Rid Rodents from Wrapped Bales
Putting up wetter forages as fermented baleage has definite feed-value and harvest-efficiency advantages. But rats and mice love baleage as much as cows do, especially if it contains grain.
Feed lost to rodent consumption obviously cuts back on total yield. But possibly even more damaging is the exposure to oxygen and moisture from the holes those critters create in the wrapped plastic, which can produce undesirable acids and/or cause feed to turn moldy.
Some farmers even report significant tears in the plastic, caused by larger predators like foxes and coyotes that pursue the mice and rats.
Online discussions and Extension bulletins like these from the University of Georgia and North Dakota State University offer these suggestions to keep rodents at bay:
- Wrap bales with at least 6-8 layers of plastic.
- Spray weeds around the storage site and/or mow the vegetation regularly to remove rodent habitat.
- Harvest forages before seed heads develop to improve feed quality and eliminate grain bait.
- Stack bales on their ends and place bale rows further apart to prevent the creation of “rodent runs.”
- Do not cover the bales with an additional sheet of plastic, as this will create an ideal nesting site for rodents.
- When holes are discovered, patch them immediately with repair tape treated to resist ultraviolet light, not duct tape.
Tow commercial products also have been developed to address the rodent challenge are Agrirepel RaniRepel.