only good wasp is a dead one to me. And bees unfortunately. I don't do stinging pests at all! Besides the fact im allergic, as are my kids..

 

[The Moonshiner]

Wasps like tuna alot, if you don't want wasps around, don't throw tuna all over the yard.

If you don't throw tuna all over the yard how are you supposed to keep the rattlesnakes away?
Do you think pumpkin seeds would work?

 

[CoopsNPoops]

There are fake nests that you can put up that will help keep the wasps from building in there. It seems that they won't build a nest by an existing nest ...
We never knock down a nest after spraying for that reason. It seems to work too.

One site I looked at said to spray with soap and water ...

My mom swears my dawn and water too. Kills the same as fleas she says. May be a much safter alternative than heavy pesticides? And cheaper. Worth a try.

 

[Araucana Nest]

Will wasps hurt the chicks? I leave wasp nests up. They help control the fly population. Haven’t had any issues, giving them space.

 

[RooStar Chicken Gang]

Wasps like tuna alot, if you don't want wasps around, don't throw tuna all over the yard.

 

[Mishyk]

Really? Is it okay to use pesticide? I was very worried about the chicks being exposed to it.