[newchic]

We have a few hens, now in our 2nd year (went as high as 6, now down to 3). We live amidst farm land and last year we saw signs of rats around the hens (they free range inside electric fencing) - we bought a trap, tried all sorts of bait and caught nothing (rats would come in, take the bait (even when tied on!) and leave.. or just not even bother with the bait). 

Cutting back on the bird feeder we didn't see much for a while, but NOW they're back. We've seen 2-3 in daylight, bold as brass, the day we filled the birdfeeder - muching right under it (where the leftovers get tossed). Since then we've seen them in daylight a few times and just now I was out feeding the hens their afternoon meal and something caught my eye in the door of the hen house. I kept my eye on it and walked towards the house - and voila - a rat standing in the doorway looking at me. It came out and went under the house when I got close - looking in I can see it had made a burrow in the straw in the bottom of the house - settling down for a warm winter's nap I guess! At the moment the hens aren't laying but when they do they just lay on the floor (not in the nest box)

Now I'm worried - we shut the hens in usually after dark - how do I do this now, worrying a rat/s could well be inside for the night! We have 2 (large) cochins and barnevelder bantam - should I be worried that a rat could hurt/kill the bantam (she's not a small bantam but still a bantam).

The strange thing is the rat in the house has a white face and partly white body - is this a rat that could have been a pet? I read that all wild rats are a shade of brown or black..

And of course the other (huge) issue is what to do about the rats!?  OH doesn't seem bothered, even though I've told him they can carry serious disease. We have cats and loads of birds around (pheasant country)

Advice and info SO appreciated!

p.s. the hen house has a metal floor and is up on legs and resting on a shipping 'thingy'. I think we'll move it closer to our house and I guess get some wire mesh around the exterior/base but don't know what to do about the door - can't keep it shut and keep the hens out!

[orchardlady]

Rats can never be totally eradicated. My advice would be to consult a professional pest controller. Ask around locally for recommendations. They can be expensive but they will have been very carefully trained and know what poisons really work to use. They also have to have special training to handle and lay some of these. They should be able  to advise you on the hen house situation. At a guess they will put a box in there with bait that the rat can access but not your hens.
Maybe the rat with the white markings is indeed an escapee pet or maybe a descendant of one. We get black and apricot baby bunnies around here which I'm sure are the descendants of domestic pets.

[daisy1990]

we rang our local council environmental health department when we had one rat near our garage (before we kept hens).  He was great quoted us a fixed price (about £40 I think) and he came back several times until he was sure the problem was gone.  I think you can end up spending a lot on buying your own traps/poisons etc and unless you know what you are doing could still have a problem

[darkbrowneggs]

OH doesn't seem bothered, even though I've told him they can carry serious disease. We have cats and loads of birds around (pheasant country)

Tell him rats can and do eat eggs, kill and eat young birds, and will partly eat a larger bird if they get brave enough.  I have had the leg eaten off a grower - just the bone left yuck !!! and three ducklings eaten alive and just the fluff left.  I am 100 per cent certain it was rats as I left the empty pen as it was put in some rat poison and within a few days there were 5 young rats dead in there.

Also they will eat any eggs that the birds lay that you haven't collected, and don't forget wherever a rat walks there is a trail of pee, as unlike most other animals they do not have sphincter to their bladder, and the wee just trails out as it is produced.  Add to that what they have walked through/eaten before and it is pretty unappealing to have around your potential food source of eggs, which obviously have porous shells.

I have an opinion that there is no such thing as one rat and two rats means lots of rats in a very short time.  Our own homes make very inviting premises to the average rat, and they make very noisy night time residents, plus will happily gnaw through any exposed electric wiring in the loft and plastic pipes etc.

Just sending this as ammunition to stir your OH into action

Where there is livestock you will generally get rats, the trick is to keep on top of them before they get a headstart. 

All the best
Sue

[newchic]

Thanks alot for your responses on this. Since my message we moved the hen house close to our house, but still inside the electric fencing. Amazingly - within an hour we saw 3 different rats (midday) cruising on down to the house's new location (we have a hedge running close to it). We realised we didn't have the electric fencing on, so we did this - moved the house further away from the hedge, and waited. It was a hoot to see 2 different rats touch the electrified fence - they didn't like it.

Entertainment aside, OH has now jumped on the cause (after I showed him the news article about the rower who died in the autumn from Weil's disease). I also went on line and having read up on it, bought a rat zapper - so we'll see what that'll do. I'm really not keen on the poison idea, though I guess we'll try whatever that'll make a difference at this point.. Probably we'll call in the pros if the zapper doesn't show some results.

Thanks again

[richyrich7]

Try making a bit of a tunnel alongside that hedge or other "side" they prefer to run along edges rather than open ground. Put you rat zapper or a fen trap ( no need to bait )inside it, making sure they can't go around it and that any mechanism can work in the confines.  I hate rats but I do enjoy trying to outsmart them and kill a few 

[billathome65]

I'm really not keen on the poison idea, though I guess we'll try whatever that'll make a difference at this point.. Probably we'll call in the pros if the zapper doesn't show some results.

Thanks again

Sorry to say this but poison is probably your best bet Rats are a hazard to the hens your home and your health. If you know someone with ferrets get some smelly ferret waste and spread it round as this will deter them but you really do need poison and a few rat traps.

Cheers Bill