Hey everyone!
When rats destroyed $15k of grain and bred in my tractor engine, I tried every rural tactic, poison, flooding burrows, even ferret patrols. The verdict:
- Zinc phosphide bait: Killed 100 rats but wiped out my barn cat colony
- Solar-powered deterrents: Rats chewed the wires for nest insulation
- Barn owl nesting boxes: 1 owl family ate 1,200 rats/year → 80% population drop
Now I’m battling rat-vectored leptospirosis in livestock. How do we protect farms without ecological carnage?
Strychnine oats worked for generations until EPA banned ’em. Now using dry ice burrow bombs, CO2 sinks, kills humanely. County extension says ‘legal-ish.’
Barn owls reduce rats but need 1,000-acre territories. Small farms? Cluster 4+ nest boxes and add perch poles. Avoid rodenticides, killed 60% of local foxes!
Concrete moats around feed storage ($200/linear ft). Rats can’t swim molten-lava style. Added broken glass for good measure. Harsh but 100% effective since 2020.
Rats nested in my combine! Peppermint-infused hydraulic fluid ($80/gallon) repelled them.
Biological control: Released 50 sterilized rat terriers. They hunt without breeding. USDA approved! Downside: Neighbors’ chickens vanished too.
Electrified fencing around gardens (5,000V pulsed). Zapped 3 rats, 1 raccoon, and my husband. 10/10 would shock again. Kids call it ‘the bacon force field.’
Dry ice kills earthworms! Soil recovery takes 3+ years. Try castor oil soil drenches, collapses burrows naturally. Usda nrcs subsidizes 50% cost!
Aerial zinc phosphide banned under Clean Water Act if within 1mi of streams. Fines up to $37k/day! Ground apps need SPCC Plan + containment. Not worth the risk!
Lunar-powered rat zappers, moonlight charges batteries! Installed on fence posts. Kills rats, educates kids about renewables. Win-win until owls got fried.
@HomesteadMom Your bacon fence gave me nightmares! Switched to ultrasonic tractor guards ($150). Emits rat death metal at 45kHz. Neighbors complain, but my corn’s safe!