gavclojak Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Oh my gosh the title says it all, I came home from work last night about 7 put the garden light on and saw a massive rat run across the enclosure, I was horrified and I put the light on every now and then and he was still there!!! I don't know how he got in, or where he is hiding as I was out there moving stuff with a massive stick that gandalf himself would have been proud of, I have 6 foot feather edge fence three sides and across the front a galvanised frame. I have galvanised wire buried under the fence with concrete slabs on top...every little hole is bunged and staplesd with wire as I was worried mice might get in, now I'm wishing it was mice..... Food and water is put away every night so what's his deal!!! I'm going to look this afternoon in the light and see if there are any tunnels, im horrified.... Edit...just been out to investigate and I can honestly see no means of Ingress, no holes no tunnels..zero, nitch, nada, that little bleep must be a member of seal team 6.....how do you defeat an enemy like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimi5 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Poor you! What a I totally live in fear of this as I don't have my set up on slabs.......just on bare earth covered with woodchip!! You'll have to play detective to track down how/where he has access. Could you set up some kind of camera? Keep us posted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beantree Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 We used to keep a rabbit trap baited with apples to catch the really big ones Gavclojak. They will be picking up pieces of feed dropped in the run. Good you are lifting the water because they can't stray far from a supply of that. I say 'they' because I would bet there is more than one. They can squeeze through a hole or gap half their apparent size, so that's what you are looking for. Of course the really cheeky ones will feed in the daytime, right in front of your eyes. So the next stage is controlling the problem, which is a legal requirement anyway. If you go for baited snap traps make sure they are covered so the chickens can't get to them (or anything else). We used to stake them down because otherwise the rats run off with them. We never use poison. We had most success with unbated Fenn4 snap traps laid in the rat runs under roof ridge tiles. This is a whole subject on it's own, because you will catch rats that are not dead and it is illegal to drown them (RSPCA case). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LunaKiw1 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Have you got an Eglu? We found a tunnel coming up right under ours once - where the slightly raised bit is at the front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindig Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Ewwww how horrible for you! I live in a suburban part of a small city. A year or two ago (before we had chickens) we spotted a rat in the garden - as did a neighbour two doors down. We called the council, who found the rat nest under decking in the middle house - if you see one rat, the reality is likely to be a whole family, who will rapidly expand if not controlled. Our council charges about £15 for getting rid, but they will use poison. Whilst I don't like the use of poison, it is an effective means of dealing with the problem and in a suburban setting I decided I could live with that approach. The council came out, put the poison in covered areas near the nest, and came back a week later to re-bait if necessary and remove any dead bodies they found. Usually they hide away to die though. I thought it was an excellent service and definitely worth the money to have someone else deal with it! There is a high brick wall with ivy between us and the neighbour on but the council guy said they really have no trouble getting over walls, fences etc - anywhere really. I even saw a program which said that if sewers have a crack, they can chew through concrete to gain access to houses under floorboards. Yuck! So unfortunately, much though I believe that even rats are part of nature, getting rid is the only way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 I can honestly say I couldn't find a gap small enough to fit a pen through, but its clearly getting in somewhere. problem for me is I have a huge compost heap from adjoining neighbours flats behind my back fence and my Russian next door neighbour has 2 compost bins next to the other side of my fence....so annoying!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daphne Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 They really are vile creatures. The first time I encountered them I got the council out and they did an effective job of poisoning them, but boy does a rat stink when its crawled under a shed to die After that, on the rare occasions I found one/some annoying the hens (including a rat run in the eglu run and under the house I seem to remember) I used bait traps and they did work. I wore disposable gloves so the trap didn't smell too much of me, just the alluring peanut butter which they are supposed to like Rats and compost bins do seem to go together. I tried putting a bin over weldmesh (apparently they don't like chewing wire) but it was a real pain to get the compost out of the bin. I have 8 compost bins in the garden and it does annoy me that I'm trying to do the right thing by composting, but I know I get rats in there too. I have read that you can minimise the rats if you put no food waste in the bin at all but I don't know if its true. It goes against the grain to just throw away peelings etc. The final straw came one day when I was taking ripe compost out to use and came across a rat nest in there full of pink hairless baby rats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandmashazzie Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 I have my WIR on slabs and thought I would be safe.Eek I have seen 2 rats in garden and assumed they could not get in run.We had council out yesterday and if you own house they only offer advice ie put down poison.Will be ordering some from Amazon,don't think I could cope with the dead or semi dead in trap Beantree,although at least you know you've got them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 It's back!!! But I know where he is getting it, it's behind my storage bin and as I suspected they are coming in from next door! I am going to spend the weekend blocking up those small holes and I am going to put a bait box behind the storage box! In one way I'm glad I found where he was getting in because earlier I was baffled! I too couldn't face finding them in a trap! Eeekkkks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Thank goodness you've found its entry point . Good luck with the bait! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimi5 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Well done you Ace rat detective I'm afraid compost heaps are notorious for rats!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 5, 2015 Author Share Posted March 5, 2015 Found it...I knew it was getting in behind the storage box so moved it out this morning and couldn't see anything, no gaps, holes nothing again I was baffled but I was concentrating my efforts on the ground, I happened to look up and have seen a hole chewed through the netting that covers the top four foot of the front of the enclosure......so it climbs up 4 foot of the mesh and gets in through the hole. I thought it made a racket trying to escape when I saw it last night, well now I know!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PixieDust Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Well done. We have a compost heap but there are no food stuffs put on it. Hopefully they will keep away. Never say never though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orangediva Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I'm actually a bit of a rodent fan - the domesticated sort anyway - but even I'd be horrified by a wild one in my chicken run Here's hoping, with 3 cats (including an ex farm trained killer), I never will. If you lived nearer I could lend him to you!!! I have a compost bin and am planning a new one for all my lovely chicken poo. One tip to deter rats is to regularly pour cold water ( or cold comfrey/nettle tea) in after turning the contents. Apparently they soon realise there's no comfy home there for them. Any other tips gratefully received! Good luck getting rid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickabee Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I have just invested in an electric rodent killer. It states that it's humane. My visitors have somehow worked out how to get the bait off a trap without being caught. Every time I set the trap I catch my hand, I've no idea how they manage it. They're really fierce traps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daphne Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Now you know where the blighter is getting in you can take steps to prevent it happening again It seems we all have horrible rat stories - a friend of mine once had to confront a rat in her hallway in a London flat About pouring water into the compost, a better tip would be to pour in boiling water, so you don't counteract the heat build up as this helps to break down the heap. However, I know from experience that the rats come in the bottom, which is a good 3 foot from the top, and I don't think much water would penetrate down, at least not enough to deter them much Still shuddering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orangediva Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 About pouring water into the compost, a better tip would be to pour in boiling water, so you don't counteract the heat build up as this helps to break down the heap. However, I know from experience that the rats come in the bottom, which is a good 3 foot from the top, and I don't think much water would penetrate down, at least not enough to deter them much : My aim was to give them a cold water shock - boiling water would do that too! I wonder if there's such a thing as a rat resistant compost bin? With a skirt like a chicken run perhaps? Or edges that you bury into the ground? I realise rat proof is never going to happen I think turning compost really, really regularly ought to at least deter them as they won't have chance to get comfy in a nest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daphne Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Yes, I'm sure you are right - very regular turning probably would help, but I have to admit I can't face grappling with what feels like a ton of compost, its hard work even getting it out of the bin, never mind the mess each time and the sheer effort of turning it over properly. I think my homemade weldmesh bottom did help a bit, that bin probably had less rat action than the others. The skirt issue is less important as rats can tunnel a long way, its the provision of a barrier that they can't chew through which helps. I'm sure if you marketed something halfway helpful you would make some money at it, we can't be the only ones with rat problems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PixieDust Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Just inspected the run and there is a small hole starting at the front big enough for a mouse and a small rat at a push. It was where we couldn't dig the wire in because of the post concrete. It's a very small area. However, on the front of the run the barge boards are behind the poles and the wire attached to the poles, whereas on the other 3 sides the boards are on the outside and the wire is attached to the boards. It was because of having to have a kick board behind the door. OH is informed and will be on the case. Hopefully he can bring something useful home from work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 I read a power hose down the hole is OK and I don't know who said that - someone on here I think. If you use traps try not to handle them - put gloves on, rub dirt in - even chicken poop to cover human smell. Anything smelling of people makes them wary. I loved our pet rats - but these ones in the wild are fine when they stay away. Not fine and pest spreaders closer to hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mars Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Power hose in the hole is not ok, water can splash out and get into your eyes, theoretically you can get leptospirosis this way. But water hose is very effective The only time I had rat problem was when I had composters, they were supposed to be rat proof, but rats chewed holes at the bottom. in the chicken house I use treadle feeders. and I don't see rats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
