# Barn Rats



## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Rats. I have rats in the barn. Very smart rats it seems. I'm from "rat free" Alberta so not used to having these giant mice in my life.

I've tried live traps, dead traps and once a broom. I've tried cheese (various kinds), sausage (again various kinds), peanuts, bread, peanut butter, bread and peanut butter, goat feed, fried chicken and a few other things. Nothing seems to work. I catch about one rat a year in the barn. I know there are lots more around, and I want to get them out of the barn.

Any suggestion would be appreciated!!!!


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Just to clarify, I am not in Alberta now. I'm on Vancouver Island, BC.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

RATS!


I have a rat problem and none of the typical solutions seem to be an option. Im too much of a wuss for snap traps, I'm terrified of putting out poison because I'm afraid my crafty goats might get into it, and barn cats or rat terriers aren't an option financially, zap traps for the same reason...




www.thegoatspot.net


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## Cedarwinds Farm (Dec 2, 2019)

Cats. We had so many rats and mice that, at one point, you would go into the chicken house at night, flip on the light, and literally 20 or more rats and mice of all sizes would scatter. It was awful. We got barn cats, and now I very rarely see mice, and have not seen a rat in years.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

I heard that a good bait for rat traps is peanut butter with an m&m put in the top of it. You guys have m&ms in Canada right?🤔


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## Calistar (Jan 16, 2017)

We have mice and rats, about 14 completely useless cats and 2 cats that do hunt but not enough. I'm now in the market for a terrier. (No, seriously- I'm waiting on a litter!) Snap traps work to an extent but there are just so many of them. When I had pet mice/rats, their favorite treats were cheese flavored crackers like Cheezits or Goldfish, so that's my bait of choice.


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## alwaystj9 (Apr 10, 2019)

Bucket trap. I went several rounds with wharf rats last year. Accidentally shot out the back window of my truck. Rats were bigger than my barn cat and really enjoyed the Meow Mix brand of cat food.Bucket Rat Traps: Which Are the Best And How To Make Your Own


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## littleheathens (Apr 27, 2019)

We had just a couple of rats a few years ago. The bucket traps were #2 on our list to try. We first got the traps that electrocute the rat (and texts you if you connect it to wifi!) and they worked great. I don't remember what bait we used but it's always something sticky, and we put it right in their path along a wall. We didn't catch any with the sticky traps where we knew they were going. Our cats also helped a lot. We zapped the big ones and found nests in the stupidest places (inches from electric net fence in the middle of lawn?) and brought the cats over. 

Good luck. They are not pleasant creatures to live with.


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## GoosegirlAsh (Mar 24, 2021)

I got a feral cat from a rescue who has a barn cat program. She doesn't like people, but she's a great hunter. We tried trapping first, but didn't seem to be making much headway. Haven't had an issue with any rodents since we got her.


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## JML Farms (Jan 1, 2021)

Calistar said:


> I'm now in the market for a terrier. (No, seriously- I'm waiting on a litter!)


Yes! I have a Jack Russel/dachshund. He goes crazy trying to catch mice and rats! Loves gophers too!


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## brigieboo (Apr 8, 2021)

We got ours all cleaned out pretty quickly....used the electric traps, snap traps, and poison. i think the poison prolly worked the best, we'd find them laying around.. .. .. with the snap traps they'd eat the bodies tho, so in the morning we'd come down and only the head would be left.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Now I know that my barn rats are smarter than I. I set a trap by the chicken coop and caught about 8 rats in 11 nights. The nights with no rats the bait was taken - probably by mice that did not trigger the trap. I used a variety of bait (cooked meat, bits of cheese), and it all worked. Using the same bait in the barn ... nothing. A couple of days ago I set a trap in the barn with a bit cheese. I then placed a few bits of cheese around the trap. The next day all the cheese was gone except for one piece. I could hear the rats snickering. How do they know not to eat the cheese in the trap?????


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## Tanya (Mar 31, 2020)

Cheese curles or tomatoes... works for me.


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## TCOLVIN (Sep 22, 2014)

I keep rat poison out in all my sheds were my goats are. I made my rat bait holder out of a 18” piece of PVC sewer pipe. Put caps on both ends and drill a 1-1/4” hole in one of the caps, about 3/4 inch up from edge of cap. Keep the hole to the lowest point and take a piece of 1 x 4 about 12-15 inches and mount on the other end to keep pipe from rolling. I use 2-3 decking screws to attach board. I take a whole stick of rat killer and drop it in the hole all the way back and lay the pipe under a table or around feed bins, any where you need. I keep about 4 or 5 out all time and check and refill it needed once a month. I have baby goats that have slept next to the pipes until I sale them at 4 months of age. With the hold being almost an inch from ground level it won’t let the poison fall out. Dogs, Cats nor goats can get to the poison, but rats can.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

They also hate disturbance so if you can move all the buckets, wood pallets, fencing, grain bins, etc that are stored on the barn floors or around the outside walls of the barn they begin to dissipate. Keeping the weeds and grass eliminated around a few feet away helps too.


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## TCOLVIN (Sep 22, 2014)

TC Rat trap.xlsx


Microsoft Excel Workbook



1drv.ms


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## TCOLVIN (Sep 22, 2014)

This is a rough draft drawn on my phone to give an idea. They work and are safe around pets, goats and cows. Not safe for rats. TC


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## lada823 (Apr 2, 2018)

Poison is the only thing that worked for me. Once the numbers got down I relocated several snakes to the barn. I tried cats but they always ended up at the house instead of in the barn. The snakes keep them under control.


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## alwaystj9 (Apr 10, 2019)

TCOLVIN said:


> This is a rough draft drawn on my phone to give an idea. They work and are safe around pets, goats and cows. Not safe for rats. TC


How do you find/dispose of the bodies/


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Poisons

I have found a few dead rats near my chicken coop with no physical damage. I have also seen a few rats with what look like neurological issues. Jittery, running in fits and starts, inability to run in a straight line, falling over. I have seen two wild rabbits with similar symptoms. Even had a chicken with the same issues.

This could be "natural" disease. I suspect it may be rat poison. We've been here for 5 years and have never used any poison so I'm guessing it was used by the previous owners. I really don't know anything about poisons, so this is all speculation.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Could be, hopefully the chickens or other pets won’t get ahold of any.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Well, that was interesting.

I have a live trap with which I have never caught a rat in the barn. I have, however caught many rats around the chicken coop over that last couple of months. Big rats and little rats. Caught a few birds - juncos. One time I even caught two birds at once - Swainson's thrushes I think.
The rats I take down to the river and set them free. A few days ago, I caught another rat. It seemed healthy and was climbing around inside the cage. I put the trap in the trailer of my lawn tractor and drove down to the river. I let the rat out as usual. I noticed some other stuff in the trap - looked like a bunch of large pink cashews. Yes, in the two or three minutes it took to go down to the river, the rat had given birth to 4 little ratlings.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Ew. That would be awful to see.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

I didn't think of it as awful, but it was surprising. On the upside, I got rid of 5 rats at once, even if 4 were future rats.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

It seems that ratlings are called pups, nestlings or, ironically, kittens.
Because of their appearance, some people call them pinkies or shrimp.


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## Tanya (Mar 31, 2020)

I know rats are unwanted but they are still life. I also trap and set free. We have owls so I cannot poison. Here in SA those pinkies are fed to snakes.... i dont own snakes but I cannot feed these to anything.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

I do not have a problem with killing rats, but once caught in a live trap it is just easier to haul them away. Some "experts" claim that most relocated rats just become predator food because the rats don't know their way around in the new area. That seems like a good use for rats.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Turn the live trap on its side and a .22 gets rid of the rat. Rats, raccoons, chipmunks and possums all are very unwanted in my barn.
If they stay in the wood, I don't bother them, but big old river rats etc. Nope! Chipmunks did $2500 to my tractor in 2 days. They ate all the
wiring, rubber hoses (fuel lines) and ate through some metal hydraulic thing. Plus ate a hole in a hydraulic line. Chipmunks are not our friends!


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## Calistar (Jan 16, 2017)

Pinkies make good chicken snacks 😃

My (hopefully) future rodent exterminator arrived last week. She's 11 weeks old so all she's really good for right now is terrorizing the cats and stealing my socks, but hopefully when she's bigger she'll be able to help with the rodent population! She is from working parents.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

She's so cute @Calistar! What breed is she?


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## Calistar (Jan 16, 2017)

MellonFriend said:


> She's so cute @Calistar! What breed is she?


She's a cairn terrier (think Toto.) They're an old Scottish breed originally used for hunting vermin, so I hope she remembers her roots lol!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

How cute.


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Goats Rock said:


> Turn the live trap on its side and a .22 gets rid of the rat. Rats, raccoons, chipmunks and possums all are very unwanted in my barn.
> If they stay in the wood, I don't bother them, but big old river rats etc. Nope!


That would require me to have a gun. I don't. The easiest thing I can think of is to put a rope on my trap and throw it in the river for a minute or two, haul it out of the river, then shake the wet dead rat out of the trap. For me it is just simpler to open the trap and say bye bye.



Goats Rock said:


> Chipmunks did $2500 to my tractor in 2 days. They ate all the
> wiring, rubber hoses (fuel lines) and ate through some metal hydraulic thing. Plus ate a hole in a hydraulic line.


That is terrible! Don't blame you for being at war with the cute little terrors. Been to several hiking trails where it is recommended to wrap your car in chicken wire so porcupines don't get at the hoses. 



Goats Rock said:


> Chipmunks are not our friends!


*Chipmunks Roasting On An Open Fire*


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## Mike at Capra Vista (Nov 30, 2017)

Rat update:

Often we do not notice when a pain goes away. I had a soar knee a while ago and was very aware of the pain but when the pain finally subsided it took a week before I realized that my knee no longer hurt. It seems the same can happen with a pain in the butt. A little while ago, I realized that I had not seen evidence of rats in my barn for months. I used to see rat poop and pee daily in various places, now there is none. No large black rice anywhere. There is absolutely nothing I did to make this happen. I AM MOT COMPLAINING!! I do find it interesting that the rats moved out, died of old age, succumb to predators, got COVID or were eaten by goats without me noticing. I have no doubt that there are still rats around, just not enough to make their presence (or their presents) known to me.

Bye bye, rats, and don't hurry back.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

That is great!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Very good.


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