Any recommendations from the forum for safe removal of rats, remaining safe for the dog and other wildlife?
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A wire rat trap cage. You can then see what's inside and if you like give it an extended sub aqua swimming lesson in the water butt.
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An air rifle works for me. Put a telescopic sight on and every one a winner (Though not the rat, obviously).
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>> An air rifle works for me.
Do you need a licence for these?
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basc.org.uk/codes-of-practice/air-rifles-code-of-practice/
You should be OK. I may invest in one if I see rattie making an appearnace.
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I'm with Tubby Tom. I've caught a dozen or so on the patio at night. One was extremely vociferous and measured 14 inches from tip of tail to nose. They have all taken the early bath.
They live under a neighbour's decking and come for the seeds dropped from the bird feeders. The dog sees them sometimes and goes berserk but is as much use as a putty chisel. I have a .22 airsporter with scope but I'm not sitting out all night to get 'em.
I catch sparrows and field mice as well but they are released. One rat has actually nibbled through the steel mesh in a corner of the trap but couldn't get out !
Ted
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>> A wire rat trap cage. You can then see what's inside and if you like
>> give it an extended sub aqua swimming lesson in the water butt.
Is drowning an approved method to dispose of rats?
Little sympathy for the rat but if it's an offence I'd rather avoid a conviction for animal cruelty.
Too constrained by neighbouring land here for an air rifle to be safe. Last time we got the council's rat man in. Mates rates job as he played footie with next doors then husband; rattie was nesting under their shed but feeding in my garden
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I don't see any other way Bromps. Once you open the trap, Ratty is going to be off like Usain Bolt. I just pick the whole thing up and drop it all into a Gorilla tub. Ratty swims around for quite a long time then gives up the struggle.
Ted
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Recommended way to humanely despatch captured tree rats is with a head shot from a pellet gun.
Leave the pellet gun and a snifter of whisky in the trap and walk away if you're squeamish.
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Why not use a normal choppy head trap?
Rats like to run along edges. Just build a “tunnel” with some old bricks or whatever with a trap inside it with peanut butter or chocolate on it.
We had major rodent issues in 2020. Transpired
1. Our decking wasn’t sealed at edges, and
2. The builders left a hole Under ours patio doors for the step but then we decided to deck it right to the door. So the rats, once under the decking were able to get into the foundations of the house and climb up to the loft.
Once we finally got rid of them involving a local contractor who actually planted cctv cameras under the floorboards to work out the routes they were taking, then the decking was fully sealed up at the edges with steel rodent proof mesh, then concrete, then brick…
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>Why not use a normal choppy head trap?
Young hedgehogs will get into surprisingly small places.
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The plain fact is that rats like all animals will be attracted to any area by a ready source of food. If you have rats then something is attracting them such as food waste, bird feeders etc. Remove the attraction and they will move on.
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Yup, I haves 3 x compost bins, 3 p nut feeders, and 3 Cee'd feeders .. and rats!
As long as they don't get in the owse or do any damage, they can live.
If I do see any damage, I don't take any prisoners = poison last time, neutralized all of 'em.
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People do seem to get over excited about the siting of a rat. I think they could do with a good image consultant and perhaps an advertising campaign to enhance their image. I blame the Black Death. So many negative connotations.
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>> I think
>> they could do with a good image consultant and perhaps an advertising campaign to enhance
>> their image.
Oh they have; the result was the Grey Squirrel.
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>So many negative connotations.
Apparently the Parliamentary Estate is overrun with the damn things.
Just sayin'.
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Just to update, I have a cage on order.
I didn't want to use poison due to the other wildlife in the area, we have badgers and foxes with cubs and of course hedgehogs and they might eat the bait.
The sharp jaw traps were ruled out for the same reason - they could easily kill hedgehogs.
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The poor old back rat, Rattus rattus aka the plague rat is now virtually extinct in the UK, usurped by its bigger and hardier cousin the brown rat Rattus norvegicus. Does anyone care that we are losing one of our rarest mammals? No: all the sympathy goes to hedgehogs and dormice. Blatant speciesism I say. OK they bought the Black Death to these shores but that was nearly 700 years ago and surely now is the time to forgive. We forgave the Germans. It’s time for rapprochement with Ratty
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"Rattus norvegicus"
Fantastic album.
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I prefer Turdus maximus.
(Otherwise known as The Tibetan Blackbird)
Last edited by: CGNorwich on Fri 20 May 22 at 18:35
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I've 'neutralised' a community of rats over the last week using poison.
I put one bag in a compost bin, one under a shed, and one near my bird feeders.
No other animals were affected as far as I know, although my Beauceron ate one that was lying about!
He also ate a rabbit which my English Pointer had stunned earlier - raw food see, the best diet for, um, Dogs.
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Which poison did you use?
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The blue wheat stuff, I got it from eBay: Pest Expert Formula B+ (Brodifacoum)
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Rodents in the garden - bathtub tom
