Rat related advice needed, please

[lynda66]

Incidentally, does anyone have any input regarding the onions?

i'd keep them along with the apples and potatoes ...... they will be fine, just wash em.

[Glutton4...]

We used the plug in sonic thingies in the loft of our last house. We had a young Rat family up there, and at 3am it sounded like a flipping Rugby match above your head.

We tried traps, humane and otherwise. We tried poison - the stuff that's safe with other animals around, as we have a Cat and a Dog, but still we couldn't completely get rid of them.

The sonic things made a real difference. Unfortunately the waves don't penetrate, they are blocked (like light) by solid objects, so you need one in each 'space' ie either side of a chimney breast.

I bought ours cheaply on eBay. They supposedly work on all rodents, so no use if you have Rabbits/Guinea Pigs/Gerbills/Hamsters etc.

That said, my next dog will be a Russell! X

[BrideXIII]

We used the plug in sonic thingies in the loft of our last house. We had a young Rat family up there, and at 3am it sounded like a flipping Rugby match above your head.

We tried traps, humane and otherwise. We tried poison - the stuff that's safe with other animals around, as we have a Cat and a Dog, but still we couldn't completely get rid of them.

The sonic things made a real difference. Unfortunately the waves don't penetrate, they are blocked (like light) by solid objects, so you need one in each 'space' ie either side of a chimney breast.

I bought ours cheaply on eBay. They supposedly work on all rodents, so no use if you have Rabbits/Guinea Pigs/Gerbills/Hamsters etc.

That said, my next dog will be a Russell! X

i am pretty sure we have one or two in our loft too, no bird can possibley be that heavey footed at 4 am, but........... my collie doesn't do step ladders
it may come to me shoving him up there at some point though.

[Glutton4...]

LOL we put our Siamese up in the loft one evening, and her normally skinny tail suddenly turned all squirrelly, and she made this really evil deep growling/howling sound. We took her out again! X

[rana]

A year ago I had rats in the garden feeding on food falling from the bird feeders. They seemed to get wary of traps so I picked 'em off with an air rifle. (8 rats in all). Not seen any since.

[Hilary B]

Rats will move in anywhere there is good cover and something edible. I would probably have dumped the apples, but not the spuds, and no I wouldn't dump the onions. The difference is... COOKING! If you want a dog, get one you like, and deal with the rats some other way (unless you happen to particularly like a ratter). Most terriers will kill rats if they come across them, but some are more alert to the beasties than others. A better approach to tackilng the rat issue would be to reduce their hiding places. Concrete floor to shed, no narrow gaps, etc.

[Two_Sheds]

I wouldn't throw your onions away.
Washed, peeled and cooked, they'll still be more hygienic than the loose veg you buy in the supermarket (touched by who knows how many dirty hands?)

And the veg growing in your garden has probably had 20 kinds of wee on it before you eat it (caterpillar, ant, spider, bird, mice, hodgepig and so on)

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Have a good think about where the rats are nesting. You need to block off any access holes - your rat man can tell you.
Get rid of their nest sites, and they'll move out.
(Warm dry compost heaps are a favourite, so water them regularly)

Good luck
And buy flowers for your neighbours!

[maytreefrannie]

Rats will move in anywhere there is good cover and something edible.

A better approach to tackilng the rat issue would be to reduce their hiding places. Concrete floor to shed, no narrow gaps, etc.

That's the trouble with our garden - too much stuff around. I don't think we have rats at the moment, but you've actually brought it home to me that we should reduce the cover.