Washingtonians

[Chubby Chicken]

YAY DAVE!

 

[ByN8ureHomstead]

Rat question for you all...


A few different neighbors are seeing rats again. One neighbor set out bait blocks. I guess the rats drug the bait blocks to another neighbor's yard, where his dogs ate part of them and got very sick. Now that neighbor is afraid of setting out bait blocks.

Hydrogen peroxide will make a dog throw up. One of our dogs ate a bait block so I used Hydrogen peroxide to empty her stomach.

 

[RonB]

Rat question for you all...

Our neighborhood has had a rat problem for years. We live on a cliff overlooking the valley. Because of this, we end up with quite a few animal problems (raccoon, rat, owl, opossum, gopher, bobcat, coyote, etc.). Even though this is residential neighborhood, with so much unusable and overgrown land on the steep cliff below us, there's just no keeping them away.

Because of our kids, we don't set out bait blocks. We'll use sticky traps around the compost bins, but, since our bins are overflowing with chicken shavings we no longer have room to compost food, so the rats seem to be leaving our bins alone.

A few different neighbors are seeing rats again. One neighbor set out bait blocks. I guess the rats drug the bait blocks to another neighbor's yard, where his dogs ate part of them and got very sick. Now that neighbor is afraid of setting out bait blocks.

I've been looking online for different solutions. There is this heavy duty bait box available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Protecta-HEAV...8&qid=1343740293&sr=8-1&keywords=rat+bait+box

Has anyone used this before? If yes, can the rats drag the bait blocks out of the box?

That looks like a good price for the box on Amazon. The local hardware store had one similar for $30.00. I Bought a couple at Home Depot for under $10.00. they are suppose to be for one time use. but I know you can get more then that out of them. I put them right in the coop. Then I built a couple of my own out of a 1x4 and some plywood. cut a 2"'' hole in each end. cost next to nothing!
Maybe I can get Kim to stop by and take pictures and post them

Between the Landlord and I we have found NINE dead rats in the last month and a half. Haven't seen any in the last three weeks. Hope we got them all .

One rat I found just outside my coop was 16" long. it was the size of a squirrel. must of been the Daddy LOL

 

[Chubby Chicken]

My sexed EEs are arriving tomorrow. I am happy to get birds too inbred to go broody.lol. Right now I have 4 BC Marans, two are broody. I get about 1 egg a day out of them. My banty cochins lay alomost everyday.

Anyways, if anyone is interested, I can let a few go for what I paid for them. I was blinded by cheaper shipping for 25 instead of 15.

PS, I have already been chastised by Senior BYC members for buying from a hatchery, even though nobody locally can supply me with sexed chicks. One woman likened chicks in the mail to sending a human baby in the mail. No need for all that again, please.

I would like to point out to the judgemental, that hardware stores, feed and seeds don't have their own local chicken farms, they buy from a hatchery too. Oddly enough, I can see six hatchery ads from here. Hmmm. I know for sure one sells battery cages, and one clips beaks.

 

[RonB]

My sexed EEs are arriving tomorrow. I am happy to get birds too inbred to go broody.lol. Right now I have 4 BC Marans, two are broody. I get about 1 egg a day out of them. My banty cochins lay alomost everyday.

Anyways, if anyone is interested, I can let a few go for what I paid for them. I was blinded by cheaper shipping for 25 instead of 15.

PS, I have already been chastised by Senior BYC members for buying from a hatchery, even though nobody locally can supply me with sexed chicks. One woman likened chicks in the mail to sending a human baby in the mail. No need for all that again, please.

I would like to point out to the judgemental, that hardware stores, feed and seeds don't have their own local chicken farms, they buy from a hatchery too. Oddly enough, I can see six hatchery ads from here. Hmmm. I know for sure one sells battery cages, and one clips beaks.

C.C
Ya have to do what Pleases YOU ! lots of great people on here BUT everyone has their own opinion on chickens and chicken related things. For instance's I have all large chickens that are considered excellent layers. I have several different breeds but I want EGGS!!! I know some people don't care so much about egg production as they do the kind of chickens they like.. I'm NOT interested in Bantams, Silkies or polish chickens BUT I know lots of people on here love them and wouldn't have the chickens I have. Your right the feeds stores around here buy from the hatchery's.
I would like to buy from the people on here, but most of them don't have the birds I like. So enjoy your new girls!! Everyone her will still love Ya

well I've edited this three times how for grammar. maybe in my next life I will learn how to spell

 

[Hinotori]

There is nothing wrong with buying from a hatchery, C.C. That is the only way a lot of people cann get chicks, much less sexed chicks. It must suck for people to raise up sweet cockerels then have to part with them because they are boys ad they are in town.

I want to add that seniority on BYC doesn't mean that a person actually knows anymore (or anything) about chickens. It just means they joined an internet forum before you. (Since when do human babies have yolks so they don't need to eat for three days? That is one of the dumbest analogies)

 

[Chubby Chicken]

C.C
Ya have to do what Pleases YOU ! lots of great people on here BUT everyone has their own opinion on chickens and chicken related things. For instance's I have all large chickens that are considered excellent layers. I have several different breeds but I want EGGS!!! I know some people don't care so much about egg production as they do the kind of chickens they like.. I'm NOT interested in Bantams, Silkies or polish chickens BUT I know lots of people on here love them and wouldn't have the chickens I have. Your right the feeds stores around here buy from the hatchery's.
I would like to buy from the people on here, but most of them don't have the birds I like. So enjoy your new girls!! Everyone her will still love Ya

well I've edited this three times how for grammar. maybe in my next life I will learn how to spell

lol, I am master of run-on sentences.

Also, you're sweet to be supportive. I just want some eggs, and to endow my relatives with chickens. I helped build the new coop this wekend, and am going to continue building things by myself, so my husband doesn't feel like he has a second job!

 

[elizmartin]

That looks like a good price for the box on Amazon. The local hardware store had one similar for $30.00. I Bought a couple at Home Depot for under $10.00. they are suppose to be for one time use. but I know you can get more then that out of them. I put them right in the coop. Then I built a couple of my own out of a 1x4 and some plywood. cut a 2"'' hole in each end. cost next to nothing!
Maybe I can get Kim to stop by and take pictures and post them

Between the Landlord and I we have found NINE dead rats in the last month and a half. Haven't seen any in the last three weeks. Hope we got them all .

One rat I found just outside my coop was 16" long. it was the size of a squirrel. must of been the Daddy LOL

HI, have been trying for years to trap them and finally had to give up when they would steal the bait no matter how much i smashed it in the trap.....So am now using ONLY the poison that is a *blood thinner*. I routinely add liquid chlorophyl to the dog and cat food (source of fit K, health food store sometimes grocery pharmacy). the cats still try to kill and eat,then throw up the smaller ones....but they don't get sick if they were easily caught because they are dying.

The rats were climbing the chain link, killing then trying to drag my half grown and one grown chicken thru....They have also been tunneling around some of my big trees putting my coops in danger of toppling in the next big wind storm.....no these are not mole tunnels. I bricked in with 12 x 12 pavers the coop floors and they would tunnel under and then the pavers would tip creating open ways...... I built several upside down 3" T-tubes 18" in each direction. I would string bait blocks on a wire and insert in the top, replacing when gone.....This has finally given me relief. All my closed youngster area chain link walls are being replaced with 1" x 1" cage fabric....

Unfortunately must keep the bait traps loaded because new ones seem to take the place of the dead ones. don't place them in the coop thou incase the rats accidentally drop a few crumbs where the chickens can find them.........

Best of luck, eliz

 

[Oregon Blues]

Anyone who needs to put out mouse bait, you can make your own bait station for a couple of dollars.

Go down to BiMart and purchase a shoe box size plastic storage box. Drill a mouse size hole in one end. At the other end, run some baling wire through the hole in the middle of the bait blocks and attach the wire through the sides of the box. Put the lid on and wrap a bit of duct tape around it to keep the lid on.

The mice go in and must eat the block right there because it is fastened down and they can't carry it off. Cats or dogs or chickens can't get the lid off to access the bait because the lid is taped on.

Tomcat brand bait blocks have worked well for me. Whatever they make them from tastes good because the mice really go for it.

 

[Chubby Chicken]

There is nothing wrong with buying from a hatchery, C.C. That is the only way a lot of people cann get chicks, much less sexed chicks. It must suck for people to raise up sweet cockerels then have to part with them because they are boys ad they are in town.
I want to add that seniority on BYC doesn't mean that a person actually knows anymore (or anything) about chickens. It just means they joined an internet forum before you. (Since when do human babies have yolks so they don't need to eat for three days? That is one of the dumbest analogies)

I ended up saying that I wouldn't eat a baby, but I would eat a baby chicken. The lady in Enumclaw, where I got my Marans, said that they give chicks some grow gel to peck on in addition to the energy the yolk provides.

You pretty much hit the secret nail on the head. My husband gets attached to the roosters. That was a huge factor in our decision, as well as I'll be giving some away, so I needed cheap chicks. I wish all the roosters could just get along.

I must admit I am very excited to get the mystery chick I added to the order. Cochin Cochin