Rats Rats Rats....

Future Farmer

Hi All,

Could do with some help with a rat problem?

Seem to have way more about the place, which we haven't really had before!

Have laid 3 kgs of rat poison in 3 days.

Need to find get a few cats too....

Anyone have any extra ideas?

Besides...
Taking away/reducing food source
Cannibal Rat

Need help... thanks.....

farmerjj

Future Farmer wrote: »

Hi All,

Could do with some help with a rat problem?

Seem to have way more about the place, which we haven't really had before!

Have laid 3 kgs of rat poison in 3 days.

Need to find get a few cats too....

Anyone have any extra ideas?

Besides...
Taking away/reducing food source
Cannibal Rat

Need help... thanks.....

storm rat cubes... Place them in pipes and watch them drop

rushvalley

Break up the poison blocks to make them eat it instead of storing it. Also something like grease/ butter mixed in the poison will help attract them.
Best of luck

youtube!

get a jack russell far better than any cat at catching rats

Farmer Pudsey

Plastic centres off round bale plastic use plastic kitchen gloves with ordinary plastic gloves inside, tread the blocks through wire( tyiny wire is the best) through the tubes.

The rat eats the poison and goes away and dies. If you keep a few all the time as rats come into the yard they will feed on it and go back to die in there holes outside the yard. Females will not be taking blocks back to there den . The young will die anyway after the mother dies.

Forget about cats poison is the most efficient around a yard. A cayt is grand around a domestic house but you need poison around a farm yard. Make sure to change you active ingredient after every 1-2 buckets. The advantage of the wire and plastic tubes with blocks is it keeps the blocks about 1'' off the bottom of the tube and this stop the poison going off.

tom_k

I also recommend Storm block bait. I wrap them 3 at a time in newspaper and place them in short lengths of pvc pipe in likely areas. The paper makes it easy to see if the poison's been tampered with and then you can quickly restock where they're taking it.

Using this for 10 years I'd say with excellent results.

tom_k

You were in just ahead of me Pudsey and I have to say I like your method.

Farmer Pudsey

tom_k wrote: »

You were in just ahead of me Pudsey and I have to say I like your method.

I have yet to come across a better method, it is cheap and cheerful. No buying expensive bait stations. It is great in that you can let one near the meal bin all the time and one in another one to two places. No worry about cats damaging bale silage. Easy to check lift one end by wire with a gloved hand and check activity. Great to put out around silage bales. Most blocks have holes or else you can thread wire through block. The old storm was the only one you could not but you can now with storm secure.

In September/October I would put out a good few around yard, any area that there is a lot of activity I just take a tube from elsewhere and you can replace when you have time. Put out blocks loose is a waste of time. Got loose bait once but found it got wet and unpalatable.

Future Farmer

Would ferrets work?

Viewtodiefor

Future Farmer wrote: »

Hi All,

Could do with some help with a rat problem?

Seem to have way more about the place, which we haven't really had before!

Have laid 3 kgs of rat poison in 3 days.

Need to find get a few cats too....

Anyone have any extra ideas?

Besides...
Taking away/reducing food source
Cannibal Rat

Need help... thanks.....

Forget about ferrets,cats,dogs etc take paudseys and tk advise and you'll solve your problem

Greengrass1

Peanut butter and loads of it.
Rats go absolute bonkers for it.
Get a bait box or a bale wrap tube. Put in your blocks and put peanut butter a over them or mash them up with it. You'll have no rats in a week

gavindublin

Would it be any help if i went and shot them?? On top of the other solutions?

gavindublin

Would it be any help if i went and shot them?? On top of the other solutions?

135man

Always wear gloves so the rat won't smell you because if he does it won't eat the bait

coolshannagh28

Rats are hard to deal with on a short term basis ,do as Pudsey says and check and replenish your bait points weekly and over time you will have no rat problems . To be fair to QA this is the accepted method enforced by them.

solerina

You would be better off getting grain type bait than storm cubes...rats tend to be hoarders and will take away the cubes whole and only when the entire amount are hidden will they eat one...this is why people often think they have more rats than they actually have. The only issue is some of the shop bought grain bait is very weak in strength. We bought a 5kg drum off a local pest control man in the last few years and havnt seen a rat since.. My sister in law was always complaining about rats even though she had loads of poison out...I gave her half of our and not a rat has been seen since. We put the grain in a length of waving pipe about 3-4 feet long and weighed down with a big stone so the dogs cant get at it.

A cow called Daisy

There story told around here about family from Dublin (people, not rats!) being asked how they liked living in the country compared to the city. Loved it they said but couldn't get over the size and number of rats they had around them but thought the 2 peacocks were fantastic. Thinking it a bit odd one lad offered to be neighbourly and call to investigate
When he called to house, these 'rats' turned out to be rabbits and the peacocks were phesants!!
Bit of a pity because peacock eggs are meant to be lovely, but very hard got!

Still have laugh to myself when i pass the house from time to time.

farmersfriend

A cow called Daisy wrote: »

There story told around here about family from Dublin (people, not rats!) being asked how they liked living in the country compared to the city. Loved it they said but couldn't get over the size and number of rats they had around them but thought the 2 peacocks were fantastic. Thinking it a bit odd one lad offered to be neighbourly and call to investigate
When he called to house, these 'rats' turned out to be rabbits and the peacocks were phesants!!
Bit of a pity because peacock eggs are meant to be lovely, but very hard got!

Still have laugh to myself when i pass the house from time to time.

Had a couple here from Dublin one day, we were walking down the yard when a couple of ducks waddled in front of them. Says your man-what sort of hens are they- his lady friend said that's a duck, and by the tone id say ie got an earful on the drive back! was trying very hard to keep a straight face...didn't succeed!

Farmer Pudsey

solerina wrote: »

You would be better off getting grain type bait than storm cubes...rats tend to be hoarders and will take away the cubes whole and only when the entire amount are hidden will they eat one...this is why people often think they have more rats than they actually have. The only issue is some of the shop bought grain bait is very weak in strength. We bought a 5kg drum off a local pest control man in the last few years and havnt seen a rat since.. My sister in law was always complaining about rats even though she had loads of poison out...I gave her half of our and not a rat has been seen since. We put the grain in a length of waving pipe about 3-4 feet long and weighed down with a big stone so the dogs cant get at it.

If you use bait blocks put them through wire, just wear gloves nothing to do with rats smelling you off blocks(it goes away after a while) rather as a H&S issue. The problem with grain bait is that it will get damp and mouldy if not eaten by rats after 1-2 weeks during the winter.

Block on wire in plastic tubes off bales will last for months. even if they discolour rats will eat through to palatable posion. Grain bailt goes off too easy. Any one putting out blocks not attached to something is wasting there time.

Capercaille

http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0CEYQFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.birdwatchireland.ie%2FLinkClick.aspx%3Flink%3D1373%26tabid%3D85&ei=Lb53U_GoBuaN7Aaz4IAo&usg=AFQjCNFsRmIg5U1nE6putXVxjtlrPnVcHw&sig2=cmxXpKNf1uRm9QWSvc_t8g&bvm=bv.66917471,d.ZGU
Be careful when laying out poison so species like Barn owl don't get killed by secondary poisoning.

have2flushtwice

Story round here, lad, years ago, still alive, set a particular rat trap. Found a rat barely alive in it, and let it out, and tried to beat it with a
hurl
He couldn't manage that, and the thing was still kicking. So he went for the petrol. There was more life in the rat than was expected, and he ran in to the hay barn.
Not a happy ending for either party.

Capercaille wrote: »

http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0CEYQFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.birdwatchireland.ie%2FLinkClick.aspx%3Flink%3D1373%26tabid%3D85&ei=Lb53U_GoBuaN7Aaz4IAo&usg=AFQjCNFsRmIg5U1nE6putXVxjtlrPnVcHw&sig2=cmxXpKNf1uRm9QWSvc_t8g&bvm=bv.66917471,d.ZGU
Be careful when laying out poison so species like Barn owl don't get killed by secondary poisoning.

dzer2

Pudsey is right the centre of the bale wrap is perfect. You can drive over them with a tractor and not break them. We feed all yr round here and have to lines of defense against rats. I do a circle outside the yard and the sheds and then one inside sheds and yards. I would put down loads when stacking the bales of silage and the straw. You need to make sure they are secure and check weekly what you will find that after you start the poison will be gone in a day but wait a week and then refill. After 4 weeks you will find the inner line of defense will still have poison but the outer one will be gone and will normally need to be refilled every 2 weeks even in the summer. Most rats crawl off back to their dens to die so should not pose a threat to Barn Owls or the like. You should always wear gloves when handling chemicals and most farm stuff. We use the laytex ones here for most feed stuff handling and then heavier ones for for rougher work.

Farmer Pudsey

dzer2 wrote: »

Pudsey is right the centre of the bale wrap is perfect. You can drive over them with a tractor and not break them. We feed all yr round here and have to lines of defense against rats. I do a circle outside the yard and the sheds and then one inside sheds and yards. I would put down loads when stacking the bales of silage and the straw. You need to make sure they are secure and check weekly what you will find that after you start the poison will be gone in a day but wait a week and then refill. After 4 weeks you will find the inner line of defense will still have poison but the outer one will be gone and will normally need to be refilled every 2 weeks even in the summer. Most rats crawl off back to their dens to die so should not pose a threat to Barn Owls or the like. You should always wear gloves when handling chemicals and most farm stuff. We use the laytex ones here for most feed stuff handling and then heavier ones for for rougher work.

When refilling bait points I be slow to depend on layex gloves, I use a heavier glove, year back the end of one of the wire scraped me throught a latex glove. The cut got infected and took a while to heal. Use either kitchen gloves over the latex gloves or else use the heavy PVC gloves.

Future Farmer

Thanks for all the advice people!

greasepalm

lovely pets.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26764929

dzer2

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

When refilling bait points I be slow to depend on layex gloves, I use a heavier glove, year back the end of one of the wire scraped me throught a latex glove. The cut got infected and took a while to heal. Use either kitchen gloves over the latex gloves or else use the heavy PVC gloves.

Hi Puds read that sentence in full

Conmaicne Mara

I use timbers like 2x1 with those thin oval nails in them. Rodex is what I use at the moment. The Rodex blocks have a hole in them the right size for the oval nail I use. This makes it fast and simple to put new poison blocks onto the 2x1, as the blocks slide down over the head of the nail. No silage here abouts so use lengths of sewer and other pipe, kept in place by rock or other stable weight. When the blocks are on, slide the baited 2x1 into the pipe, job done. Mentioned above I think not rebaiting for a week is important.

patsy_mccabe

I am I putting down rat poison at the moment. It's disappearing Like chocolates from the kitchen table. Should I keep putting it down or maybe wait few days and force them to eat it.

Odelay

Are you securing it with wire? Otherwise they are just hoarding it.

whelan2

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

I am I putting down rat poison at the moment. It's disappearing Like chocolates from the kitchen table. Should I keep putting it down or maybe wait few days and force them to eat it.

wait a few days

patsy_mccabe

No not securing it but I have found a dead one already.

sterling10

Prob poisoned all the owls in the area that were keeping population under control with all that poison

50HX

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

No not securing it but I have found a dead one already.

secure it as mentioned in previous post ... the bale wrap pipe is made for the job

leave 4-5 days of a gap after the initial blast of replacing for a week

they do hoard it...so make em eat it by restricting the supply

ongoing battle but have to be comtrolled

general yard tidiness helps as well i find..some places you go into are like heaven for rats:)

patsy_mccabe

sterling10 wrote: »

Prob poisoned all the owls in the area that were keeping population under control with all that poison

Who?

jack o shea

Do owls kill rats?

MickeyShtyles

Have ya a cat?

Birdnuts

jack o shea wrote: »

Do owls kill rats?

Big time - it can take 100s-1000s to rear just one brood of barnowls. Which is why it is important to bin any dead or dieing rats immediately to prevent secondary poisoning of this farmers friend. I use rat traps myself after a couple of nasty cases of rats dieing in cavity walls after being poisoned.

whelan2

MickeyShtyles wrote: »

Have ya a cat?

no rats here this winter. We have plenty of cats. A fecker of a mouse got into the house a few weeks ago when my dad left the back door open for a few hours:mad: was pretty annoyed that the cats let the fecker in ( the mouse not my dad)

Fiskar

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

I am I putting down rat poison at the moment. It's disappearing Like chocolates from the kitchen table. Should I keep putting it down or maybe wait few days and force them to eat it.

go for the direct kill with a rat trap rather than poison, I thought I had just one rat in my garage some years ago where we stored the weekly bag of rubbish, I got 6 over 5 days, I was stunned, Wheelie bin ordered at that point.

With the trap you know when you are finished and can relax.

promises

A lot of rat poisons take a couple of days to work so only replace bait every 2-3 days. Also a grain bait can be better as they tend to eat it on the spot rather than hoarding it.

greenpetrol

Future Farmer wrote: »

Hi All,

Could do with some help with a rat problem?

Seem to have way more about the place, which we haven't really had before!

Have laid 3 kgs of rat poison in 3 days.

Need to find get a few cats too....

Anyone have any extra ideas?

Besides...
Taking away/reducing food source
Cannibal Rat

Need help... thanks.....

Where does one get a cannibal rat ?

J.O. Farmer

greenpetrol wrote: »

Where does one get a cannibal rat ?

I think you have to turn a normal rat into a cannibal rat.

junospider

Havent used poison here for 5 or6 years.I hate putting it into the food chain.
I keep 2 fenn traps set 24/7 and catch them before they get a chance to breed.
I would love to have the owls that lived in the chimney when I was a kid, back, unfortunately most farmers are so obsessed with poison that it is highly unlikely.Poison is the lazy way out.

happyoutscan

Traps all the way, don't like using poison.

Username John

What's a good trap?
And how do ye dispose of em in the trap? Drown em I'm guessing?

whelan2

Are bait points necessary for bord bia inspection, whats the story if you dont use bait for bord bia ?

djflawless

Username John wrote: »

What's a good trap?
And how do ye dispose of em in the trap? Drown em I'm guessing?

I catch a few rats for a local farmer around the yards. I use live catch traps.
Then drown the rat in a barrel of water and leave carcass out in a hedgerow for whatever wants a feed

Genghis Cant

Username John wrote: »

What's a good trap?
And how do ye dispose of em in the trap? Drown em I'm guessing?

I'm interested in recommendations for a good trap too. I've used the ordinary spring trap but I'm going to buy a couple of cage type traps. Anything I should avoid? I'd also hope to leave a trap set to catch a mink if one came along. Works the same trap do for both or is it a bigger trap for mink than rats? I know I've caught rats years ago in a mink trap but what's the best available nowadays?

djflawless

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I'm interested in recommendations for a good trap too. I've used the ordinary spring trap but I'm going to buy a couple of cage type traps. Anything I should avoid? I'd also hope to leave a trap set to catch a mink if one came along. Works the same trap do for both or is it a bigger trap for mink than rats? I know I've caught rats years ago in a mink trap but what's the best available nowadays?

Theres plenty of variety. You could go for a fenn trap. They can be set up in a box with sardines to make effective mink traps.and can also be used for rats. But know who and what has free roam of the yard!!

joejobrien

whelan2 wrote: »

Are bait points necessary for bord bia inspection, whats the story if you dont use bait for bord bia ?

ASFAIK, once you can prove vermin control on your farm then there isnt going to be an issue.
Depends on your method of choice. If using cat ...make sure there wormed.

greenpetrol

J.O. Farmer wrote: »

I think you have to turn a normal rat into a cannibal rat.

Anyone using a cannibal rat? Gives me shivers but interesting also