The Big Rat Diary

[lynda66]

wish i hadn't asked now ..... i'm too soft i guess ...... the only thing i would never release is rats ...... and i'm not going to say how many times i've broken the law with mice ....... i do understand your perspective, like i said, if all the grey squirrels in the country were to be killed, to reintroduce reds i'd be happy to see them go ..... but that won't happen, so i don't understand the law really, i just don't feel that catching 2 is going to significantly reduce the populations ...... but thats just me.

[Hilary B]

wish i hadn't asked now ..... i'm too soft i guess ...... the only thing i would never release is rats ...... and i'm not going to say how many times i've broken the law with mice ....... i do understand your perspective, like i said, if all the grey squirrels in the country were to be killed, to reintroduce reds i'd be happy to see them go ..... but that won't happen, so i don't understand the law really, i just don't feel that catching 2 is going to significantly reduce the populations ...... but thats just me.

It's not only the red squirrels. Greys are nest raiders (and I wouldn't put it past one to steal chicken eggs, as well as from the songbirds) and VERY aggressive on the bird table. The numbers DO need controlling. The only natural predator of squirrels is as rare as the reds (and perhaps not quite up to hunting the bigger greys) so it is up to human kind to do the 'predating'. That said I would definitely not kill something I wasn't going to eat unless it was truly inedible (such as rats or crows).

[snakeshack]

I use "selfset" traps from trapman baited wth peanut butter and chocolate spread,works a treat,feed the bodies to my snakes
they will eat squirrels too ,not sure I would though

[aud]

I suppose we have always had luck with rats, Our old dog used to catch them and our cats seem to have a knack of catching them. If only they could catch moles.

[Two_Sheds]

i just don't feel that catching 2 is going to significantly reduce the populations

You don't just reduce the population by two, because you are also removing any potential offspring.
A female grey has 3 babies a year. She lives for up to 9 years. That's 20+ babies per female.

[Johnny Appleseed]

The Ghost of the Grey Squirrel

I'm speechless. I checked the traps this morning - and the Snickers bait has gone from the big trap. No sign of it. Trap still primed. Door still open. No bait and no prisoner.

Has the ghost of a Grey Squirrel returned to haunt my trap?

What is going on here??????

I'm totally baffled.

Whatever took it clearly loved the Snickers bar but didn't leave any trace of its visit.

Quick - call Mulder and Scully.

[Hilary B]

I'm speechless. I checked the traps this morning - and the Snickers bait has gone from the big trap. No sign of it. Trap still primed. Door still open. No bait and no prisoner.

Has the ghost of a Grey Squirrel returned to haunt my trap?

What is going on here??????

I'm totally baffled.

Whatever took it clearly loved the Snickers bar but didn't leave any trace of its visit.

Quick - call Mulder and Scully.

Check that you set the trap 'fine' enough. Sometimes it doesn't 'go'......
Alternatively, you may have a human interfering? Could someone have found a squirrel in the trap and released it?

[lynda66]

ok, i give in ......... kill all the grey squirrels immediately (except mine, cos he's cute, and all the old ladies in the sheltered housing watch him out their window) ...... unless we can get some red ones, then they'll be happy

[Johnny Appleseed]

That is very likely Hilary B

Alternatively, you may have a human interfering? Could someone have found a squirrel in the trap and released it?

I think you could be right Hilary - my neighbour, the one who has been watching the rat feed off his bird table, is most unhappy at my treatment of the trapped Grey Squirrels. He also likes to see squirrels in his garden. Under cover of darkness he or one of his sons could easily have slipped into the garden and released a squirrel or heaven forbid the rat I have been trying so hard to catch.

That would also explain why the bait was gone and the trap was empty. The trap mechanism is very sensitive and I have checked it again.

Looks like human intervention which is very annoying. Thank you for your post. I didn't think of the interfering neighbour option.

Am I allowed to trap humans and do I have to return them to the wild

[Two_Sheds]

Looks like human intervention which is very annoying. Thank you for your post. I didn't think of the interfering neighbour option.

Am I allowed to trap humans and do I have to return them to the wild

He's been into your garden? Outrageous!

Re-set your squirl/rat trap, but surround it with subtle man-traps too ... casually discarded rake perhaps?

[Johnny Appleseed]

He's been into your garden? Outrageous!

Re-set your squirl/rat trap, but surround it with subtle man-traps too ... casually discarded rake perhaps?

I can't think of any other option two sheds. Hilary suggested it may be human intervention - and I can't think of anything else.

Do B&Q sell man-traps or should I paint the cage and box with horrible sticky anti-vandal paint?

[lynda66]

to find out where mice live in your house, it's customary to spread flour on the floor ....... i'm sure you could do the same with a casually dropped bag of flour around the trap, and see if theres more than rat feet been near ...... then if there's neighbour prints ....... shoot him

[Johnny Appleseed]

to find out where mice live in your house, it's customary to spread flour on the floor ....... i'm sure you could do the same with a casually dropped bag of flour around the trap, and see if theres more than rat feet been near ...... then if there's neighbour prints ....... shoot him

LOL lynda. At the moment I'd rather shoot my neighbour than the squirrel any day of the week. Love the flour idea - he wouldn't see it in the dark......

Dial M for ................

[lynda66]

and if he did see it, he probably wouldn't twig it's a man trap

[snakeshack]

you can buy trip wire with shotgun blanks for a shed burglar alarm was listed in the magazine,should get some good "forensic evidence " when that goes off
possible smelly evidence