Solitary chicken - need advice

[JanTheDiver]

Just found a rat running around the outside of my chicken run, we have blocked up the holes that it has already made so it can't actually get in....at the moment.

 

Does anyone know how to get rid of one without harming my chickens or my three cats (which are kept in at night)?

 

Thanks Jan

[keyhole kate]

someone I'm sure will be along soon with great advice I know others have had the same problem.

I have been lucky so far but I would have no hesitation in getting Hubby to get out his air rifle just the thought of them makes me cringe If I saw one I would flip

[patsylabrador]

We filled the holes with gravel and put gravel all round the run. My husbands theory was that the tunnels would collapse as they dug and that seemed to work. No tunnels for a couple of years now.

I agree about the air rifle. Don't know what my local council have done but rats and foxes have all but disappeared here.

[Lulabellx1]

EEk! We are very lucky, we do not have any rats in our local area... well one that come sniffing our way anyway. If it were me I would probably call Rentokil! Good luck hun

[coco]

We had rats last winter. I put bait blocks in the holes they had dug where they were coming into the run. I put them down after the chooks were all locked up for the night and removed any uneaten ones before I let them out in the morning. I keep bait boxes permanently sited round the run now. They did eventually go but I suspect they will come back in the winter.

[Egluntyne]

Some info ~here~.