MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Hi folks
I've caught plenty of mice over the years but it would appear I have a rat under my house. I can get easy access underneath and I could hear it gnawing on the insulation last night. I've found a large hole, way too big for a mouse, and the pieces of insulation it was gnawing are pretty big. I can't see it being a pine marten or anything cool like that.
So - has anyone ever had to deal with this themselves? I have a feral cat and dogs on site so am wary about using bait, and I'd prefer to catch and kill it rather than release it elsewhere. I see you can buy "Little Nipper" like traps which work like standard mouse traps, or "tunnel" type traps - any preference?
Cheers
TS
I've used the bigger, rat version of the Tom & Jerry style traps and they work.
What bait did you use on it? I find peanut butter ideal for meeses 🙂
Yeah, peanut butter for rats too.
If I leave a jar out while there's mice or rats about, it's got teeth marks around the lid in the morning.
They know what's in there and they want it.
i seem to remember rats liking chocolate too? but my memory could be playing tricks on me from my childhood
Rat trap in a box with an entrance hole [to prevent our little feathered friends from hopping on as it makes a bit of a mess of them as well] .
Mars bar works as a good bait. Or stiffen them with a spade
Any particular reason why you can't ring the council to get them to come and deal with it?
Cougar - yes, because they will charge me for it.
Don't muck about, contact your local county council pest team.
They can lay their baits AND MORE IMPORTANTLY when it starts stinking the house out he'll comeback and collect the body and dispose of all safely.
If your a taxpayer its £50.
**** handling something that may have fleas, TB etc etc all for 50quid.
We had to call in the rat man a few months ago because the little blighters were gnawing through all sorts of things.
He put down conventional traps in the kitchen/store-room and a "box" with red poison pellets in the shed. Traps worked a treat when loaded with peanut butter and Nutella - so much so that I caught a pair at exactly the same time followed by another minutes later.
Pellets also worked on the others because they disappeared (most likely returned to their lair and died quickly and pretty humanely - certainly away from other animals).
Definitely get professional advice/speak with council/rat man, etc.
Hora - I'm not mucking about. I know exactly how to get rid of the pest once caught and as I live on the same site as my business the council will not assist. I'd rather learn how to do it myself.
TS
I've had good success with live traps and Little Nippers. Poison means they go off in search of water to die, but the possibility of one rotting in a cavity is not something I'd like to deal with.
Bait the traps, but don't set them - let them get usesd to a new thing that provides food, before you trap them. Wear gloves to bait and set, leave them for at least three days before checking/re-setting.
Where there's one rat, there's more, so even after you catch one, keep up the routine.
Poison means they go off in search of water to die, but the possibility of one rotting in a cavity is not something I'd like to deal with.
Thats what the council bloke told me... 'if he gets into your cavity you might have to put up with an almighty stench...(gip)
I did toy with the idea of putting our westie in the attic to deal with the mice up there but then it'd mean body parts all over the attic...
'if he gets into your cavity you might have to put up with an almighty stench...(gip)
Keep yours & Bingo's night time activities out of this
We had the council rat man round who said he couldn't see any signs and they were likely to be mice or squirrels. Oh do fark orf! I know a rat when I see it.
Nowt wrong with doing it yourself. Hell, it's even economically admirable that you're not burdening the poor local authority 😉
Sideways Tim - good advice. I live in a park home (big caravan) so there is no cavity.
I now have a plan, I've researched this on line too, what with this and changing my phone and broadband package I'm saving myself a fortune today 😯
I will be having a look tonight when it's active to make sure it is a rat, then I'll get ordering.
TS
Bait it with peanut butter and if you go for a live trap, you need to decide what to do with 'it' once in there. If it's a squirrel and you want to let it go, it will go apeshit on you - wear a fencing mask if possible and the biggest thickest gloves you can find. Ideally, just drown it if you have no gun.
Oh, and make sure the bait is central and in a container - they'll eat it from outside and can easily empty a little nipper witout setting it off - persevere and don't handle a trap witout gloves your scent will make them wary.
Thanks again. Unbelievably there are no squirrels round here so it's either a rat (most likely) or a pine marten (least likely although they are around). If I do use a live catch trap I will dispatch it quickly and humanely. Pics to follow.... or maybe not.