We also have chickens, but they are in a confined area, whereas the guineas roam around the yard all day and roost in the barn at night. They are semi-wild, unlike the chickens, guineas can fly (when they remember they can). I don't know if I dumped a bunch of dead bees in the chicken pen if the chickens would eat them. Probably would. If you had chickens or other birds to keep the grass down and they were left unattended, unfortunately they would be gone in days I'm afraid. Hawks, owls, coyotes, foxes, skunks, etc., would slurp them up fairly quickly. I lock my chickens in every night and they do require some management. Even my guineas roost in the protected barn at night and when the weather is bad. If they are left out to roost in trees, they disappear one by one to some predator. Oberhasli's are wonderful goats. Very personable, great milkers, not too noisy, and very smart. I've raised them for 10 years couldn't imagine having a different breed.

Again I say, PLEASE don't use baits of any kind. I have a 2 year old mouser who is currently clinging to life because of secondary poisoning so anyone who says that it can't happen unless the bait is directly eaten is misinformed. Takes 2-3 days before symptoms are evident and by that time all bodily Vitamin K has been depleted so there are a host of problems all involving anticoagulant properties of the poison (ie: internal bleeding in multiple organs and brain). Only solution is big, long term doses of Vit K and prayer. I thought we had the bait far enough away to prevent direct ingestion by pets but it doesn't matter.....rats come out after eating bait and become weaker, thus easier to catch and if you have a good mouser who's just doing his/her job, then the rodents will be caught and eaten. We played the odds for about a year before this happened so believe me, it WILL eventually happen. Bring out the traps again...I've found that small pieces of Slim Jim in traps works better than peanut butter b/c it's greasy/meaty smelling and stays in place longer too. We also try to avoid creating an environment that provides both things rats look for: food and shelter. I'm finding out the truth of baits the hard way and perhaps too late so please don't follow my example. Thx, Jan in TX

I just came across this thread and thought I could add ideas. I fought the rat battles for 3 or 4 years, collecting over 80 rats in snap traps along the way (yes, I actually kept count). I tried most everything and have concluded that there is only one effective, sustainable solution: eliminate their food sources. They WILL move into your home if there is food nearby, and if not, they will eventually move on (some of my neighbors are now fighting the rat battles). At one point, the rats were so intent on using my attic as home and breeding grounds that, after I sealed off all access points, they literally ate a hole in a cedar shake to regain access. That's when I concluded that you really can't block all access routes - you have to eliminate there reason for wanting to be there. For me, it was mostly bird feeders. I intend to follow up on scarleta's post about the $100 bird feeder. I miss the birds, but each time I put the feeders back up, the rats are back. I've been without feeders for a year, and the only time the rats returned is when I started putting food scraps into my unsecured compost bin. Good luck!

Marilyn, according to the Backyard Barn Owl web site, barn owls are considered one of the world's most common bird. Yet few of us ever see one because of their nocturnal habits. I think I read somewhere that they are on every continent except Antarctica (and I don't blame them for that miss! LOL) I bet you have plenty in your area. When I was a kid, I went camping in Northern California with a friend's family. As I was walking along the road, I found a beautiful adult barn owl dead on the ground. Its beauty was absolute perfection. I touched it and it was still warm, so it must have died moments before. There was no obvious sign of injury so I decided it must have flown into the power or telephone lines above and broken its neck. I've been captivated by these lovely raptors ever since. Jodi- Here is a link that might be useful: Backyard Barn Owls