Help Rat Or Rats ??

[GRACELAND]

I have just uncovered a compost heap that was covered with a carpet to find Large Holes About 3 -4 inch's across ,I think could Be Rats !

I have Not added Any cooked stuff Meats etc so  Why are they there ?

And is it ok to use now ??

??? ??? ???

[GRACELAND]

[Trixiebelle]

They're probably there because it's warm Graceland. They're not too fussy about what they eat but they do like their home comforts!

[Marymary]

I agree they were warm & cosy & will eat anything.  Best deal with them - poison is the easiest & if there isn't much else around they should take it quickly.   :)

[Gillysdad]

I had a problem with rats a while ago and used rat poison, it would have been cheaper to take them out for the night by the time I was rid of them... ;D ;D

[Trevor_D]

The compost will be OK; we all have rats in it at some point. (You're never more than 4 feet away from one, did I hear somewhere?)

Agree with poison. Wolferin (is that how you spell it?) is used commercially, but I think you may have to register, or have a licence, or something. They use it in our stables, and that's what our local rat-catcher put in the ditch at the bottom of the garden. Contact your LEA and someone will know.

[GRACELAND]

Thanks All Put Mind at Rest Now !!   :D

[Tin Shed]

I had rats in mine as well. Never got round to using poison, but stuck a few bags of old coffee grounds in [free from coffee shops such as Starbucks] and have not seen any more holes for a while. Strange, as I wasn't planning to use the coffee to drive them away.......but maybe I have stumbled onto something. Will certainly try it again if rat holes are found again.

[TEL]

I had a problem with rats a while ago and used rat poison, it would have been cheaper to take them out for the night by the time I was rid of them... ;D ;D

so true ;D

[Robert_Brenchley]

How often are you putting down the poison? It takes several dayys to kill the rat, so if you put it down every night, you're providing it with a string of free meals after it's already had a lethal dose. Once a week seems as effective as anything. if there's a big population, another problem is thst new ones move in as fast as you kill the old, until you've reduced the overall density. As the weather improves in spring, problems decrease as alternative food becomes available.

[kippers garden]

I found a rat a few weeks ago in my plastic black compost bin when i took the lid off...it was hugh and i jumped a mile!  Anyway, it digs a tunnel next to my two bins and goes in thru this tunnel to both of them.  I put poisen in the hole four weeks ago and it ate it but still keeps coming back.  I think i'm going to have to empty them out for 3 or 4 weeks to stop the rat...what a pain.

I don't put anything in them that i shouldn't either....i always bang the compost bins hard now before i take the lid off so the rat has time to leave before giving me another fright!

[allaboutliverpool]

I have had rats in my compost and as long as they do not destroy my crops I do not mind. With the Mersey 400 yards away it is inevitable. I managed to snap one - he looks so friendly and cuddly!




http://www.allaboutliverpool.com/allaboutallotments1_homepage.html

[GRACELAND]

 :o :o :o


Soory Don't Like Them At all  :o :o :o



;D

[phillip]

Try mixing 1 part bicarb soda, 1 part sugar, 1 part flour. It will kill rats and mice.

[knbsallotment]

I have a rather large family of rats on my allotment. Was sitting watching them today while we were taking a break from digging. They are beauftiful creatures. They don't cause me a great deal of trouble. I tend to put out my blemished/damaged produce in a little heap, and find that they do not touch the good stuff still on the plants, they just take from the piles I leave. They do sit in the trees and eat the bird seed, and are not particularly frightened. It is a misconception that rats are dirty, vile creatures. They carry disease the same as any domestic animal, same as hamsters, rabbits, cats and dogs. They are actually the cleanest of all small animals. This includes both the domestic and wild varieties. I speak from experience, having had small animals of all varieties, including domestic rats. They are the cleanest and most intelligent.

The old wives tale about going for your throat when cornered is also a lie - they are simply trying to escape, over your shoulder.

I am loathe to use poison of any kind - the way it kills is too cruel for me. The fact that rats eat their dead, (like all small animals), and therefore get a weaker dose of poison, and therefore suffer for longer before they die etc. YUK! Will poison them if they start causing too much damage, but for now, am trying to minimize the places for them to nest and hide, by generally cleaning up, removing a broken, battered old lean-to etc.

[ACE]

weils disease, if I have spelt it right, is very dangerous and it is in their urine. It can enter via a scratch on your skin so be very careful handling anything where rats have been.

[Robert_Brenchley]

You're right; it's horrible. I hate rats; I can live with mice, as long as they don't go too far, but not rats.

[Columbus]

Hi all,

I am happy to kill any rodents that get into my sheds.
I used poison but now I use sprung rat traps but so far
I only get mice. I seem to have beaten the rats by sinking
huge concrete blocks into the floor of my potting shed, so
they can`t nest under or get in.

Its amazing what you see when you don`t travel by car or bus -
They run around in the middle of the day in the centre of Norwich
as well as at night, along the edges of the pavements and getting
into litter bins on the street so I won`t use those and also
around both major shopping malls and near the bus station.

Col

[cleo]

I get rats from time to time-they do not bother me and I do not bother them.

They turn my compost bin for me.

I might get some awful disease-but then again I could get hit by a bus tomorrow

[sweet-pea]

I have a rat living in my compost heap too.  I don't mind it too much, in my opinion it has much right as me to be there.  But I do swear at it on occasion when I findd it has nibbled at something, but I just try to think up ideas of ways to protect my crops like the bottles over cobs idea :-)