[wadz81]

I saw it this morning it's not a mouse it's a rat! :ohmy:It's living under next doors garage saw it come out have ordered eradibait but think I will have to go to focus tonight and put it down outside the run when the cats come in for the night HORRIFYING!!!!!!!!!! :mad:Any ideas anyone I would be glad of all help poss thanks Kim and Pepsi (scared cat!)

[Tattyanne456]

We have a rat problem around here, although thankfully I havent seen any in my garden! I dont doubt they're about tho! My neighbour spoke to a vermin man ( ) and he recommended rat traps with kitkat inside. Honestly! The chocolate variety not the cat food! To date she has caught 3 rats. Its true!  They cant resist them.

[wadz81]

KitKat and traps on shopping list aswell thanks I will try anything

[poultrygeist]

Hi Wadz and Tattyanne.

Have a read of this sticky about rats...

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=9078.0

Some sound advice there.

Rob

[wadz81]

Been silly all weekend when I thought it was a mouse saying"don't want to kill it" but now I know it's a rat I feel different why is that? printed off the link and will look through it thanks

[Spadefighter]

  I hate the devils. Had them in our attic keeping me awake a few years ago. Ever since then, its war!!

Read an interesting article about rat poison the other day, apparently chicken feed contains a lot of vitamin C which acts as an antidote to many types apart from those containing difenacoum.

[8doubles]

Been silly all weekend when I thought it was a mouse saying"don't want to kill it" but now I know it's a rat I feel different why is that? printed off the link and will look through it thanks

Although mice are less scary than rats i`ve seen the damage they can do so its zero tolerance with them. I once removed a partition wall next to a macaw aviary  and the cavities were packed with sunflower seed husks next to live wires which had been chewed bare by the mice. The whole place was just waiting to go up in flames and kill some very expensive birds.
 Mice may look cute but what they do isn`t.

[Vember]

I seem to go through phases with rats ( ) At the moment I'm clear (touches wood)

I've been using eradibait and it seems to be working.

Might sound silly but if your using traps watch the rat, he will use the same route all the time then put traps slap bang in their runways. In the past I have caught more by actually watching them first than just popping traps here and there. The entrance hole to your chicken run is  a good place to start

I have been told that they wee once caught and this wee has a scent in that then deters other rats ( a warning wee ), so best to move the trap around after you've caught one

If you have some nooks and crannies i pop a sandwich bag in my corn bin bury it deep swirl it around a bit then get it out and fill with the eradibait and pop in a hole near the run, minimum handling once it's out of the corn bin so that the corn smell stays on the bag and not your scent. Works a treat

Also a note to any smokers in trials that took place at Bonkers year before last, don't set a trap whilst smoking or having just finished a smoke, they can smell it and wont go near.
Sounds silly maybe, but best results were again after putting hands in corn bin first


Sarah