Case Study: Using a covered and protected baiting method to rid a poultry farm of over 200 rats

Dean Butterworth, a professional pest controller and owner of Rotherham-based firm, Yorkshire Pest Control, was called to a large poultry farm that housed over 1000 hens due to a growing rodent infestation. Using the award-winning Selontra®, Dean secured the site and regained control of the mass infestation in fewer than three weeks.

• Between 200 to 250 rats estimated
• 30 bait points were set using the covered and protected method
• 4kg of Selontra^® required
• Complete control in three visits

The Challenge

When Dean was approached by a local poultry farmer to help tackle a growing rodent infestation, he quickly realised how serious an issue it was. The large-scale poultry farm was home to over 1,000 hens, and rats were feasting on the ample animal feed available. Coupled with plenty of harbourage and available water, the infestation had quickly got out of hand, posing a huge risk to the health of workers and financial loss from the consumed food and damaged eggs. Dean knew he needed to act fast to regain control to prevent further losses.

The farmer had reported his hen feed had diminished rapidly and there had also been sightings of large numbers of rodents scurrying across the farm in the evenings. Upon his site inspection, Dean noticed further signs of activity such as established rat runs and smear marks near the buildings and estimated there to be up to 250 rats present both in and around the onsite buildings and courtyard.

After positioning multiple bait boxes around the farm, Dean experienced minimal bait uptake, likely due to the rodent’s neophobic behaviour. To mitigate this, Dean decided a covered and protected approach was required to overcome the neophobia and to increase the speed of bait consumption.

Dean created sheltered areas to position the bait points using debris from the site “I used old pallets, roofing sheets, disused chicken runs and old sheds to hide the bait that I had securely fixed onto metal wires. I knew that due to neophobic behaviour and availability of other food on site, it would not be simple to get the rats to consume a lethal dose so quickly. So, I created thirty bait points along suspected rat runs, all armed with 7 blocks of Selontra^® in each of the covered areas. Within two days, fifty percent of the bait had been consumed.”

The Result

Once the bait had all been consumed, Dean replenished each bait location until consumption lessened and activity around the site had decreased. In total, Dean used in total around 4kg of the award-winning cholecalciferol-based rodenticide, Selontra^® and was able to regain total control of the infestation in fewer than three weeks.

“I knew I needed to use Selontra^® on this job, and thanks to its quick knock-down effect and stop-feed properties, I was able to diminish the rodent population in record time. Due to the rural location of the site, I wanted to reduce the risk to non-target species through secondary poisoning - neither the hens nor other wildlife such as birds of prey, and I knew Selontra^® significantly reduced this risk due to its non bio accumulative properties.”

Selontra^® is not persistent in the environment, therefore reduces the risk of secondary poisoning to non-target species compared to some second-generation anticoagulants.

“Overall, Selontra^® worked exceptionally well on this location. The infestation was cleared quickly, and my customer was impressed with the speed in which I was able to regain control. Thanks to Selontra^®, I now have the contract for the site to implement an integrated pest management strategy to reduce the risk of reinfestation. I will definitely be using Selontra^® in the future on upcoming jobs, it worked flawlessly to help me achieve full control.”

Due to his outstanding dedication to his job and care of his customers, Dean was awarded the Yorkshire Prestige Award which recognises his hard work and commitment.

To find out more about Selontra^®, or to browse the entire range of pest control products visit the BASF Pest Control Solutions website at rodenticides

About Selontra

• Rodent-free is possible in as few as seven days
• Saves treatment times and improves productivity
• Stops the waste of resources
• Balances performance and environmental impact
• Breaks the cycle of resistance

Selontra^® is a revolutionary rodenticide bait, controlling infestations in rural and urban settings in as few as seven days.

Its high performance, non-anticoagulant formulation controls up to 100% of target rodents, including resistant rats and mice, breaking the cycle of resistance.

Selontra^®’s active ingredient, cholecalciferol, is neither persistent in the environment nor bio-accumulative.

Importantly, it’s four times more palatable than most rodenticides, making it a powerful solution for controlling infestations even when alternative attractive food sources are readily available.

Selontra^® is stable and durable enough to withstand both cold climates and extreme heat, whatever the weather.

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