rat

havent been to gc last few days,
got a massive problem,its a rat,well i hope one although im begining to wander. saw it last friday evening came from under hubbys shed down the garden onto the path climbed a 7ft post in among nelly moser,where i had a wire mesh bird feeder with nuts in it,the rat went inside feeder back out and went under shed watched it2 or 3times.
went to home base sat .morning for rat poison,and believe me i have filled 6 small trays 14 times and every morning there empty.
so its either ammune to it or it has some constitution.friend at farm has giving me some stuff tonight he got at farmers market its from australia so if anyone a better system,please tell me i am scared to death to even go outside.
its the first rat i have seen in my 65 years kathy3

 

:D What a horrible thing to have to deal with, Kathy!

I think I might know what the problem is though. Rat poison is usually warfarin which thins their blood, so they bleed to death (not nice, but effective.) BUT, there is an antidote to it, and it's contained in peanuts, vitamin K, I think. So, if you're providing both, it's not going to work.....

 

thanks dendrobium i got rid of all the bird food in my garden and i am trying to discourage the birds right now ,although i have put the poision
where i hope the birds cant get at it.someone else told me abought warfarin,i didnt think the doctor would be happy to write me a precription :D :D

 

Been there, but luckily, not since we moved. They are so and so's to get rid of, but if you persist, you should get the right results. Good luck.

 

You must put the bait where the rat runs are, and keep filling up with more bait until food is left, if you don't do this then rats will become imune to the poison you use. I cover my runs with clay drainpipes to other animals can't get to it.

As to the bird feed - hang stuff from trees to avoid encouraging vermin - other than squirils that is.

 

You have my sympathy Cathy. Had the same problem with rats under my shed a few years back - a first for me too. Called the council pest people, and they came and baited under the shed - out of the way of wildlife and indeed my dogs. The reckoned it was the bird feeders that attracted them, so they were removed to ensure the bait was taken.

After a week or so - I didn't see them again, nor thankfully did I find their remains. Needless to say scoured everything down in the area.

 

thanks all, this is me up since 5am to see if they are running about,its driving me mad
dendrobium,is there a chance they or it may have stored some nuts,or would they be like me and just eat them on demand.Fran called the local council,was told it was my responsibility.
have also been on to local councillar we were all giving recycle bins they are about 2ft boxes
no lids just nets,and i know people will not be cleaning their empty tins come summer when its hot they will be lying for 2 weeks i dont think this is right.thanks to all

 

An old cat my mum had was one of the best ratters on the planet. A huge ginger tom with semi ferral parantage he would leave presents of rats, mice and rabbits (usually headless) on the doorstep lined up for 'inspection'

I understand the sentiments against rats but please be very carefull that poisons cannot get into the food chain. Many animals and birds of prey such as buzzards and owls rely on small mammals for their diet and if you remove the predators you will quickly get an explosion in the rat population. One rat can have up to 7 litters a year and each litter can have a dozen or more kits if the food supply is good and they have a cosy home. They are canny too and will avoid poison bait and also consume natural antidotes such as peanuts or clay minerals that bind to the poison

Compost bins should be wire netted to make sure rats don't have access to regular food (plastic, far from being a deterrant is considered a delicacy by some rats). Hanging bird feeders are also better than tables but the black rat especially is a good climber so don't assume they are immune. Both black and brown rats are mainly nocturnal so if they are particularly bothersome take the feeders down overnight.

Local authorities make me mad Increasingly 'going green' (read cutting services) we are expected to tollerate hiked Council Tax bills with fortnightly collections of household rubbish. We are told to compost it - great if you have a garden but what about flats or high density housing where some elements are, shall we say, less than social?

We cannot blame the rats, they are merely opportunistic and will take a free lunch wherever they can. Much like some of our renowned Council Directors.

 

I don't know the answer to your question, Kathy - but I hope the answers the others have given throughout this thread have encouraged you to get somebody in who knows what (s)he is doing, so you won't have to worry about it.

 

We are having a problem around here with rats in the compost bins. Luckily, we haven't got them in ours, but they are within a few houses!!!!
We have all been told (word-and-mouth by neighbours, not the council, mind!!)to make sure the compost bins are either secure on concrete, or sunk in with chicken wire, or the blighters will dig under the bottom!!

Statistics say there is at least 1 rat within 5m of every household..... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:eek: :eek:

 

thanks everyone,i thought i was alone with this little blighter,its good to know that some of you have also had them.not that i would wish it on anyone.all the poison is well under the shed
i am an animal and bird lover as is my husband,we are very concerned about wild life.i even hate the thought of killing the rat,but my fear has overtaking my life,so its got to go.thankfully this is the first day the poison has not been touched.do i leave it for a while
to see what happens???? or remove it
thanks for all your help kathy