mistysark Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 just cleaned ou chooks and i have spotted a rat..... totally freaked out now. the rat cant get to feed containers. What should i do about them. as i am worried about my girls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C&T Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 You need to tackle them. Where there is one, there will be more Poison seems the best approach, but in proper bait boxes so other animals can't get hold of if. See if you can spot where they are coming from, and place a box in their path. Leave it for a few days - rats are nervous of new things, so leaving it untouched for a while will give them a chance to get used it. After that, you can check the poison and top up as necessary. And keep topping up for as long as it keeps disappearing - you are likely to need more poison than you think. Also, don't buy cheap - get a decent poison, you will get better/quicker results. I know some people hate the thought of using poison, and part of me agrees with that argument, but it seems the only really effective way of getting rid Goodluck. They are horrible disease ridden things, but it is possible to get rid. Oh - and are you sure they can't reach the food? They are clever things - might be worth bring the food and water in at night anyway, just to make sure... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Some advice **here**. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lydia Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Be aware that rats can get through the cube and eglu run bars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollie333 Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 There is always rats about. However I heard if you put the poison in some pipes so no other creatures can get in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piglet Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 we have had two rats this year! the first was back in june, i put a pre baited box down (the big cheese company from B&Q £15) luckily we were just about to go away for two weeks and the chooks were off to hen boarding so the food was taken away so that seemed to solve the first problem. the second rat was only a few weeks ago and he was much harder to get rif of, it had tunneled underneath the elgu itself so we couldnt see the path it was taking until it started coming out in the day and it would climb up the bars and sit in the grub container stuffing itself while we were at work, our neighbours had to knock the door to tell us what was happening so we then laid traps with peanut butter as bait (placed in the locked run at night once the chooks had been shut up as its illegal to place them where other animals would get caught in them) but after all this i discovered my local council will come out free of charge and exterminate them! so my advice in the short term is bring your food container in at night, dont leave an grain on the floor and call your council it will save you the time and money of trying to do it yourself! i hope this helps! good luck and keep us posted!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistysark Posted October 8, 2010 Author Share Posted October 8, 2010 Thanks for the advise. i have removed all food at night and but a bait box down. And i have checked with my council the will remove for free. I'm going to phone monday if the bait box is unsuccessfull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb Dav Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Get a cat...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeMeadfan Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 We had a major problem with rats at our previous house (ironically more urban on a housing estate & we had no chooks then) to the extent that one year we caught SEVEN in one night in traps! I think they were coming for dropped /excess bird food. We then tried bait ( bought in a shop) but still seemed to have a persisitent few, so called council. They weren't free, think it cost £50 approx. for initial visit plus 3 'extra' if needed. It turned out someone else in the road had had a problem & ours were probably from their garden as we could see where they had come in under the fence. Cheeky/bold little b***ers they were too -often trawling about in broad daylight with their babies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Dabooka Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Get a cat. Ours are fab at ratting. For some reason our female one is the better hunter. She keeps the mice well at bay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeMeadfan Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Our cat didn't do anything - but she was an 'elderly' cat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Dabooka Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 I can understand that:D Dennis is only 7 and he's already discovered that the sofa is his favourite pass time. Although he did once waited outside for a mole for a whole 6 hours waiting for it to come out of it's hole. Needless to say the small mounds in the garden weren't there for long Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roobaloo Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 Poison in a bait box may mean that another animal can't get at the poison...but the poisoned rat can still leave, get caught and cause another animal to be poisoned....including family pets such as cats, dogs...and even chickens if the rat dies in the run. Block off all holes, make sure that sheds etc are on a hard standing and can't be dug under. Keep all food in metal, sealed containers (ideally indoors!), clear up any spillages as soon as they happen. Rats won't stay where there's no food. Where there is food, they thrive. Best solution....definitely get a cat! We had a huge issue with rats at our stables. I say stables, but it's a field with two big field shelters and a shed/"feed room"...we're not allowed a concrete base and the horses are forever spilling their food. We had a huge rat problem...and they became so brave, they'd come out to collect feed in front of us!! One stood less than a metre away from me once. That was the final straw and we rehomed two feral cats. They live in the feed room and can come and go as they please....and I haven't seen any sign of rodents for two years!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lougarbard Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 or get a dog! Any sort of terrier or Jack Russell cross should do the trick! We have had 3 rats in the 3 years of chicken keeping, but our little 2 and a half year old dog (Jack terrier cross spaniel) has got them all within 24 hours of them appearing! We actually had a much worse rat problem in the area a few years previous when we had a 'rather untoward' person living next door! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken shack Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 My neighbour told me on Saturday that thier cat had caught three rats. I didn't give it too much thought as we are told that there are rats every where. That night I went to bed and I must have logged what he had told me in my daterbase. I had the most graphic nightmare and was screaming the house down and woke my OH up, as he moved his arm I thought it was the rat moving. I was so scared. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raina Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 We haven't got a rat problem.I'm pretty lucky though, i don't bother bringing in the food at night and i keep the layers pellets in a plastic bin in the shed. Before we got chickens my (Now Re-homed for the other dogs safety) Border Terrier X JRT killed a couple rats.He is now living with a family friend and gets to kill all the rats that hastle the chickens & ducks in his new home i've also read that giving alot of cat-nip to rats can kill them (It's like a sedative) so if any cats get hold of the rats body it won't do any harm.Not sure about other animals though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoice Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 but the poisoned rat can still leave, get caught and cause another animal to be poisoned....including family pets such as cats, dogs...and even chickens if the rat dies in the run. Eradibait is a 'safer' rat poison, Roobaloo, it states on their website... * no risk to children or pets * no risk to livestock or birds * no risk of either primary or secondary poisoning - bird of prey friendly * no known resistance * no special requirement for transport, handling, storage or disposal * no risk of contamination to crops or food * no environmental pollution - fully biodegradable I've used the prebaited lockable bait boxes anchored into the ground though and they've worked well (I've disposed of any bodies found ). I paved over the soil area of the girls run as we had tunnel problems and even once we got rid of the rats with poison and traps I still keep out baited stations as a preventative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistysark Posted October 16, 2010 Author Share Posted October 16, 2010 finally caught the little blighter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve the Gas Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 Well done, if anybody knows somebody with ferrets, ask for some of the dirty bedding and droppings. Scatter this around any suspect areas- the rats WILL leave. If really brave invite the ferret and owner round for a cuppa and let the ferret have sniff and seek mission. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
