SAY NO TO RODENTS Garrards, the company with a time-tested background in pest control, is your best bet when it comes to rodent control inand-around your stables. Put simply, mice and rats bring disease - a no-no when it comes to equine welfare.
Rats are drawn to horse feed These unwanted guests are a given at most stables, even if there’s a barn cat in attendance. Rodents must not be accepted into stables - and disease is the main reason: rodents carry several diseases transferable to both horses and humans. Their fees and urine can contaminate feed with diseases such as leptospirosis, salmonella and trichinosis, and also carry fleas, mites and ticks. All feed and supplements should be kept in rodent-proof containers and metal garbage cans with lids. Because plastic and wood containers are vulnerable to chewing, metal is a preferred option. Stand-alone feed unprotected in feed rooms just provide these pesky critters with an open invitation to come a calling. It is vital to dispose of any feed contaminated with rodent feces during storage: it can’t and won’t do for your horses.
What lurks behind the stable door? Feed room hygiene is important - sweep any dropped feed that would otherwise provide easy pickings, and dispose of it in a secured metal container labelled as garbage. Cans should be regularly pulled away from walls and the feed room floor should be swept around them. Apart from the obvious drawback of disease, rats are ravenous eaters and can consume surprisingly large amounts of feed - mature rats eat an ounce of feed a day. Because rats have five litters a year with as many as 14 babies each litter, it will all add up: rodents have a huge multiplication factor, and once they’re in, it’s hard to get them out! Not only should the feed be stored securely, but so should the feed room. Mice only need a 1cm hole to gain entry, and small rats can work their way through even smaller holes. Windows and doors should be secured tightly with no gaps around frames - holes, no matter how small, should be plugged. Mice and rats like creature comforts - for that reason keep blankets, saddle pads and any spare equipment stored in rodent-proof containers. If you don’t these unwanted visitors will seek them as bedding material and nesting sites.
Rodents can find their way into feed bins 36
Garrards Horse & Hound
For complete details of rodent control in stables, contact your local Garrards branch.
