Controlling Coop light from the Omlet app

[redcharlie43]

Well the weather is awful, the FR run is a mudbath, the majority of the garden is flooded and the RAT problems has now escalated! I have just noticed that they have completely burrowed under my Omlet run and have chewed through the stable mats and there is a very neat hole right next to where I put the feed. When I walked into the run it is clear that they have burrowed under all of the mats as its like walking on jelly. So far I have had not much luck with any of the traps. I am about to go online and order some poison and bait boxes. I am working tomorrow but the run and cube will get moved to the other side of the garden on Saturday and then I will put out the poison. My other problem is that the neighbours fence has blown over and I can't let the girls out to FR in the rest of the garden. We are giving them until the weekend and will then go round and have a word about putting it back up. I suspect that this will not happen as the rest of their fence is rotten and falling down and is propped up with bits of wood. It will probably be me and my lovely OH going out to buy new posts and putting it back up!

To add insult to injury I am having to buy eggs from the supermarket!

Sorry Rant over!!!!!!

[Sue]

Rats get very put off and perturbed when things are moved around - though unfortunately they will not usually decamp - so if you are intending to use poison it might be better to put it down before you move everything

 

It is unlikely they will take any bait at first, until they are used to the bait boxes, then they will gingerly investigate them, later try a tiny bit of bait, then next day a bit more, and so on. It is natural selection in that if the bait makes them feel ill they will never eat it again. Also once they begin to take the bait you must keep it topped up till they don't take any more.

 

Then when you are sure they are all gone maybe move everything and have a good sort out. Just thinking about how I would tackle it.

 

Also make sure that anything edible is removed once you start baiting as they will be more likely to start taking the bait - as the saying goes.

[sjp]

I found when I tool over rat control at the allottment that it took a month for them to start taking the bait but once they did then for the first few weeks I had to refill the boxes every week then it went down to every other week then once a month with one or two boxes now it can be 2 or 3 months before they need refilling. I keep bait in the xoxes all year round and keep them in the same spot all the time, in the 3 years I've been doing it I had to move one box to a new spot as it wasn't been used.

I use the loose grain bait as it has to be eaten were it is as it's takes them to long to move it to their food store the blocks can be taken away to be stored but the don't always get eaten then

[Miss Millies Chicken]

I was given this useful tip by a pest controller. Rats are very highly suspicious so when you first put down the bait boxes don't put in the poison bait for a few days. Put in whatever they have been used to feeding on. When they are eating from the bait box then introduce the poison bait.

[redcharlie43]

Thanks for your replies. I will have to have a think. The problem is that the rats have burrowed under the run so much that its unstable to walk on to clean and now they have eaten a big hole through the mats into the run, I am afraid they might drop some bait in the run. The girls are already confined to Barracks so if I move them to the other side of the garden I can at least set up a temporary FR area for them with the omlet netting. As its winter my lovely OH won't complain that they are pooing on his Badminton court In the meantime I can set up the bait boxes and leave them without worrying about bits of bait being dropped in the area that the chickens are walking in. hopefully when the rats have gone I can pave over where the run is now, give it a good tidy up, fence around the FR area properly (The neighbours use the back of the fR area as a rubbish dump) and generally get everything sorted so if we do gets rats in the future I can deal with them properly.

[clucker1]

Redcharlie, I see you live in Surrey too. You never know, you might be lucky and have super hungry Surrey rats like mine. My first lot of bait, about 6 bait cubes got gobbled in the first 24 hours Those poor little rats must have been starving. That was several months ago and haven't seen them since despite a very nice juicy compost near my cube which I keep my beady eye on.

[redcharlie43]

Thanks Clucker1. I wish I have hungry rats. Unfortunately It seems they have been dining with me regularly. I got a trail camera for christmas (A bit sad but I did ask for it and I got a lovely handbag too! ) I put it out for the first time tonight at about 4pm. I have just checked it and there are rats galore. I have just re-sited it and taken in the feed and will check it in a few hours to see. (Am already obsessed with rat watch!!). Definately moving the chickens tomorrow and trying to starve the blighters so they take the bait.

[jasperaliceuk]

Surrey too but strangely the only rats I have found have been dead and deposited either near the WIR or on the grass in the garden. Not sure if it is fox or cat but have worried they may have taken ratbait and so then I worry about my cats!

 

Sue

[sandyhas3chucks]

my surrey rats never take any bait here so far not been a problem except in my compost but rather feel some one else is baiting them successfully as they do dissapear periodically