How to get rid of rats in a chicken coop or shed using folk or chemical remedies, as well as scaring away

Background: Party Plague: Why Are Rats Dangerous?

How to deal with rats in Magadan? We continue to analyze the issue under the heading #Rat. After analyzing the opinion of users of social networks, the editors came to the conclusion that many Magadanians see cats as salvation. If the animals are allowed into the cellars, the rat issue will be resolved naturally, the commentators are convinced. According to experts, cats are not a panacea, and the rats themselves can successfully fight rats. Intraspecific control can be one of the beneficial, effective and simple ways to solve the problem. About cat-rat-catchers, rats-cannibals and the origins of the rat disaster in the city - in the material MagadanMedia.

How rats enter the chicken coop

A chicken coop is a special room for keeping hens. In winter, it is warm and dry. Feeders, full grains, compound feed and laid eggs all attract rats. The animals begin hunting at night and easily enter the building through cracks, a clay floor, and an open hole. Even a chicken coop towering on stilts is not a problem for rats. They will penetrate there anyway, especially since rodents easily move along an inclined surface. In a barn, pests appear in the same way as in a chicken coop.

You can understand that rats have appeared in the room by the following signs:

the smell of ammonia;
noise, fuss, stomp;
holes in the floor and walls;
excrement in the form of black small lumps;
the appearance of holes on food and grain bags.

Rats are very fond of eating eggs.

How rats harm laying hens

If small rodents appear in the hen house, then the chickens react aggressively to them: they catch and eat. But they treat rats with caution. The bird is not able to cope with this rodent on its own. With its appearance in the hen house, the layers become restless, the number of eggs decreases.

If you do not deal with pests, troubles are inevitable:

Rats cause discomfort to chickens during sleep by biting the scales on their legs. This causes the birds to be stressed and over time they will become less likely to lay eggs and gain weight more slowly.
Rodents steal and eat eggs. Although most rats eat plant foods and grains, this tasty product is hard for them to refuse.
They spoil and destroy the blanks intended for chickens: they will happily eat grain, mixed feed, vegetables and vitamin supplements. Roots spoiled by rats rot, and dangerous microorganisms appear in them.
Young animals and chicks are strangled. Chickens do not always have time to help their babies, and rats easily kill chickens. Rodents do not attack adult birds.
They are destroying the chicken coop. Sharp teeth gnaw holes and crevices in the floor.
They spread the infection. The animals love to climb dumps and garbage dumps, while bringing from there pathogens that are dangerous for both birds and humans.
They carry parasites on their fur. Penetrating into the chicken coop, rats can infect chickens with fleas, scabies mites, helminths.

When interacting with rats, chickens can become infected with lice and fleas

As soon as you notice the traces of rats staying in the hen house or shed, you should immediately start killing the rodents. After all, they not only undermine the health of birds and animals, but also damage the premises. Gnawing holes and digging passages for their free movement, the animals destroy the structure built by man.

Ways to get rid of rats

For a long time, people have become accustomed to getting rid of rodents on their own, using scarers, traps, and various installations. Chemicals for rat control are now popular. You can try biological, mechanical and folk methods.

Biological

Everyone knows that the most ordinary cat is a great danger to rats. Therefore, an easy way to get rid of rodents is to have this pet. A thoroughbred pet is unlikely to hunt, but a simple yard cat that lives not in the house itself, but next to it, will be happy to catch animals. Even just a feline smell can scare away rats.

If, in addition to chickens, there are geese or turkeys on the farm, then they are also good helpers in the fight against rodents. If at night a rat climbs into a poultry house or shed, then they will make a noise, begin to cackle, thereby frightening off the pest.

Or you can try to tame a hedgehog. It is dangerous to rats. It is necessary to pour milk into the container and put it in the chicken coop overnight, because it is at this time of the day that the rodents are especially active.

Some dog breeds, such as the terrier and the dachshund, also hunt rodents, but for this they need to be trained.

A surefire way to get rid of rats is to get a cat.

Mechanical

When catching rats in a hen house by mechanical means, you need to proceed with caution. Traps and traps are most often placed near nests with eggs. However, the rodent is smart and bypasses a dangerous structure for him, unlike a chicken and a chicken. Therefore, you need to arrange traps so that adult birds and their offspring do not fall into the trap.

You can equip traps with glue. But this bait is only suitable for small mice or rats. Large animals will break out of it.

The easiest way to catch a rat is to use a plastic bottle or jar. Its walls are coated with sunflower oil. To do this, you can pour it inside and shake it so that it spreads along the walls. Next, a piece of sausage or bacon is placed in the container. The reliability of the rat trap is that it can be installed anywhere in the house. The chicken will not get into it, and the rat, having climbed inside, will not be able to get back.

There is an interesting way to get rid of rats with a barrel or bucket. An unnecessary container is filled with water to the middle, and a piece of wood is placed on top with lard, smoked meat or other bait adapted on it. A board is placed at an angle to the bucket (so that the rat can climb to the bait along it) and the structure is placed in the poultry house. The pest, running for a tasty smell, will be in the bucket.

Video: homemade rat trap

Folk methods

Unpleasant guests like rats should be disposed of as soon as possible. But if the money does not allow you to purchase an expensive trap, you can use the old folk methods. Distinguish between humane and inhuman methods.

Methods for exterminating rats:

Furnace ash, scattered on the floor, has a detrimental effect on rats. The alkali, which is part of it, sticks to the legs of the animals and eats them away. When the rodent begins to lick them, the ash enters the oral apparatus and esophagus, causing tissue necrosis and the death of the pest.
You can make a deadly bait that contains alabaster, flour, lime and sugar in equal proportions. Rats love delicious food and will not be able to refuse hearty delicacies. Once inside the body, the mixture corrodes the esophagus, the organs get burned, and the animal dies.
A mixture of equal amounts of cornmeal and gypsum is an excellent remedy.It is necessary to dilute it with milk to the consistency of soft dough, make balls and place in the corners of the chicken coop. Eaten bait hardens in the rat's stomach, causing death.

You can scare off a rat in the following ways:

Spread thorny plants on the floor of the house. For example, burdock or rat-rat, aka black root. The animals, running around the hen house, attach thorns to the wool, from which it is difficult for them to get rid of. They won't dare to raid next time.
You can fight rats with the help of some plants. The smell of wild rosemary, onion, mint, elderberry has a deterrent effect. If you use dry grass or onions, then you need to chop the product and spread it on the floor, not forgetting to shove it into the holes. Peppermint can also be used as an infusion: take a small piece of cloth, soak it in the solution and put it in rat shelters.
Rodents have a well-developed sense of smell, they perfectly feel the smell of burning and, frightened, take flight. Therefore, you can get rid of rats in a chicken coop with the help of singed wool or an unwearable collar or hat. The poultry house is fumigated with a smoking piece. The animals, smelling the smell of burning, will begin to save themselves and leave the chicken coop.

Video: an unusual way to drive out rats

Ultrasonic

If folk methods have not brought results, and rats continue to visit the hen house and shed, then you can use an ultrasonic device, which is not intended to kill rodents, but to scare them away. The sounds emitted by the structure are not heard by humans and birds, but they are very unpleasant for rats. The animals begin to panic, feel discomfort and fear. Although people do not hear ultrasound, it is better to turn off the repeller when they are in the hen house, since its vibrations are harmful to the body.

There are two types of ultrasonic scarers: household and industrial. The first is battery operated and is suitable for use in a small chicken coop, as it works for a small area. In addition, when discharged, it quickly fails. An industrial repeller is powered by electricity, installed in a chicken coop or shed with a large area and turned on without the presence of people. The most famous brands of ultrasonic devices are Grad, Tornado and Typhoon.

Rats do not tolerate ultrasound, so they will leave the chicken coop if you install a special repeller there.

Chemical

On poultry farms or in large chicken coops, the gassing method is used. The room is treated by spraying chemicals. The birds are quarantined for the duration of the quarantine. At home, it is undesirable to use this method; it is better to do it for professionals from the pest control service.

A simpler and more affordable method of eliminating rats is the use of poisons. The poison spread over the coop plays the role of bait. The smell that it emits is pleasant to rodents. After trying it, the rat dies within a few days or even hours. However, you need to be careful and careful when choosing this method. The aroma emanating from pesticides attracts not only rodents, but also domestic animals and chickens. Therefore, you need to scatter or lay out the bait in places that are less accessible to birds. When working with toxic substances, gloves should be worn, and at the end of the process, be sure to wash your hands with soap and water. For greater effectiveness, the drugs need to be changed, since rats quickly get used to the same agent.

Table: Popular rat killing agents

A drug	Properties
Ratin	The substance is available in ampoules. A mixture is being prepared: preparation, sunflower oil, grains or seeds. The resulting composition is laid out at the entrance to the burrows. The rodent dies 2 minutes after consuming the poison.
Goliath	This drug takes effect on the twelfth day, so it is not suitable for those who want to quickly destroy rats.After consuming the substance, rodents experience oxygen starvation, and they try to get out of the chicken coop into the air as soon as possible, which subsequently eases the problem of cleaning the corpses of animals.
Ratid	There are drugs Ratid-1 and Ratid-2. Release form - granules. One pack contains 40 pieces. One package is enough to kill rats in a poultry house. Ratid-2 is an improved version of the first version of the drug. It contains an additive that allows you to mummify a corpse.

Photo gallery: rat control chemicals

The most effective method of killing rats is the use of special chemicals consisting of poisonous bait

Some types of poisons, for example, Ratid-1, contain mummifying components

Goliath is considered one of the strongest rats to fight.

Will cats help?

Cats will help solve the problem of increasing the number of rats in the city, some Magadan residents are sure. Users expressed their opinion here and here.

History confirms the successful use of cats to solve this problem.

The most striking example is the besieged Leningrad. Before the war, cats, unnoticed by others, performed an important function day after day - they controlled the rat population. During the blockade, the number of animals in the city was reduced to zero, both domestic and outdoor. But more and more rats appeared on the streets of the city. In January 1943, the blockade was broken. Realizing the scale of the catastrophe caused by the rats in the city, the military command ordered "to issue and deliver to Leningrad four carriages of smoky cats." The choice fell on Yaroslavl, where smoky cats, considered the best rat-catchers, were found in abundance.

Four carriages were not enough, in addition there were such a number of rats that they gave their natural enemies a serious rebuff. Often it was the cats that became the victims in the fights. The blockade was completely lifted only at the end of January 1944. Then another batch of cats was sent to Leningrad, which this time were recruited in Siberia, mainly in Irkutsk, Omsk and Tyumen.

In memory of what cats and cats did for the city, in 2000 in St. Petersburg, at number 8 on Malaya Sadovaya, a sculpture of the cat Elisha was installed, and on the contrary, at number 3, a statue of his girlfriend, the cat Vasilisa, Ridus reports.

Cats still protect the country's cultural heritage from rodents in the Hermitage.

The following breeds were recognized as the best rat-catchers: Siberian cat, Maine Coon, Kurilian Bobtail, European Shorthair, Kimrik, British Shorthair, Russian Blue.

How to protect birds and animals when using poisons

When destroying rodents with pesticides, it must be remembered that not only rats can suffer. The poison is also of interest to chickens. They will also want to try it, so you need to lay out the poison in places inaccessible to birds and pets. A poisoned rat is also a danger. She can be eaten by a cat, after which she, most likely, will also die. To ensure the safety of chickens and animals, you must follow a few simple rules:

If using poison, move the chickens to a different house or separate building. In a rodent shed, spread the poisonous substance. After the death of rats, thoroughly clean the room. Check for dead rodents under the hay. Remove the old flooring with the remains of the poison and cover it with a clean one, and only then place the birds back in the chicken coop.
If there is no spare chicken coop, another chicken-safe method can be used. Place the poison in a wooden box, preferably with a hinged lid. Make through holes in it so that the rodent gets inside. There should be two holes, because in the absence of an exit from the box, the rat will not climb into a closed room. Having caught a delicious aroma, the animal will run into the box.Neither chickens nor other animals will be able to get inside and will remain safe. To prevent the box from falling or being overturned by birds, place something heavy on it.
Provide a metal mesh fence to the chicks. Install protection not only on the sides, but also on top.

Ultrasonic scarers

Ultrasonic rodent repeller
Modern and more humane rodent control methods can also be used. We are talking about ultrasonic repellents with deterrent properties. Such devices are based on the emission of ultrasonic vibrations, the sound from which forces mice and rats to leave the territory they occupy. These signals are not perceived by the human ear.

Important!
Ornamental hamsters and guinea pigs are also capable of responding to the effects of ultrasonic vibrations.

Manufacturers guarantee a positive result after 2-4 weeks of continuous operation of the ultrasonic rodent repeller. However, in practice, few people were able to verify the effectiveness of such funds.

Prophylaxis

To prevent rats from descending into a shed or chicken coop, the following simple rules must be observed:

It is better to use bricks in the construction of a hen house that cannot be gnawed. Reinforce galvanized mesh around the entire perimeter of the house. The floor should consist of a concrete base with added fiberglass. Straw is poured on top for insulation and moisture adsorption. The door to the chicken coop should close tightly.
You need to regularly ventilate the room.
It is imperative to monitor the cleanliness in the chicken coop and outside, to carry out sanitization, to take out the garbage on time.
It is important to provide good access to light.
Strong-smelling plants (chamomile, mint, wormwood) should be planted around the chicken coop and shed.
To prevent the rat from dragging the egg, the nests should be located at a height of about 40-50 cm from the floor.
You do not need to leave stocks of feed and grain in the chicken coop for a long time or overnight.

Compliance with all the rules for building a chicken coop will help protect chickens from uninvited guests in the form of rats.