What to do about rats?

[lucky10]

Well you can relocate what you trap.

 

[Animalian]

http://www.ratzapper.org/
If there are any holes in the coop you could shove some steel wool into them that will stop a rat getting in, it prickles their nose. Then maybe suggest building the rats out to the neighbours when they get back. They might not have noticed the problem. Rats can eat chickens alive so tell them that if they didn't already know, it will encourage them to do something.

 

[southerndesert]

Rats are brazen and will even chew feathers off to take home to the nest... Nothing like a feather pillow. They will also eat toes, beaks, and anything else hanging like combs....

 

[classicsredone]

We got them when the utility company cut down our neighbor's poorly maintained palm tree. We were going to bait them, but the chickens seem to have pecked the heck out of their heads. We found one dead outside the chicken coop each day this week. They all had head wounds and didn't make it very far.

 

[duckduckturkey]

Quote:
The coop and the run are very poorly designed and constructed. Best I can tell, she thought if she plugged up the holes with trash, rats couldn't get in. She isn't the brightest penny in the bank, but she does mean well. Anyway, the trash is gone, and even if it weren't, neither the coop, nor the fencing is much of a deterrent. The birds fly out of the run whenever they want, but for some reason, they don't fly back in. Instead, they wait by the gate for me to come open it and let them pass. They are funny birds!

I like the steel wool idea, but I don't think it is practical in this case.

I had no idea rats would chew off feathers. That explains one mystery. The birds have stopped squabbling amongst themselves, yet this morning one of them looked to have several feathers broken off. I couldn't believe my sweet girls would do that ! Good to know they didn't, but bad to know it means rats.

Regarding the rat zapper. I have no compunction over killing a rat. My hubby will freak if it kills anything, but heaven help me if it kills a squirrel. Seems to me, there isn't any difference in size. Is it a timing issue? Should I set the zapper out only at night and collect it first thing in the morning?

Is a rat zapper mail order, or do you get them at the local feed store?

Thanks!

 

[kelar]

I got my rat zapper via mail order and one of the first things it killed was a squirrel So yes, setting out at night would probably be the best thing & you would have to get the expensive model unless you want to spend tons of money on batteries (one kill for the cheaper model). Why don't you just put rat poison down their holes? Or you could also use a bait station for the poison and put it out only at night when the squirrels and chippies are sleeping and the rats are busy. I think some bait stuffed down their hole would be the best though in your situation because hubby will never see it and the rats usually die down in the burrows.

 

[cobrien]

Here's what I do:

I lock the chickens in the coop and put snap traps IN the enclosed run where the pesky rats go AT NIGHT. this keeps other innocent creatures away for the most part, as my run is pretty secure with 1/2" hardware cloth and a metal roof, but without concrete on the bottom, sneaky rats/mice can get in. Any critter in the run at night is presumed to be GUILTY! Just be very careful that the chickens can't get to the snap traps! Then in the morning I remove the traps and let the girls out.

If you don't have a lockable coop but the coop/run combo is lockable, then you could put the traps outside the coop at night. The challenge for me is to get the traps removed before other innocent critters wake up - birds for example wake up darn early. I killed a bird in a snap trap and felt terrible. That's why I now put it inside the run with the girls locked in the coop. Squirrels don't come out at night.

I also remove the food EVERY night and I lock it up inside my garage (no rats have gotten in thus far). This is very important. Otherwise you are feeding rats and their babies and their babies and their babies...ugh. Also, I try to remove the food a bit before sunset as my girls are messy eaters and spread food on the ground - this way, they clean up the ground a bit before going to bed.

I'm aware of the anti-pet perspective and wouldn't try to debate it (because my dogs & I know who's right

), but perhaps a rescue spayed/neutered feral cat could be of help here. They wouldn't be doing anything harmful (like killing birds) that they wouldn't otherwise be doing somewhere else, and you'd get the benefit of rat control. I have been considering this myself.

I've also been experimenting with a plastic owl that has a motion sensor on it and it hoots if it detects motion (note: the chickens are DEATHLY afraid of it and I only turn it on at night), and with the rat zapper traps. No opinion on them yet.

I do not use poison. I am too worried the chickens will get to the poison, or to a poisoned rat, or that another animal will get to it. I was a vet tech at one time and have seen too many dogs and cats die a horrible death from rat poison.

 

[Chilly Lizard]

We are having to use the traps with peanut butter. Similar situation, the rats from the neighbors overgrown yard have discovered our chicken coop & I though upon building we did what was necessary to keep them out.

 

[Chilly Lizard]

Oh brilliant! Putting food in the garage at night! Excellent idea!