Rats, Rats

[mjarrels]

Looks like by the second page, this will be another firearms thread?

mark

 

[WayneB]

Well, there is one less than there was just a little while ago. There were three out and about but, after the first kill, the others went into hiding. The trouble we have is the chicken feed that is in the yard, seems to be great rat food. Poison isn't an option cause of the birds, and she won't use poison for anything anyway. We've used live traps with some sucess but, if the birds are in the pen, they trip them.

How are you storing the grain / feed supplies? I know every single time we had animals the Norway Rats (hairy brown rats) would show up about a week later. They just seem to know where the grain is located. We kept all of the grain in sealed cans, but we did have grain out for the pigs and that was the attraction. I set traps, killed a few with the gun, but there was no way to be free of them.

I tried everything to keep them down, but in you have constant feeders I don't believe there is any way you will be able to control them. As soon as we stopped having animals the rats left too.

I was always told if you see them you have more than you can count. Good luck with your hunting.

Wayne

 

[shvl73]

We have all our grain in galvanized barrels in the barn. The problem is the birds are fed out in their pen with layer pellets and scratch feed. The birds scatter it around a bit and the tubs we put it in, the rats can access. I have no doubt that there are many of them living off us. I just saw one scampering about but, I can't shoot them when the spouse is home. We have a barn cat that does help out some, especially with mice. I'll just keep at it and see if she'll start live trapping them again. That will at least keep the numbers down.

 

[MossRoad]

Uh, how 'bout rat traps?

 

[shvl73]

Uh, how 'bout rat traps?

The problem is they're in the pen with the birds and under the bird shed and the barn slab.
At night, when the birds are inside, the traps would work great. The problem is when you live with someone who doesn't want to kill ANYTHING. Thats how we started live trapping them and she would drive them 3 miles away and release them in an old cemetery. Thats also why I wait until she's gone to shoot them!
I tried the smoke bombs that you use on woodchucks and it was such a big production that I won't ask to try it again.

 

[texasjohn]

I read all of above.

Cat... good start. My preference is a female calico, they seem to always be good varment catchers... particularly when they have a litter.

Shoot... when possible, sight good, wife absent

Rat trap (snap trap)....continuously operating backup plan. Place in cat and chicken proof container, bait with peanut butter, empty regularly.

Realize that you will always be applying these principles, the rats are always with us!

 

[wushaw]

You need some rat snakes, They can go where the rats can and will stay around till there is no more food/rats left then will move on. I know most folks are scared of snakes but without them you think you have rats now....

 

[NSBound]

This reminds me of a story told by my old uncle on a farm he had in Nova Scotia. He used to tell a story about rats getting into the barrels of feed, which was a problem. However when the feed got down maybe 2/3 of the way in the barrel (here comes the gruesome part) the rats couldn't jump out, so along he would come with his 4-tine pitch fork and skewer one on each of the tines. Then he would throw them, dead, out into the yard. Much to his amazement, he thought they were somehow coming back to life, as he would go into the house, come out again, and they would all be gone! Well, he tried it again, laid the dead rats out in the barn yard, went in the house, and watched. What he saw was the hugest ravens, or maybe crows, he had ever seen in his life, and there are some big ones around here, latching onto these free meals, and hauling them off for him!

 

[bearhawk]

Uh, how 'bout rat traps?

I saw some Electronic Rat Zappers on ebay for 50 bucks.

I thought I would see if the local feed store has something like that.

 

[DieselPower]

That is some scope! -or- is it just a small rifle?

Don

Nope, it's a biggie. It's a Swarovski 6-18 Habicht .