My chickens ate a dead mouse

1,948 views
Skip to first unread message

Juliet Martinez

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 10:16:35 AM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Yes, Joel was making some changes to their run yesterday and saw them fighting over something: it was a dead mouse. He wasn't able to get it away from them before they ate it. Yech.

He did some googling and came up with the possibility that if the mouse was poisoned the hens' eggs are not safe to eat for the next two weeks. Do any of you have experience with this kind of thing?

Joel was actually out there changing things around because we found that mice had gotten into the chickens' gravity feeder. We took the whole thing down and will now just take a dish of food out to them every day. They have a dish attached to the side of the run for treats; we'll just feed them from that.

Ugh.

Juliet

Deborah Niemann-Boehle

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 11:11:31 AM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Chickens are omnivores and eating a mouse is not unheard of. Our first year with chickens, two of my children (then 9 and 12) were very excitedly telling me about chickens fighting over a frog. It is possible that the chickens killed the mouse. I've even seen them catch snakes up to a foot long. Unless you put out mouse poison yourself, there are other possible explanations for the mouse's demise. I don't think a mouse can travel very far once it is poisoned, but if you're concerned, you could ask your neighbors if they put out poison.

Also, I'm wondering where you found info about it being unsafe to eat eggs from a chicken that had eaten a poisoned mouse. Was it a vet professor or a blogger? Personally, I think that if a chicken at a poisoned mouse, it would die, so the eggs would be a moot point. I used to believe that chickens could eat anything -- and then I cleaned out my frig one day and threw everything out to the chickens, and the next day two of them were dead. So, they're not quite as invincible as some people think. We don't use any pesticides on our farm for this very reason. The things we define as pests are actually food for the chickens, turkeys, and ducks.

Deborah

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts" group.
To post to this group, send email to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to chicago-chicken-ent...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/chicago-chicken-enthusiasts?hl=en.



--
Deborah Niemann-Boehle
http://antiquityoaks.blogspot.com
http://www.deborahwrites.com
815-358-2450
815-341-1223 cell

P. O. Box 181
Cornell, IL 61319

"Don't wait for the muse. She has a lousy work ethic. Writers just write." -- Barbara Kingsolver

Martha Boyd

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 12:15:24 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Cool. Ecosystems thinking. I still think garter snakes are a good answer to the rodent "problem" -- have been requesting someone conduct research of garter snakes for  controlling rat nests.

Re: poison in mice, etc:
Maybe Joni White DVM can weigh in -- can a certain amount of poison pass through the bird without killing her but get into her eggs in quantities we should worry about?

On related note: 
I was asked at Saturday's panel about lead (Pb) in soils -- I am posting the article I had  in my collection on the EGGS page (half way down). 
It's from a study of chickens that ate lead paint chips, and their eggs and shells had high lead content (as did their internal organs). 
Here's the abstract:
Twenty mixed-breed adult laying hens from a small farm flock in Iowa were clinically normal 
but had been exposed to chips of lead-based paint in their environment. These chickens were brought to the 
Iowa State University Veterinar y Diagnostic Laborator y, Ames, Iowa, where the concentration of lead in blood, 
eggs (yolk, albumen, and shell), and tissues (liver, kidney, muscle, and ovar y) from 5 selected chickens was 
determined over a period of 9 days. Blood lead levels ranged from less than 50 to 760 ppb. Lead contamination 
of the yolks varied from less than 20 to 400 ppb, and shells were found to contain up to 450 ppb lead. Albumen 
contained no detectable amount. Lead content of the egg yolks strongly correlated with blood lead levels. 
Deposition of lead in the shells did not correlate well with blood lead levels. Mean tissue lead accumulation 
was highest in kidneys (1,360 ppb), with livers ranking second (500 ppb) and ovarian tissue third (320 ppb). 
Muscle contained the lowest level of lead (280 ppb). Lead contamination of egg yolks and edible chicken 
tissues represents a potential public health hazard, especially to children repeatedly consuming eggs from 
contaminated family-owned flocks.

My comments: 
Apply precautions for lead, as you would with garden soils. 
USEPA recommends soil lead levels lower than 400 ppm for normal gardening. Some sources recommend lower even though background levels in most urban areas are easily ~400 ppm. 

The "drip line" around the foundation of house or garage often has the highest level of lead in the yard from years of paint dust accumulating there -- important if that's where your chickens reside. Chickens may be attracted to peck at peeling paint, so make sure they don't have access to it in or around their coop or pen.

M
-- 
Martha Boyd
Program Director, Urban Initiative (Chicago)
Angelic Organics Learning Center
Chicago Office: 6400 S Kimbark Avenue
Chicago, IL 60637
773.288.5462 office
425.969.0317 fax
773.344.7198 mobile

Celebrating more than a decade of growing food, farmers, and friendships!

Angelic Organics Learning Center helps urban and rural people build local food systems. 
The Learning Center offers opportunities to grow healthy food and a better quality of life, connect with farmers and the land, and learn agricultural and leadership skills. To find out more, visit www.learngrowconnect.org.



-- 
Martha Boyd
Program Director, Urban Initiative (Chicago)
Angelic Organics Learning Center
Chicago Office: 6400 S Kimbark Avenue
Chicago, IL 60637
773.288.5462 office
425.969.0317 fax
773.344.7198 mobile

Celebrating more than a decade of growing food, farmers, and friendships!

Angelic Organics Learning Center helps urban and rural people build local food systems. 
The Learning Center offers opportunities to grow healthy food and a better quality of life, connect with farmers and the land, and learn agricultural and leadership skills. To find out more, visit www.learngrowconnect.org.

Catherine Bouzide

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 12:20:53 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Martha and all,
This is all excellent information.

When I included our urban hens in an art installation/corn maze at the South Union Arts Center, we (Bill Friedman and I) had tested the soil for growing first.  It is directly in the shadow of the Dan Ryan.  Very small amounts of lead were found and I could include "The Girls" with no worry.

Having peace of mind is important.  Collect soil samples from a variety of spots.

SSP

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 1:12:27 PM3/16/10
to Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts
How do you get the soil tested? Kinda scary considering most of us
live in OLD homes!
Thanks
Shawn

On Mar 16, 11:20 am, Catherine Bouzide <casba...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Martha and all,
> This is all excellent information.
>
> When I included our urban hens in an art installation/corn maze at the  
> South Union Arts Center, we (Bill Friedman and I) had tested the soil  
> for growing first.  It is directly in the shadow of the Dan Ryan.  
> Very small amounts of lead were found and I could include "The Girls"  
> with no worry.
>
> Having peace of mind is important.  Collect soil samples from a  
> variety of spots.
>
> Cathi
> c.a. schwalbe-bouzide

> casba...@gmail.com
>
> www.casbah3d.comwww.flickr.com/photos/casbah3d/www.lillstreetstudios.com

> > agricultural and leadership skills. To find out more, visitwww.learngrowconnect.org
> > .
>
> > --

Mila

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 1:44:11 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com

Hi,

 

I had some mice during the winter but they seemed to disappear after awhile. I think the chickens either would eat them os chase them out of the coop.

 

M

--

Mila

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 1:47:43 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com

I know that chickens can die from eating celery. Anything stringy can get caught in their gullet and choke them.

 

Mila

Mila

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 1:49:55 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com

I just bought a very small piece of land in Michigan and was surprised to see for the first time in years a garter snake. It would be great to get them back in our gardens

M

 

From: chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com [mailto:chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Martha Boyd
Sent: Tuesday, March 16, 2010 11:15 AM
To: chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [chickens] My chickens ate a dead mouse

 

Cool. Ecosystems thinking. I still think garter snakes are a good answer to the rodent "problem" -- have been requesting someone conduct research of garter snakes for  controlling rat nests.

Mike Byrley

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 9:05:08 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
From mice to rats...

We've seen a/some rat(s) in our yard a few times recently, and one made it as far as our chickens' run (possibly to the coop, but not as far as we can tell).

We aren't shocked to see the critters, really -- part of city life, after all. We're just a little concerned about what the rodents could bring with them (the poison discussion triggered this email): 
poison is not as big a concern (for the reasons already discussed) as maybe disease... I imagine a chicken might survive some little bacteria/virus but still pass it to us. Plus, I don't want those varmints eating all of our feed!

I'd like to do something to eliminate or at least discourge the rats. Poison is not an option for us, with veggies, dogs, kids in the yard, etc... Anyone had success with traps of any sort? 

Share your rat thoughts, everyone...

Thanks!

Mike Byrley
Piano Tuner/Technician
Precision Piano Services, Inc.

Deborah Niemann-Boehle

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 9:54:32 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
The scenario you've described is almost impossible: a mammal giving a disease to a bird, which then gives it to another species of mammal. There are not that many zoonotic diseases out there (as a percentage of diseases). Most diseases stay within a species. A few cross between mammal species -- like rabies. But going between birds and mammals is even rarer. Bird flu is the only thing that comes to mind, and as far as I know, it only goes from birds to people. In the height of bird flu a few years ago, I read somewhere that Germany actually made free-range chickens illegal, because of the risk of wild birds infecting chickens.

Deborah

Steven Slaughter

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 10:22:13 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
As for the rats/mice, a couple years ago, when going out just past dark to lock up the ladies, I was met with a huge case of the shivvers -- a scamper of about 6-8 smallish rats exiting the coop. Uh-hh-h!! They were eating the food from the hanging hopper feeder. They were coming in through this really small hole cut through the hardware wire. I had cut out a section just wide enough to slip in an extension cord with that bulky end (probably about 1.5 in). They were squeezing through that small opening as if they had instantly liquified their bones. I cut a piece of scrap hardware wire and patched  that area again. to seal the opening. I also built a pet-safe rat poison bait station (out of a long length of PVC and some connections) and set them in a spot I didn't think the ladies could get near. I knew that there was still the chance that one of them might eat a dead rat, but this was right around the time of the proposed ban, and I could NOT tolerate any rats sticking around. A call from a neighbor would have been horrible. I only baited it for a couple weeks, and really, I didn't see much of the bait disappear. But the rats left. As soon as that food supply was closed off to them, they moved on. To me, that was the lesson. However you do it -- whether by completely rat-proofing your coop or feeding them daily in small amounts -- do not give rodents ANY access, even the tiniest access, to chicken feed, and they will move on.

Steven 
 


-----Original Message-----
From: mi...@precisionchicago.com
Sent: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:05:08 -0500
To: chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [chickens] My chickens ate a dead mouse

Juliet Martinez

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 10:24:09 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
I'm still curious about the poison issue. Can chickens eat a poisoned mouse, not die from the poison but pass enough into their eggs to affect a very large animal (me) or my infant (through breast milk)? It sounds unlikely, just as I write it. But I'm interested in any actual information, rather than what logic might suggest. I have a newborn and as such am not at the height of my cognitive powers.

This article suggests that the poison could kill our chickens but not immediately:

Most rodent poisons that are available for household use are some variety of blood thinner. They block the working of vitamin K which is required to produce clotting factors in the blood. They are slow-acting, and long lasting. Once an animal eats the poison and uses up the clotting factors in its blood it will be unable to make more. Then any small bruise or wound will continue to bleed until the animal is weakened by the blood loss, and dies.

Birds of prey are the most common victims of secondary toxicity because they can easily capture small animals that are weakened from the blood loss due to poisoning. Therapy requires treatment with doses of Vitamin K over a period of several weeks until the birds are once again able to produce it on their own. During the treatment time they will exhibit the same symptoms as the primary target of the poison: loss of appetite, extensive bruising, continual bleeding of any open wounds, and lethargy.1 This is what your pet can look forward to if it ingests a poisoned animal.

I don't know how authoritative this info is, but if it is correct I think I'd rather err on the side of not eating the eggs until we're sure our hens are unaffected. My son weighs less than 14 pounds and could be vulnerable to a slow-acting, long lasting toxin in my milk.

Juliet

Juliet Martinez

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 10:33:37 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Thanks, Steven,

We did consider our run rodent-proof and have never seen rodents or evidence of them there until now. About 10 days ago my daughter insisted on digging up and inspecting our dead Banty, Ruffy - the other hens finally out-competed her for food and she died in October; I couldn't coddle her enough to keep her alive :( Anyway Ruffy had been buried a few feet from the run; we had placed hardware cloth over her body at a couple of depths when we filled in the hole so nothing would be able to dig her up. But my daughter insisted she wanted to see what happens when an animal dies, how it decomposes, and I had no problem with this.

My husband found the little tunnel the mice used to get into the run in the loose dirt where we re-filled Ruffy's grave. He's pretty sure they only gained access since we unearthed her, but he's doing some major remodeling to prevent future incursions. For now, like I said, we're feeding them daily.

What kind of poison did you use for your traps? What about snap traps? Can they be used outdoors? We have them in the garage but I admit I have not kept them baited for the last couple of months since I've been busy with my pregnancy and newborn. I'm a big fan of snap traps, though, as they are humane and you can easily tell if they're working.

Juliet

Steven Slaughter

unread,
Mar 16, 2010, 10:42:16 PM3/16/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Juliet,

I've used snap traps a lot in the house for mice, but never the larger rat traps. These would have to be super-secure from the chickens, though. One would snap their scrawny necks -- or just break a leg -- as easy as it would kill a rat. If they could be completely secured, I would be up for them as well. I imagine they might be a threat to neighborhood cats, though. I used standard rat poison. The kind that comes in a block that you break off and they nibble. The design of the bait station is to connect two lengths of at least 3' long PVC (2" diameter is probably just right). Connect it with a T connector using standard PVC cement. The T's remaining opening is so that you can bait the trap easily right in the middle (otherwise, you're sliding it in from one end). You can also use a four-way connector. Two sides are glued to the long pipes, a third is fitted with an end cap, and the fourth is fitted with a strong click-down rubber stopper or screw-off cap. This style is good because that third little end that you've glued shut provides a little cavity for the bait to set, preventing it from sliding out accidentally near any chickens, other pets, or children. I have three kids, so I put this completely out of reach AND told them never to touch it. I also bungeed it down firmly to keep it completely stationary, so nothing could drag it or jostle it from its position.

Steven
 


-----Original Message-----
From: j.b....@gmail.com
Sent: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 21:33:37 -0500
To: chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [chickens] My chickens ate a dead mouse

Conor Butkus

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 12:12:21 AM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
I'm no expert about rat posion, but I know in the past warfarin was used, which is a common anticoagulant used in humans with various clotting disorders. I did a search for warfarin and breastfeeding and found this:



Looks like it's unlikely to affect babies that are breastfeeding - and is even approved for breastfeeding by the AAP. But why risk it, especially if that's not what's used in rat poison anymore.  


Conor 

Linda

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 9:55:20 AM3/17/10
to Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts
Ah, the rodent issue! This is a tough one for so many reasons.

I've had mice living in the detached garage ever since moving into my
house and well before I started composting and keeping chickens. I
have no idea what they were eating, but I guess they use the garage
simply for nesting. The neighborhood crows used to eat them (I saw
evidence of this one day: a fresh mouse carcass in the driveway, then
gone 10 minutes later when I walked back to it), but then West Nile
virus knocked out the crows and they haven't returned. :-(

I love the idea of encouraging natural predators for rodents. The
sticky part about garter snakes is that they need a safe place to
hibernate in winter and to nest. Snake nesting/hiding areas aren't
that much different than the ones used by rodents (piles of "stuff" in
the yard, etc.), so it's a dicey situation: do you create (or leave)
stuff out hoping the snakes grab it before the rodents do?

We do have garter snakes in my neighborhood (yay!), but my dogs rarely
allow them in the yard. :-( If you have dogs, you may have the same
problem. And believe me, if a dog eats a garter snake those little
bones cause all sorts of intestinal upset you don't want to deal with!

But back to the rodent issue.

Yeah, the only way to get them to go away and stay away is to
eliminate food sources. If your coop cannot be completely rodent
proofed, then you have to remove and secure any uneaten food at night.
I don't think these rodents are out much during the day, but if they
were, the chickens would keep them away from the food.

Rodent proofing means using hardware cloth on your entire run/coop
perimeter. Use 1/2-inch hardware cloth to keep rats out or 1/4-inch
hardware cloth to keep mice AND rats out. You're hopefully using
hardware cloth on your run/coop anyway to keep the ladies safe from
raccoons who can reach through openings to grab and severely injure
chickens.

Now, if I can only figure out how to trap the mouse that made it's way
into the HOUSE this winter, I'd be set. I found the hole where it
entered and plugged it with steel wool (a small hole in the screened
opening for the cold cellar). Since the house is brick I doubt it's
found a way out, but I can't seem the catch the bugger in the mouse
traps! Anyone have ideas? ALL food sources are now secured (I had
forgotten to lock up the chicken feed I keep in the house. Doh! I
remedied that quickly.), but I haven't caught the thing. How long can
they survive without food? Or what could it be eating that I'm not
thinking about? I know roaches can survive on strange stuff we don't
think of as food (like wallpaper paste), but what about mice? Or would
it have just starved rather than get killed in a trap baited with
yummy peanut butter?

Linda

Laurie

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 10:18:12 AM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
I'm not keeping chickens - and rats are the reason why.

We even had the site picked out and the likely coop design.  And then we thought about the experience we had many years ago when rats were in the basement - and bold enough to come up the stairs and dance across the living room rug on the way to somewhere in the back of the house.  We finally got rid of them and had the outside perimeter of the house sealed  pretty well - but my house is 100 years old so......

My concern continues to be what attracting rats to the backyard could mean for them finding ways into my house and our neighbors' homes.  I live in the city and we know there are rats, period.  But the thought that the chickens and their food, even put away at night, would attract more rats than already scurry around and periodically get caught by our cats - is too depressing for me to move forward with plans for chickens.

I'm certainly envious of all of you who are succeeding and enjoying the yummy eggs - but also wanted to share what I think needs to be a real concern.

Laurie



 
Laurie Tanenbaum
Grounds For Growth Landscape Design
www.groundsforgrowth.co
m


"There is no such thing as impartial history. The chief problem in
historical honesty is not the outright lie. It is omission or de-emphasis
of important data. The definition of 'important' of course depends on one's
values."
--Howard Zinn, 1922-2010, You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train film
documentary, 2004



From: Linda <lnel...@gmail.com>
To: Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts <chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Wed, March 17, 2010 8:55:20 AM
Subject: [chickens] Re: My chickens ate a dead mouse
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts" group.
To post to this group, send email to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to chicago-chicken-enthusiasts+unsub...@googlegroups.com.

Cathie Van Wert

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 10:28:31 AM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
We had a rat problem with our first coop, but we used double chicken wire and had not attached it fully to the house. Once we figured that out and sealed it up, then exterminated the rats, we have never had an issue again. Our new coops use the hardware cloth and are on a cement pad, so nothing is getting in there. That, as Linda pointed out, is the key. If the coop is sealed to nocturnal predators, you are not attracting more rats to the neighborhood.

That's why I think education, like what Martha's organization is offering, is key to people considering chicken ownership AND to others who assume that just by owning chickens, we are attracting rodents. We've had mice and seen random rats as long as we've lived in the city. As long as we are responsible as chicken owners and make sure the food is sealed and the coops are sealed, we are not adding to the problem. 

Laurie, I'm still shuddering thinking about the rats dancing across your living room. Thank goodness that situation has been resolved!!!

Cathie



To unsubscribe from this group, send email to chicago-chicken-ent...@googlegroups.com.

Em

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 10:34:12 AM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Not an endorsement! (Yet)
I've been researching this for you all, and this is what I have so far:
There are two rodent "poisons" that are non-anticoagulants...One is "Agrid" which is basically high doses of Vitamin D3, and should not be a problem for any birds (according to manufacturer), including Chickens.
The other is ZP Rodent Bait. The active ingredient here is zinc phosphide, which is relatively rapid kill, but also doesn't stay in the body long, so secondary poisoning (if the chicken eats the dead mouse or rat) is not a problem (again, according to the manufacturer). Agrid is approved for use in organic food production facilities, I think the only such product of its kind with that claim.
If people want to try it, I will get order it and distribute for you.
Let me know if anyone's heard of them or tried them, etc.
John Emrich
Backyard Chicken Run

http://www.backyardchickenrun.com/bcr/Welcome.html

 


From: Laurie <laur...@sbcglobal.net>
To: chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wed, March 17, 2010 9:18:12 AM
Subject: Re: [chickens] Re: My chickens ate a dead mouse
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to chicago-chicken-ent...@googlegroups.com.

Alice Hollowed

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 12:31:41 PM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
We have rats in the winter but once we uncover the coop in the spring they seem to go away.  This year we put hardware cloth underneath the coop but I must have left a gap because we had rat holes in there again.  I also set out some traps (glue ones in boxes).  The hardware guy suggested using poison placed inside a metal tube so only the rats can get at it.  We always put away our food at night but my girls are pigs!  They spread chicken feed all over the ground.  I'm using the eglu feeder is there a better one out there or are my girls just pigs?   I did also move our chicken coop to the back of our lot next to the alley (easier for the rats to get to but farther away from my house).  

Alice




Hotmail: Trusted email with Microsoft’s powerful SPAM protection. Sign up now.

Martha Boyd

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 3:00:09 PM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
The story of rats around people, and our cities, is LOOONNGGG - this book was good:
 

Rats: Observations on the History and Habitat of the City's Most Unwanted Inhabitants

Robert Sullivan / Bloomsbury Publishing PLC


-- 

You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts" group.
To post to this group, send email to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to chicago-chicken-ent...@googlegroups.com.

SSP

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 3:30:25 PM3/17/10
to Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts
I am glad to hear I am not the only one. I have used snap traps and I
put them out at dusk after I secure the girls in their coop and take
them away before I open the coop back up. The rats/mice are not in
the coop, instead they have tunneled under the cement slab and are
living in the space where we keep our storm windows during the day. I
know, I should get with the times and upgrade to those nifty windows
that have storms and screens:-) This summer I hardware clothed ~4-5
inches all around the base but they just dig deeper! UGH! I was
wondering if they come into the coop during the day at all to eat.
Could that be a factor. They were gone most of the winter after I
killed off a bunch in the fall but I just saw a new tunnel 3 days
ago. I will check out the book Martha recommended but any more advice
would be appreciated too. For those who use poison, have any wandered
around after being poisoned to be found by chickens or kids? That
was my fear....
Thanks
Shawn

On Mar 17, 2:00 pm, Martha Boyd <mar...@learngrowconnect.org> wrote:
> The story of rats around people, and our cities, is LOOONNGGG - this  
> book was good:
>

>   Rats: Observations on the History and Habitat of the City's Most  
> Unwanted Inhabitants
> Robert Sullivan / Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
>
> On Mar 17, 2010, at 11:31 AM, Alice Hollowed wrote:
>
>
>
> > We have rats in the winter but once we uncover the coop in the  
> > spring they seem to go away.  This year we put hardware cloth  
> > underneath the coop but I must have left a gap because we had rat  
> > holes in there again.  I also set out some traps (glue ones in  
> > boxes).  The hardware guy suggested using poison placed inside a  
> > metal tube so only the rats can get at it.  We always put away our  
> > food at night but my girls are pigs!  They spread chicken feed all  
> > over the ground.  I'm using the eglu feeder is there a better one  
> > out there or are my girls just pigs?   I did also move our chicken  
> > coop to the back of our lot next to the alley (easier for the rats  
> > to get to but farther away from my house).
>
> > Alice
>

Cathie Van Wert

unread,
Mar 17, 2010, 3:37:30 PM3/17/10
to chicago-chick...@googlegroups.com
Yes, a couple did wander and one we had to put out of its misery. Not
pretty.

We learned from the exterminator to stuff a couple wads of newspaper
into the tunnel, feed the poison down with a hose and the stuff lots
of wads of newspaper into the hole. They eat their way out through the
newspaper and eat the poison in the process. It worked like a charm
and none have returned in two years.

Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages