A Few Rats

[Erichalfbee]

Why do you shoot the chickens?

 

[Millet]

Why do you shoot the chickens?

The super markets will not buy the eggs once the reach a certain age so they need replacing every year, the ones that miss the meat wagon need to be removed one way or the other, the most effective way is too shoot them, I do not shoot them, me and my lady friend managed to save 19 of them and bring them home.

 

[Erichalfbee]

me and my lady friend managed to save 19 of them and bring them home.

 

[psafloyd]

Ah a blast from the past for me when we used to get monty the terrier and have ratting days under the chicken shed
Later on we used to have a steam boiler to steam sterilise the potting soil in the greenhouse. As there was a head of steam left after the fire was drawn we poked steam hose down the rat holes. Amazing how fast rats emerged from the other holes in their network.

Was this from one rat nest under a chicken coop? How big was this coop?

 

[oliver90owner]

Not read all the thread, but J was walking the dog in the mjddle of Birmingham yesterday pm and the dog suddenly dived into the hedge and latched on to a large rat. A good shaking and it was completely deaded! Some passers-by were horrified, and some were complimentary that another rat was eradicated. J was not sure about the horrified - they may have been squeamish of the blood, or that there were actually rats so close to Birminham centre (Barclays arena area).

 

[Erichalfbee]

I remember watching a program on the box once where a rat popped up through a loo S bend while a chap was in the bathroom. Luckily not on the seat

 

[pargyle]

It's really sad isn't it ... less than 8 months of laying and they are just dog meat - hardly a life at at all. We get ex-battery hens - we've had three lots of them now. Some of them are supposed to be 'barn hens' or 'free range' but to look at them when they arrive you would never know it. All the ones we've had (and still have) give a good supply of eggs for at least a year to 18 months after you get them at about a year old.

The featherless, skinny, beaten up, little beggars who have clearly never seen a blade of grass or a piece of lettuce/sweetcorn in their lives blossom into real hens very quickly and develop proper personalities. They are very easy to handle, are bred for docility and have been dosed with every antibiotic known to man so they are free of any nasties. We've had one or two that didn't make old bones but it's not really surprising when you think of the miserable life some of them must have had. Unfortunately, they also have no fear of any predators - so, fox proof quarters are essential.

There are a couple of hen rescue organisations - we get our's from the British Hen Welfare Trust. Highly recommend rescuing a few if you have the space - even two hens will keep you in eggs as these are high volume layers and you get up to 6 eggs a week from each of them.

The only difficult bit is despatching them when they really do go beyond their sell by date ... I always rather hope they will die on the job rather than having to kid 'er indoors that another one has popped her clogs !!

 

[Millet]

It's really sad isn't it ... less than 8 months of laying and they are just dog meat - hardly a life at at all. We get ex-battery hens - we've had three lots of them now. Some of them are supposed to be 'barn hens' or 'free range' but to look at them when they arrive you would never know it. All the ones we've had (and still have) give a good supply of eggs for at least a year to 18 months after you get them at about a year old.

The featherless, skinny, beaten up, little beggars who have clearly never seen a blade of grass or a piece of lettuce/sweetcorn in their lives blossom into real hens very quickly and develop proper personalities. They are very easy to handle, are bred for docility and have been dosed with every antibiotic known to man so they are free of any nasties. We've had one or two that didn't make old bones but it's not really surprising when you think of the miserable life some of them must have had. Unfortunately, they also have no fear of any predators - so, fox proof quarters are essential.

There are a couple of hen rescue organisations - we get our's from the British Hen Welfare Trust. Highly recommend rescuing a few if you have the space - even two hens will keep you in eggs as these are high volume layers and you get up to 6 eggs a week from each of them.

The only difficult bit is despatching them when they really do go beyond their sell by date ... I always rather hope they will die on the job rather than having to kid 'er indoors that another one has popped her clogs !!

I 100% agree with you on all of that, here is one that my mother got sat on the TV cabinet in the house, they have proper characters but the other ones she has keep attacking the rescued one, hopefully they will settle down soon.

 

[Erichalfbee]

The only difficult bit is despatching them when they really do go beyond their sell by date ... I always rather hope they will die on the job rather than having to kid 'er indoors that another one has popped her clogs !!

They ARE real characters. My last one is living the life in her own run at night because as she has got old and feeble she is seriously bullied by the others. She has been on her "last legs" for two months now but she tootles along clucking happily to herself all the time and still enjoys a cuddle.

 

[pargyle]

They ARE real characters. My last one is living the life in her own run at night because as she has got old and feeble she is seriously bullied by the others. She has been on her "last legs" for two months now but she tootles along clucking happily to herself all the time and still enjoys a cuddle.

If it's confession time ... I kept one of our's alive for two weeks feeding her yoghurt via a syringe ... and she recovered and lived another 6 months - never laid another egg though !!

They do seem to pick on any that are not up to par though ... usually preventing them getting at the food. New entrants to the flock tend to get bullied until the pecking order is established ... funny that expression PECKING order - wonder where that came from ?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

The super markets will not buy the eggs once the reach a certain age

No, it's the fact that the egg yield drops slightly/they go into moult after a year or thereabouts and there's no room for mediocre performance in that kind of setups.

 

[Millet]

No, it's the fact that the egg yield drops slightly/they go into moult after a year or thereabouts and there's no room for mediocre performance in that kind of setups.

OK, you know better than the farmer obviously .

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

He's just trying to salve a guilty conscience obviously

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[pargyle]

No, it's the fact that the egg yield drops slightly/they go into moult after a year or thereabouts and there's no room for mediocre performance in that kind of setups.

Yes ... that's what the Hen Rescue people say as well .. the egg farmers won't keep the hens when they moult as they DO stop laying. The egg farmers have a rotational stock of hens so one out for dog food and a point of lay comes in at the other end.

 

[oliver90owner]

Yep, you are right, JBM. Simple economics at the production end. Younger chickens convert more food to eggs. Less disease to combat, by starting afresh with new stock. Nowt more required, but likely other reasons, too.

 

[Millet]

He's just trying to salve a guilty conscience obviously

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Believe me they do not have a guilty conscience, the stragglers left behind get shot and butchered with dogs, i missed the days ratting several month ago when another shed was being cleaned out, the lads rounded up around 250 up and necked them for the farmer.

 

[Cussword]

I 100% agree with you on all of that, here is one that my mother got sat on the TV cabinet in the house, they have proper characters but the other ones she has keep attacking the rescued one, hopefully they will settle down soon.

You have a really calm dog,( in the reflection), if mine was that near a chicken the house would be wrecked. Town dog.

 

[Millet]

You have a really calm dog,( in the reflection), if mine was that near a chicken the house would be wrecked. Town dog.

You have good eyes , i did not notice my Brothers Jackawawa in that picture. he is chook safe either way and mine are 100% safe among them chooks , even when running killing anything that moves.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Was this from one rat nest under a chicken coop? How big was this coop?

Not a coop it was a 20' x 15' shed on an earth floor. There would be sundry tunnels.
I only ever keep chickens or any other livestock on concrete floors now having learned from experience.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Not a coop it was a 20' x 15' shed on an earth floor. There would be sundry tunnels.
I only ever keep chickens or any other livestock on concrete floors now having learned from experience.

That's what Ive always done.
Husband wouldn't put a concrete apron under our walk-in run as it was in the garden so it sits on weld mesh ...That does the job too.