Tackling a hundred-strong rat colony at an arable and livestock farm using Selontra^®

When Kevin Spink, owner of Yorkshire Wolds Pest Control, was called to a busy farm in rural Yorkshire, he was faced with up to a hundred rats running freely throughout the farm. Here, we explore how Selontra^® tackled the infestation in under two weeks, saving both himself and his client time and money.

The Challenge

After being called to a livestock and arable farm in rural East Yorkshire housing over 250 cattle and 1,200 acres of field crops, Kevin was met with a colony of rats estimated to be around a hundred strong. Not only did Kevin witness rats running freely across the farm during daylight, but after a thorough site inspection he found well-used runs, a substantial amount of droppings and gnawing evident throughout the buildings.

What’s more, damage could be seen to the animal’s food stores and to the grain storage containers, posing a serious risk to the health and safety of the farm’s food production line and potentially costing the farmer sigificant financial losses.

Kevin, who has been using Selontra^® since it came to the market in November 2020, knew that the cholecalciferol active was the best option to quickly and effectively eradicate the infestation.

He commented: “Farms can become the perfect environment for rats to thrive, particularly with readily available animal feed, crop and grains to eat, plus plenty of harbourage and easy access to water. This particular farm had old wooden doors to most of the outhouses, so the rats could easily gnaw their way in and access the stores.

“I switched to Selontra^® when BASF launched the product through Killgerm, mostly because it reduces environmental impact and risk of secondary poisoning to non-target species. Lots of the farms I work on have barn owls, so we always do everything we can to reduce risk to them in line with the CRRU guidlines.“

The Result

Following the site assessment, Kevin scouted the site to find naturally occurring, sturdy materials to adopt a covered and protected approach to baiting. He found corrugated sheeting and disused car tyres, and secured approximately four to five kilos of Selontra^® in line with the label. He used wire to secure the baits in bundles of 7 bocks before covering with the heavy materials found around the farm buildings.

Kevin said: “I prefer a covered and protected approach as, in my experience, it is usually more successful due to avoiding neophobia. We did also place a few bait boxes around the site, however the majority of uptake was seen under these natural materials along existing rat runs, as it appeals to the rats‘ natural behaviours. I also like using Selontra^® as it’s so easy to fix in situ – the hole in the bait means it can quickly be attached to wires, making baiting quick and easy.“

On the second day, Kevin reported that most of the bait had already been consumed so he replenished the bait points accordingly. He replenished the bait on day seven, and by day 14 the infestation was completely eradicated, demonstrating just how fast and effective the speed baiting approach is.

Kevin added “Since switching to Selontra^® I’ve had impressive results across a variety of rural environments, including busy farms like this one. Although it may cost a little more upfront than other baits, you need much less of the product to control an infestation, making it fantastic for saving both money and time in the long run.

Information: Use biocide products carefully. Always read the label and product information before use.