# Feed bins VS Rats



## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

So I'm not particularly happy right now... ONE WEEK ago, I bought some bins to store my feed at my paddock. I used to store the same feed in the same type of bins a few years ago with no problems. Now that I've moved the bins back to my paddock, the rats have decided it would be super awesomely fun to eat my bins  Of course, the bin that contains the most expensive feed. *Rage*

It's an open set up so I have to be *really* careful as to how I try to manage this rat infestation. If my horse decides to he can just finish breaking the gate and walk on in and eat til his hearts content.
He's never tried to get in before, the gate is half broken because of a friends incredibly naughty pony.

Does anyone have any horse friendly ways to either get rid of the rats, or something to put on the bins to deter them from further destroying them?
A friend suggested an anti-windsucking spray, but I don't know if a bitter spray will stop rats.

They haven't eaten any of my other stuff, apart from a couple bites out of a saddle blanket.

I would just get metal bins made up, but unfortunately I can't afford that at the moment.

Mad props to anyone that can suggest ANYTHING. I can't replace this stuff all the time


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## myhorsesonador (Jun 21, 2009)

Get a jack russell!  Or barrow one! They're great at getting rats.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

Yes terriers love to kills rats!!! Treats for them. But best bin for grain is an old freezer, I love mine and no rat or mouse can penetrate it & plenty of room for about 3 or 4 bags of feed.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

Haha, I've been offered use of my friends foxies or their cat which have eliminated their rat problem. Unfortunately I agist my horse so I wouldn't be able to have them there.
It's a 3 sided shed with a fence and gate across the front so there wouldn't even be a way to lock them in for a couple days to get rid of rats.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

Waresbear, do you mean like a chest freezer?


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## jumanji321 (Dec 1, 2010)

My uncle has wooden floored metal feed bins. Those stupid rats ate a TON of the barley and oats over the summer. They also left their evidence behind. Makes me happy I live in Alberta, mostly rat-free.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

Hmmm, I guess maybe that is what you call it over there, not like an upright fridge, yes like a chest. An old disabled, broken one. Offer to pick it up, someone will donate one. Yes jumanji, Alberta doesn't even allow pet rats I heard, was a big story blasted all over the news about a family moving there with their pet rat, it had to be killed. It wasn't, it got rescued to another province.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

I shake my fist at your mostly rat free Alberta... Trade????
These little jerks are even eating holes in EMPTY bags that I needed to use for poop cleaning  Bane of my existence.

Might try put an add up for the freezer.


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## gunslinger (Sep 17, 2011)

I keep my feed in metal trash cans and use a bungie cord with d rings on each end, attached to the side handles and passed through the handle on the lid to keep the top secure.

Not much money, and the rats, nor the horses can't get into it.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

first, you need to take the horse breaking in to the feed more seriously, you can kill or permanently lame your horse this way.
Second, galvanized steel trashcans with bungee cord lids are cheep, last and work. 
On the bright side sooner or later the snakes will discover the fertile hunting grounds.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

I'm a huge fan of poisoning the ******s out of existence, grew up on a farm and it's amazing how much damage they can do to grain. Some people worry about their other pets and it is a viable concern. My family has never poisoned a family pet but I know people where that has happened.

You can go the trap route if poison is a no go. Traps do a pretty decent job of getting rid of rodents so long as you don't mind disposing of them after being caught.


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## gunslinger (Sep 17, 2011)

Joe4d said:


> first, you need to take the horse breaking in to the feed more seriously, you can kill or permanently lame your horse this way.
> Second, galvanized steel trashcans with bungee cord lids are cheep, last and work.
> On the bright side sooner or later the snakes will discover the fertile hunting grounds.



Man, I wish. I had a rat snake that showed up from time to time, the neighbor kids tried to kill him but I rescued him before they could. Found him dead in the road, squashed flat and buzzard bait.

We do have a few pairs of red breasted hawks that hang around a lot, but unfortunately, we still have plenty of rats.

Every so often I'll take my .22 revolver loaded with rat shot to the barn with me in an attempt to reduce the population.

I'd get a cat, but I think my dog would probably kill a cat.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

We had a lot of rat problems until we acquired 6 barn cats. They are all spayed/neutered and up to date on all their shots. The rats pretty much disappeared. 

If the feed is not secure from the horses, they can overeat and die. My cousin lost a very nice horse that got into the feed room and ate a bag of feed. He survived the colic. After that, he developed a horrendous case of laminitis and eventually had to be put down.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Peppermint Oil 

Soak cotton balls in peppermint oil and place many cotton balls in the area where the rodents frequent. The peppermint smell will sting the rodents' noses and make them leave the area. Seal all holes where rodents are coming in from the outside.

Source: Removing Rats From Your Home


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

I have to vote with the Jack Russell Extermination Team program. You don't need to leave them for days. Just toss a Russell into each container for a few minutes, they'll take care of the current rats and leave a predator smell behind. Then put your feed into galvanized metal trash cans with tight bungee cords and you'll pretty much have solved the problem. Would the barn owner mind if you dropped off a few Guinea Hens? They clean up any spilled grain and keep the area pretty much snake & tick free too. 

Between 3 JRT's, 6 feral barn cats (the JRT's have a fenced area they patrol and the cats have figured out that to go into the dog yard is to die immediately) and about 30 guineas, I have no pests. No mice, moles, voles, rats, snakes, ticks and the fly population stays waaaay down. I'm always asked how I keep the flies away from a horse ranch and I just point to the guineas. Oh and they are excellent 'guard dogs', they squawck more and louder than the Russells bark when a stranger appears.


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## Jake and Dai (Aug 15, 2008)

gunslinger said:


> I keep my feed in metal trash cans and use a bungie cord with d rings on each end, attached to the side handles and passed through the handle on the lid to keep the top secure.
> 
> Not much money, and the rats, nor the horses can't get into it.


That's what I use as well. I've gone in to the barn a few times to see it on it's side from raccoons trying to get in, but the lid was still tightly fastened.


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## gingerscout (Jan 18, 2012)

I actually put my grain in a container that was supposed to put dog food in made by iams.. it is white with a yellow lid.. and omg it is so hard to open at times I need a crowbar, but it does a good job keeping critters out.. most of the multipurpose ones I have seen are easy to open, not this one:lol:


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## Cruiser (Aug 28, 2011)

I just finished poisoning a large population of them, my horses run in is close to my neighbors barn where they live, they hopped the ditch and came over to eat Spice's feed. I put the poison in 2 1/2 inch pvc pipe so no other animals could get it. One week later no more rats!

Someone told me to use chocolate ex lax to kill them, they swear by it inside, but outside they can get more water and the effect doesn't work I guess?


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

Dreamcatcher Arabians said:


> I have to vote with the Jack Russell Extermination Team program. You don't need to leave them for days. Just toss a Russell into each container for a few minutes, they'll take care of the current rats and leave a predator smell behind. Then put your feed into galvanized metal trash cans with tight bungee cords and you'll pretty much have solved the problem. Would the barn owner mind if you dropped off a few Guinea Hens? They clean up any spilled grain and keep the area pretty much snake & tick free too.
> 
> Between 3 JRT's, 6 feral barn cats (the JRT's have a fenced area they patrol and the cats have figured out that to go into the dog yard is to die immediately) and about 30 guineas, I have no pests. No mice, moles, voles, rats, snakes, ticks and the fly population stays waaaay down. I'm always asked how I keep the flies away from a horse ranch and I just point to the guineas. Oh and they are excellent 'guard dogs', they squawck more and louder than the Russells bark when a stranger appears.


I use free range chickens in the same manner, the horse gets textured feed, enough grain passes through that the chickens scatter the manure everywhere, combined with fly predators I have almost no flies or ticks. 
Cats are best for rodent control, I am afraid of poison. Keeping inside a pipe does no good the rats will carry pieces out with them. I am afraid it would end up in my food supply through tthe chicken eggs somehow. Cats and traps, and keep food secure. You wont have any mice or rats.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

I have been told that free range chickens will kill rats themselves. Does anybody know if this is true?


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Celeste said:


> I have been told that free range chickens will kill rats themselves. Does anybody know if this is true?


I wouldn't be surprised, I've watched them kill smaller snakes and lizards, so I don't know why they wouldn't. I haven't had a rat or mouse around here in so long, my chickens haven't ever seen one though.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Joe4d said:


> I use free range chickens in the same manner, the horse gets textured feed, enough grain passes through that the chickens scatter the manure everywhere, combined with fly predators I have almost no flies or ticks.
> .....afaid of poison. Keeping inside a pipe does no good the rats will carry pieces out with them. I am afraid it would end up in my food supply through tthe chicken eggs somehow.


I've always been afraid that a poisoned mouse or rat might end up in the dog yard and of course, the JRT's would attack and kill it, so they'd end up poisoned too. The concern about the eggs never crossed my mind, but that's a really good point too.


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

We had a westie.

Westie was primarily just a house pet but just having him round the yard occassionaly delt with our rat problem.


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## Cruiser (Aug 28, 2011)

Our rat problem the rats are almost a foot or more long! Plus traps don't work outside, no other animals go any were near the horse house, the dog stays by the house and the cats only go behind away from the road. I told the owner of the barn they deal with the rats how ever they want or I'll, they caught one and gave up. The rats always eat all the bait none or very little comes out one or a half pelt won't do much unless you'r only a few ozs. Plus losing one horse to the wild life is more than enough.

Like I said someone mentioned exlax dehydrating them and it is safe around other animals, that or beer because they can't burp so they died of gas build up.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

I caught a mouse in my feed can I left the lid off, I put the mouse out in the corral with the cat, kinda clue him in on his job. The cat just yawned at the running mouse, but the roosters tore off after him. I imagine if they were a bit faster, or the barn foundation was a little farther away they woulda got him.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

Dreamcatcher Arabians said:


> I've always been afraid that a poisoned mouse or rat might end up in the dog yard and of course, the JRT's would attack and kill it, so they'd end up poisoned too. The concern about the eggs never crossed my mind, but that's a really good point too.


Pretty much, I go through all the trouble to have free range chickens that dont get fed drugs and hormones, kinda defeat the purpose if I introduce rat poison to their diet. And yep it will get there, I had baits in the barn, where the chickens cant go and I saw pieces of it out side a small tunnel under the barn foundation. So I know a mouse carried it outside. Dont we have enough toxic pollution without purposly introducing more ? Especially when there are other less hazardous methods that are just as effective ?


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## Coyote (Oct 23, 2010)

Repeating mouse trap. 
Build your own repeating mouse trap by Allen Easterly Issue #110


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Joe4d said:


> Pretty much, I go through all the trouble to have free range chickens that dont get fed drugs and hormones, kinda defeat the purpose if I introduce rat poison to their diet. And yep it will get there, I had baits in the barn, where the chickens cant go and I saw pieces of it out side a small tunnel under the barn foundation. So I know a mouse carried it outside. Dont we have enough toxic pollution without purposly introducing more ? Especially when there are other less hazardous methods that are just as effective ?


Totally agree Joe, I do the same with my chickens, let them free range and no drugs. I'd be furious if they got into something that came through in the eggs and I couldn't be free range/organic (though not certified I'm stricter than fed regs).


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

My chickens aren't totally loose, but they are fed only safe, healthy feed. I sure don't want them poisoned, especially since we eat the eggs. I do have some free range chickens that visit from the next farm over. They come to clean up any feed the horses may spill.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

Joe4d said:


> first, you need to take the horse breaking in to the feed more seriously, you can kill or permanently lame your horse this way.
> Second, galvanized steel trashcans with bungee cord lids are cheep, last and work.
> On the bright side sooner or later the snakes will discover the fertile hunting grounds.


I would love to get metal bins, but as I've said, I just can't afford it.
Here they're $42 for a 55L bin. It will fit one bag of feed in it. I need 6 bins to fit my feed. That will cost me $252 VS the $70 I paid for the plastic. Just can't afford it.

I don't need to take my horse breaking in to the feed more seriously. It was MY FRIENDS PONY that broke the gate to get in. That pony is a very naughty little piggy sometimes, and he is no longer at my paddock. My horse is there alone. A friend accidentally left the gate to the feed open one night and my horse never went in there. I can't even entice him in there no matter now hard I try. I only said IF my horse wants to, he could. But that's a very big IF.
I do realise that he could, horses do what they feel like when they feel like doing it and things they didn't do before, they could decide to do now. This is why I'm hesitant to put down any poison.

It's middle of summer here and there's a carpet snake that lives in the garage next to the feed shed. I don't think he's doing his job  In fact come to think of it, I've only seen one snake all Summer.

I wish I could just poison the little jerks, it would make it all easier for me to just throw it down and then dispose of any bodies I find.
I might try the peppermint and see how that works for deterring them.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

well obviously the $70 was a waste of money if the rats are eating your food. add that to the cost of wasted food. Now how much money are you saving ? I cant fathom why you need to keep 6 bins of food on hand. Dont go to a tack or farm store, go to a hardware or general household department store and buy a metal trash can with a lid and a bungee cord. Or make excuses why you cant and keep feeding the rats. 
Your feed room needs to be horse proof whether the horse decides he wants in or not.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

I don't usually buy more than 150 pounds of feed at once. It is best if it is fresh. I used to buy large quantities because they give you a discount, but if it molded then I had to throw it away.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

I have 6 bins because the 3 bags of feed that I get wont fit in 1.
I never said theyre eating the feed, they have statyed eating the lid to try gey to the feed.
Ive had horses on this property for 5 years with only one incident.
Im super sorry joe4d that I cant afford the metal bins. All I asked was for some horse friendly ways to get rid of rats, ie not poison. I cant keep other animals there that will get rid of them for me. Its not my ideal set up, but its what ive got for the forseeable future.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

I actually throw the unopened bags on the feed room floor. (The feed room is quite horse proof.) I only put the opened ones in the metal garbage can I use for feed.

We just don't have rats any more. The cats.......

Before the cats, it was a real problem. Nothing seemed to help.


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## themacpack (Jul 16, 2009)

Amir said:


> I have 6 bins because the 3 bags of feed that I get wont fit in 1.
> I never said theyre eating the feed, they have statyed eating the lid to try gey to the feed.
> Ive had horses on this property for 5 years with only one incident.
> Im super sorry joe4d that I cant afford the metal bins. All I asked was for some horse friendly ways to get rid of rats, ie not poison. I cant keep other animals there that will get rid of them for me. Its not my ideal set up, but its what ive got for the forseeable future.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Unfortunately, you have eliminated all of the possible solutions.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

Poison the rats & get a feed freezer. I have no rats anymore & I have 2 terriers but the barn provided too many escape routes for packrats (2X the size of normal rats). Live trapping takes too long & never really totally eliminates the problem. Don't be afraid to use poison, only thing that would even bother with the obscure placed poison was my victim rats.


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## jumanji321 (Dec 1, 2010)

waresbear said:


> Hmmm, I guess maybe that is what you call it over there, not like an upright fridge, yes like a chest. An old disabled, broken one. Offer to pick it up, someone will donate one. Yes jumanji, Alberta doesn't even allow pet rats I heard, was a big story blasted all over the news about a family moving there with their pet rat, it had to be killed. It wasn't, it got rescued to another province.


Yep, only rats allowed are lab rats. I had a friend who moved from BC with her pet rat and she was really surprised to find out she wasn't allowed to have him. He was on the back end of 2 though, so he died not long after.


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## hillside farm (Dec 23, 2011)

Try moth balls, I spread them all around the outside of my camper when I placed it inside the pole shed for the winter, I also baited it with poison ( called Just One Bite) works the best, don't waste your money on that D-Con they don't even eat it.
I also have 4 siamese cats that live in that pole shed, but they only catch mice and play with them after catching them, they don't eat them.
Up in the two story dairy barn where I keep my horse feed I use 30 gal garbage cans for my feed and dog food, each will hold 100 lbs. when I bought this place it was rat infested, that is how I got rid of the rats, if you see one you got fifty of them. Just One Bite.................


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## HarleyWood (Oct 14, 2011)

im having my uncle make feed bins so i can put oats and feed in there with a lock we had mice and my cat took care of them, but i wanted a feeder instead of my garbage bins i always had to crawl in to get the last of the feed. so hes makning me a bin that has a slanted top and a lock with 2 seperate areas so i can have 2 types of feed.


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

That is exactly what I want harleywood. Im putting money aside for my friend to make them for me, but the price of steel is a bit much thay it will unfortunately take a bit of time for me to afford it 
Ive put a bitter spray on the bins hoping thay can help a little. We'll see.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

A 20 gallon galvanized trash can with a lid is only $28 us, I cant imagine them costing much more in Aus. Add a bungee cord, and you have a rat proof container that will hold 70 kilos of food.

You cant have a cat, dont want pioson, wont use traps, and claim you cant afford a rat proof trashcan. Like the above poster said you have eliminated all the solutions and not much else we can do for you.


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## MangoRoX87 (Oct 19, 2009)

Mouse traps.
Galvanized steel trashcans. 
BOOM


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## Amir (Nov 18, 2009)

Well in australia its $42 for 55L and it will hold 25kg. Things are more expensive here.

When did I say I wont use traps? All I was asking was if there were friendlier ways anyone might have found to deal with it.

I do realise steel is the most ideal way to go about keeping it all away, but I.cant afford to go out and drop $250 on it right this second. Its something that I am saving for but I have other bills that also need to be paid.
I would have bought steel in the first place if it was something I could afford.

Joe4d, you never had to keep replying saying the same thing every time.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## HarleyWood (Oct 14, 2011)

well my uncle said something about a bin that the city uses... not sure but he said they would work better. im sure you could use a wood top so its less steel.


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