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If rats get into the chicken coop, they will cause irreparable damage to it. Rodents steal eggs, choke chickens, scare chickens. But the main danger is that they are carriers of dangerous infections. Knowing how to get rid of rats in a chicken coop can eliminate this problem forever.
The difficulty of fighting rats in a chicken coop also lies in the fact that not all means can be used in it. Traps and poison are also dangerous for chickens, so you need to choose methods that are effective against rats and harmless to birds and other domestic animals.
Signs of rodents
The presence of rats can be determined by some characteristic signs:
- traces laid on the dusty floor along which the routes of their movement pass;
- presence of rat droppings;
- marks of teeth - they gnaw everything that comes in their way;
- the appearance of an ammonia odor;
- the appearance of small holes at the junction of walls and foundation;
- pieces of eggshell.
Harm from rats
A chicken coop is a haven for rodents. There is always something for rats to profit from:
- Bird food is often stored in the chicken coop;
- animals strangle chicks and even attack young hens;
- they also carry eggs.
There is an interesting legend about how rats steal eggs from a chicken coop - having grabbed the egg with all four paws, the rodent lies on its back, and the second rat drags it by the tail into the hole. Despite the intelligence and ingenuity of these animals, this theory does not yet have factual confirmation, except for images on artistic canvases. Most likely, the rat pushes the egg in front of it into the shelter, and there it gnaws through it and eats the contents.
Construction of a chicken coop
The appearance of rats in the chicken coop should be anticipated during its construction. Rodents are able to get into a room through small cracks in the foundation or roof. Therefore, the base of the chicken coop must be deep; places for laying baits that are inaccessible to birds must be marked in advance. The floor is covered with a mixture of broken glass and crushed stone, which will prevent rats from visiting. Before birds move into a room, it is fumigated with sulfur.
Folk recipes
If you notice traces of rats in the chicken coop, you should immediately get rid of them. There are many time-tested folk methods for this.
Wood ash
Ash is considered an ancient remedy against these animals. It should be scattered on the floor in the chicken coop at the rate of one bucket of ash per several square meters of area. Sticking to the paws and fur of rodents, ash will have an irritating effect on them due to the alkalis it contains. When licked from the paws, the ash enters the animal's stomach, causing ulcers on the gastric mucosa. Rodents will quickly leave this place.
Lime and gypsum against rats in the chicken coop
Mix equal quantities of lime, flour and sugar and place them in secluded places. Place a container of water nearby.Rodents eat this treat with pleasure and get burns to their mucous membranes from exposure to lime.
An effective remedy is a mixture of gypsum and flour in a 1:1 ratio. You need to place a bowl of water next to it. Once in the rodent's stomach, the mixture will harden and cause the death of the pest.
other methods
In the chicken coop they place a barrel filled to the middle with water, and throw pieces of meat, cheese or lard into it. Next to the barrel, a kind of ladder is built from old boxes so that rodents can easily climb it. In the morning, all the “night visitors” will end up in a barrel.
The following method helps get rid of rats in a chicken coop for at least a year. Douse the carcass of a dead rat with alcohol or kerosene and set it on fire. Having placed it on a shovel, you need to go around the chicken coop, fumigating the entire room. Pests will avoid this smell.
A simple and affordable way to deal with rats in a chicken coop is vodka. After crumbling bread crumbs into it, pour it into a saucer and place it inside a box with holes. Usually, a few days of using the product is enough for the rats in the chicken coop to disappear.
Poisonous plants
To combat rats in the chicken coop, many homeowners use poisonous plants. We must remember that some of them can also harm chickens, so you need to lay them out carefully.
- The seeds of the tropical chilibuha plant contain poisonous alkaloids.. After mixing them with sugar and raisins, you need to grate stearin into this mass and place it in the corners of the chicken coop, and scatter the boiled beans around. The product allows you to eliminate the problem with rats within a few days.
- Autumn crocus blooms in the summer months. All its parts are very poisonous. To prepare 200 grams of the product, only 10 grams of the plant are required.Finely chopped, mixed with seeds or cereals and scattered in the corners of the room. The smell will be more pronounced if the seeds are roasted. You can pour the product directly into holes and holes.
- Rats also cannot stand the smell of bird cherry, mint or broom. You can use pharmaceutical essential oil instead of natural mint. After soaking a cloth in it, just put it in the rodent's hole.
- Many people place branches of black or red elderberry in all corners of the chicken coop to protect them from rats., the smell of which animals cannot stand. You can also plant elderberry bushes around. The plant contains hydrocyanic acid, which repels rodents.
- In the fight against rats in the poultry house burdock or ratwort planted around it helps, in other words, medicinal black root. Their spines firmly cling to the fur of rodents, so they try to stay away from these plants.
Rats cannot tolerate the smell of various chemicals. They will be scared away:
- a rag soaked in kerosene or turpentine;
- sawdust mixed with naphthalene;
- the smell of acetylene when water is added to calcium carbide.
Animal help
Cats are good helpers in the fight against rats. Of course, not everyone is able to cope with them. You need to choose a breed of rat-catcher cat. However, even the very presence of a cat and its smell will scare away rats in the chicken coop.
Some dog breeds, such as dachshunds and fox terriers, are excellent helpers in the fight against rodents. They strangle the animals and pile them up.
Many experienced poultry farmers keep geese and chickens in the coop. They have a very sensitive sleep, allowing them to react to any noise. When night guests appear, they make noise, driving away pests. If necessary, geese can even engage in battle with the rats in the chicken coop and defeat them.
To repel rats in the chicken coop, it is good to keep along with chickens and turkeys. At any rustle they will make noise, warning of uninvited strangers.
One of the main enemies of rats is the hedgehog. If you lure him into the chicken coop, there will be no problems with rodents.
Mechanical methods
A simple rat trap is easy to make on your own:
- a piece of cheese is attached to the bottom of the glass;
- the glass is placed upside down on the edge of the coin;
- a rat will crawl under a glass for cheese;
- at this moment it will jump off the coin, and the rodent will be trapped.
There is another option for a homemade trap that is safe for chickens:
- You should pour a little vegetable oil into the bottle and shake it to lubricate its walls with oil;
- widen the neck slightly so that a rodent can get in;
- put cheese or a piece of meat inside as bait.
The rat will get into the bottle and, sliding along the walls, will not be able to get out.
If ordinary traps or live traps are placed against rats in the chicken coop, then you need to make sure that they are safe for the inhabitants of the chicken coop. The traps are placed in a special box with small holes on the sides. Through them, rodents enter the box and fall into traps. Now trade offers a variety of containers in which you can place both traps and bait. However, due to their high cost, they are not popular.
When using traps, you should also take into account that rats in a chicken coop often manage to pull out the bait without getting caught in the trap.
Repellers
Today there is a large selection of devices on the market that generate ultrasonic waves. The human ear does not perceive them, but causes panic in rats in the chicken coop.
Exposure to ultrasound causes rodents to flee.Trade offers two types of such devices:
- low-power, battery-powered, have a short range - they are ineffective in the volume of the chicken coop;
- powerful repellers that operate from an electrical network are suitable for large rooms.
It is important to choose the right device. It should have different operating patterns and the ability to adjust the sound strength. The device operates only in that part of space where the sound waves are directed; there should be no obstacles in their path. The device is harmless to chickens, but humans should not stay in the area of the device for a long time.
If you plan to use poison to kill rats in the chicken coop, it is best to transfer the chickens to another room at this time. After cleaning the chicken coop and disinfecting it, you can return the birds back.
Having gotten rid of rats in the chicken coop, preventive measures should be taken in the future so that rodents no longer disturb poultry with their presence.
