For the last few weeks we’ve heard noises from above - scratching, running, periods of silence etc at night. We’re sure it’s not a rat as we’ve had them before at our old house and I’ve been up there and there’s little sign of any kind of droppings of any kind (or birds etc), so I’ve put a Ring camera up there (the night vision is surprisingly good). What do you think we’ll find???
House mouse would be the prime suspect surely. If you’re familiar with rats and it doesn’t sound like you’ve got the gruffalo stomping around up there then it’s a house mouse.
outside chance it’s a field mouse, but they have those different names for a reason.
Leave ‘em to it. Think of them like swallows or house sparrows that nest in the eaves. Doing any harm?
Toddler
Glis glis?
That lass from the ring films.
Well, well, well... It was a rat after all – the different insulation must have made a difference to the way it sounds.
So... what to do now?
Have you considered what's bringing him/her into your loft? Is there a source of food or drink that he/she is after?
Best to identify the motivational element before deploying the trap - otherwise he/she will be replaced by another fairly soon.
Roland ... is that you?
Make a decent sized hole and hope an owl will solve your problems
Have you considered what’s bringing him/her into your loft? Is there a source of food or drink that he/she is after?
There shouldn't be anything of interest up there – there's an old (dis-used) header tank but I believe that is empty. Other than that, it's pretty much empty. We have been in the house for 12 years and it's the first time we've had this (we've always had starlings but I leave them alone).
we’ve always had starlings
Could it be looking to eat the eggs? or the young birds?
Pied piper to the forum please. Pied piper to the forum
Thankyou
In my previous house I had success with one of those ultrasonic rodent deterrents in my attic (as soon as the battery ran down they'd be back)
Current attic has roosting bats, but as they only hang from one rafter, all their droppings are in a neat line allowing easy cleaning 🙂
Michael Strachan?
The real Springwatch is 25 years old and returns on Monday - Yah!!!
Goodnature traps for the win (who was it was using one for squirrels?)