Rat in my composter what am i gonna do

[cptncrackoff]

theres a couple of products that may be of use, 'wide piper' bait feeding system, the bait is held inside a tube, similar to drain pipe.
sorex rat box, has two compartments for bait, lockable lid.

I wouldnt use any bait from the diy sheds, get neosorexa gold , or something similar.

[reetnproper]

If you do decide to go down the poison route, try to find something without warfarin as some chicken feeds (specifically layers pellets our Enivormental Health people told us) have vit K in them and this is the antidote to warfarin poisoning, so Ratty'll eat your bait but if he's happily munching away on the layers pellets as well, the poison wont work.

Reet
x

[Two_Sheds]

Do they nibble the plastic or get underneath as you can put weldmesh over the base?

They aren't a huge problem, tbh. I don't want to start putting mesh underneath them, I move them too frequently for that. I probably only get a small nest once a year, and they're evicted when I next move that dalek (which I do every other month).
Voles are cute, and if we didn't have them, we wouldn't have any barn owls either

Just about all garden poisons have been changed.

... or been withdrawn due to safety issues

[shaunbrook]

I favour the wait with a heavy spade until it just starts to go dark approach! Organic and fast affecting. Some may think its in-humain but I feel making them eat toxins is worse.

[tlck9]

Thank you for your replies I havent read them all, just working through them

However i had the most horrid morning and I can safely say that I hated my allotment for the very first time!!

I decided to move my composters and got the fork out, its only been in place for a couple for weeks and then I heard the little crys of help, I had forked a baby rat!!! eyes not even open, so I banged it on its head only to find I had done the same with a couple more, out of desperation I banged the lot....oh how evil I feel, and what a horrid thing to have to do

I feel awful, the only thing making me feel even a cm bigger than the inch I currently feel is that by culling these however terrible way I did it, I have managed to stem what could have been an even worse problem

but boy did I cry, those little tiny things squealing for mum and I killed them


any ideas on how best to deal with these if I even come across, fore warned and all that....i feeeeeeeel terrible

[Two_Sheds]

^ I don't think I could have done that, in fact I know I couldn't. I would have shooed them off and gone in the shed for a cuppa, pretending I never did see any dirty wats in the first place

[frias]

... or been withdrawn due to safety issues[/QUOTE]

True, although other countries still sell them.

[cptncrackoff]

If your worried about toxins etc etc, buy some poison from B&Q, they love the stuff!

My prefered method would be mk 4 fenn trap, i do poison and trap in my garage for mice, i must have the only 6ft without any rats!

[reetnproper]

Oh Tick, how horrible for you. My OH had to despatch a nest of rat pinkies (newborn unfurred rats or mice) last year and he hated it. However, if you come across another nest then bare this fact in mind:

Due to rats breeding and inbreeding practices - two rats in a vacant warehouse with ample food supply can populate into more than 1000 rats in one years time..

Now muliply that by the number of rat pups you found, combined with the ample food source on your allotments and realise just how serious a problem this could be (also taking into account that a rat can reproduce at around 4 months of age).

Keeping your compost moist and forking it on a regular basis should help disuade momma rat from taking up residence again which would help prevent you having to do this again.

Reet
x

[jessmorris]

This is what I am getting!

Crosman 2240 Ratbuster

Look out Roland..........here I come.................

Snadge, please oh PLEASE get the 'ghillie suit' too. One look at that would scare any rat away;-)

[Two_Sheds]

Im on an allotment and others do not collect their feed up each and every night

Everyone needs to do the same thing, because the rats will keep coming if they have food and lodgings.
Send a letter round? Tackle the committee to do it?
People might say "I've never seen a rat, it's not my fault" but they ARE there, so everyone has to be vigilant

[Snadger]

Everyone needs to do the same thing, because the rats will keep coming if they have food and lodgings.
Send a letter round? Tackle the committee to do it?
People might say "I've never seen a rat, it's not my fault" but they ARE there, so everyone has to be vigilant

I go to my allotment plot ONCE each day after work.

To put food out then take it in would take two visits each day which I am not prepared to do.

One of my feeders has a pheasant peck feader (basically a spring) on the bottom which works well, so well in fact that I just ordered another off eBay last night.

PS Can't afford five solar powered pophole openers either.

[Two_Sheds]

^ I was thinking more of turning all the compost heaps Snadge

[Hilary B]

Compost heaps do appeal to rats for living space, but unless each and every shed or similar is either far enough off the ground to look under, or has a solid concrete floor, there is the risk of them living under there instead. Sometimes they will live under concrete bases, but it is usually easy to spot the holes....
Even in a large shop where the rats are not visible, they may well be not-so-far-away. Modern structures have plenty of internal space (under floors, over ceilings, in cavity walls) that rats can use to get about. We half expect rats to find their way about old buildings, but new ones are NOT often ratproof either.

[Snadger]

Snadge, please oh PLEASE get the 'ghillie suit' too. One look at that would scare any rat away;-)

See what ya mean..................swamp thing eat your heart out!