Hmmmmmm - as a once and future poultryman, BOM regards rats as THE ENEMY,
but the article is not without interest

http://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/10/lets ... -for-rats/

people fear them because of the plague centuries ago.
we could be in for a deadly resurgence as the years of black death were atypically warm, and the vector went pneumonic rather that from flea bites from rats, the original source. it spread by sneezing and fluids at that time. at least a 3rd of europeans perished. the cultivated fields went back to oak forest for many decades. that timber furnished the ships of the age of empire. after that was cut down they went to malabar in india for the ship building timber.

after coal, steel and steam, they did not look back for a long time until the yanks came along with petroleum

with the climate warming years of black death, bubonic passed from human to human directly at that time, something we do not see in modern times.

there are more than a few cases in western parts of usa nowadays.

stinkin chipmunks, rats are not so bad.

def the enemy for poultry though- good exclusion fencing is key- easy to say- hard to do