Will Rats Eat Baby Chicks?
WouterIf you are raising baby chicks, you might be wondering if rats will eat them. Although rats won’t kill your baby chicks, they are known to kill other poultry, including adults. Rats can also spread disease. Some chickens can develop salmonella or other bacteria after inhaling rodent feces.
There are several methods of controlling rat populations. The first method involves poisoning the rat. You can poison rats by placing them in cages and trapping them. You can also use corn meal mixed with plaster of paris. The rats will eat the corn meal and the plaster, and they will die. However, be careful when using poisons near livestock, as rats develop immunity to many poisons. You should always place the poison in a locked container, to prevent the rat from spreading it to other animals.
Another way of controlling rats is to put them outside your coop. A rat’s teeth can easily chew through any kind of material, including chicken feed. Even a couple of rats in the coop will cause an infestation. The best way to combat a rat problem is to start early and use a three-pronged approach.
Another method of controlling rats is to use baits that can attract them. Glue traps can also be used. However, you need to keep the chickens and children away from the traps. Glue traps make a rat’s feet stick to the trap, making it unable to get away. The rats will eventually die from starvation.
