Straw beds and Rats?

[J&S]

I wonder if I could pick your brains please. Ever since I have had my ponies at home I have used Easibed in their stables. Recently I have been supplementing their hay with some straw, however this is not going down too well (sorry for the pun!) and so I have been just brushing it onto the beds. Last night they were so wet and slimy when they came in that I got extra straw and used it to dry their legs and made deeper beds on top of the Easibed base. Looked super cosy and I felt happy they were as comfy as posssible. This morning I mucked out and found a dead rat in the companion pony's stable. This is the first rat I have seen since we have cleared the land and rebuilt the stables. (two years plus) Would it be that it was attracted to the straw in particular?
In the past, when I have stabled, I have only used shavings, never straw so I am just wondering if it is coincidence or not. All feed is kept in a corn bin and floors swept every day, buckets washed etc.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

No, I doubt that it was attracted to the straw, more likely that your pony could get to it better because the bed was straw. We used to have a gelding who, at least once every winter, left a stamped on rat in his stable, his bed was always straw. If the bed is shavings any rat is likely to be under the bed, so not as easy to stamp on. Funnily enough, although we know that there are rats around sometimes, none of the mares has ever killed one.

 

[asmp]

Our farmer’s straw bales are a right mess as the rats have been eating the nice bits in the straw and chewing through all the baling twine at the same time.

 

[Orangehorse]

Rats go where they are undisturbed to nest, so may be inside a bale. Horses will kick out and kill rats.

 

[chocolategirl]

Having fun my yard for 25 years, I can honestly say I’ve never noticed this problem for those using straw tbh?

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I didn't have rats but was running alive with mice when I had straw in my barn, I only had 2 horses on it one of mine and my friends pony, as soon as she left I switched to shavings and stopped the straw completely, and I only see the odd mouse now and my dog tends to hunt them out and they don't get very far.

I wouldn't ever go back on straw now especially as my stables are so close to my house and some made there way to our loft, again now we only get the odd one up there.

 

[J&S]

Ok, thanks for replies. I quite like the beds with the straw topping but was worried I was giving myself a rodent problem. I know the rat was not actually in the straw when I took it in so it probably came in through the drainage hole in the hope of a dry nest...........was young and healthy looking but hadn't bargained on the occupant!

 

[sport horse]

Give a home to a couple of feral cats and that will solve the rat problem as well as homing a couple of cats in need.