Shirl Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Hi just wondering what you keep your chicken feed in to make sure the rats can't get it. I remember when I was younger and we had a horse we used an old metal ocker lying on it's back but this would be too big and I wouldn't know where to get one. I looked in B&Q and it's £25 for a metal dustbin which seems a bit steep so I was wondering what you all used. Shirl (getting ready for chooks) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moochoo Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 I've just bought a small/medium metal bin from a hardware shop ( you know the old fashioned ironmongery types) for a tenner. It's worth a look. It's definitely big enough for the bags of pellets the omlet sells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Definitely a metal bin as they are rodent proof. Use bungee ropes or a heavy rock to keep the lid in place too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jak Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Not metal but just bought a 'garden waste' dustbin from Poundland for £6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 It depends where you are going to keep the container. If you are keeping it in a brick-built outhouse, for example, you can get away with plastic. But if you are keeping it in a wooden shed, you need a metal container: rats can easily gnaw through the side of the shed and then through the side of a plastic container. I think it is worth investing a little extra in such an important item, as it will last for much longer and do a better job. I would recommend getting a container that will hold exactly two sacks of pellets (because when you end up with more chickens -- trust me, you will -- two sacks is not too much). My wooden shed has a rat hole each side (entrance and fire escape), but luckily they didn't find any food in there. I keep my pellets in the smallest wheelie bin I could find in my brick outhouse: the sacks are very heavy, and I like being able to push the bin to one side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shirl Posted August 9, 2007 Author Share Posted August 9, 2007 There's no brick outhouse for me but I'll keep an eye open for a metal bin a bit cheaper than B&Q. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah 2 Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Apparently Ikea do them. I think they're about £5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robskyd Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Apparently Ikea do them. I think they're about £5. Are they flat packed?!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Gosh - all these rats sound like the Hammer House of Horrors I keep mine in a plastic dustbin in the garden under a lean to roof - the only thing that got in there was a slug You would think that living in the countryside we would have more pests wouldn't you - but we seem to have a lot less, reading all the posts about foxes etc. Go for metal to be on the safe side if in any doubt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelsea Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 black standard plastic dustbin located in the garage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farrowy Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 We are using a plastic box with a lid from B&Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheChookKeeper Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 Not sure if this is strictly morally acceptable... but a good way to re-coop (no pun intended) some of your extortionate council tax... Around my way (and spreading throughout the country quickly) is the use of wheelie bins for the disposal of garden/organic waste. Where I live, they give these away to anyone who wants one, to promote recycling. If you requested a small one, you could get it free, and it would be wheelie and everything! Hope it helps someone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 I guess if you are recycling your garden waste yourself it is morally acceptable to use a bin in this way. It costs the council a lot of money to get rid of people's garden waste. I like a wheelie bin because I wouldn't be able to budge a bin containing two sacks any other away, and I do need to move around in my brick shed. Wheelie bins are pretty robust plastic and are off the ground, so rats should not be a problem even in a wooden shed. But a rat would get through a cheap plastic dustbin in minutes, and I wouldn't use one of those. (If you don't believe in the strength and determination of rats, read the news item in yesterday's paper about the tragic case where rats gnawed through gas pipes and caused a house to explode.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shirl Posted August 10, 2007 Author Share Posted August 10, 2007 Would the rats cause disease by contaminating the feed or is it just a case of it would encourage rats and the feed would be gone quicker? It's just I store sacks of dog food in my garage and I've never had a problem with rats eating it so I'd be tempted to go for the cheap plastic bin as long as I wasn't risking my chooks health by doing so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 I am not sure whether birds can catch anything from rats except fleas, but you would be risking your own health: Weil's disease is just one of the nasty things that humans can get from rats. If you keep chickens you should do everything you can to keep rats away, and the most imporant precaution of all is to make food inaccessible to them. You and your neighbours will be overrun with them if you don't, as layers' pellets contain an antidote to rat poison. It is also sensible to bring all food in from the run every night. I used to be too lazy to do this, but after about a year the rats arrived, found the good life, and set up home in my shed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah 2 Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 Sarah 2 wrote: Apparently Ikea do them. I think they're about £5. robskyd wrote: Are they flat packed?!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shirl Posted August 10, 2007 Author Share Posted August 10, 2007 It is also sensible to bring all food in from the run every night. I used to be too lazy to do this, but after about a year the rats arrived, found the good life, and set up home in my shed. Yuck that's enough to make sure I do it every night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanchick Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 It is also sensible to bring all food in from the run every night. I used to be too lazy to do this, but after about a year the rats arrived, found the good life, and set up home in my shed. How do the rats get into the eglu run? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 They tunnel their way under the skirt: they are much brighter than foxes. The hole they make isn't very big, and I didn't even notice it. But I was aware that the food was being cleaned right out at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanchick Posted August 11, 2007 Share Posted August 11, 2007 Did you see droppings? Does it help if you move the grub up really high over night or can they climb up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted August 11, 2007 Share Posted August 11, 2007 I knew I had rats for three reasons: (1) The hens' food was being eaten at night. (2) There was a tunnel that started outside the run that came out inside the run under the middle of the Eglu. (3) I saw rats scurrying around the garden. Here's a picture of the rat entrance: As you can see, the rats have cleverly avoided the skirt and stood well back before tunnelling. My soil is light and sandy, and they had no trouble digging a very long tunnel to get in under the Eglu (where they built a nest) and then another tunnel out from underneath the Eglu into the run. Rats could hang upside down from the run if necessary to eat the food, so hanging the food higher would just make life difficult for the hens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanchick Posted August 11, 2007 Share Posted August 11, 2007 Gosh they are versatile aren't they! At least I know some signs to look out for now, thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
