and hes a bigun! is he doing any real harm in there,or shall i do my best to get rid? i know there was a thread about this a while ago but i cant find it. im concerned about disease mainly,am i right in thinking he wont cause problems for us?
ta
R
x
Shoot the ba****d.
don,t like um .
if i got one in the shed i,d burn it to the ground. :o :o ;D
Rats will damage anything edible they can get their teeth into, plus there's a disease risk. Fenn traps or poison are worth considering. Which reminds me, I need to get another dose down in my shed.
you need one of these :)
WOW lewic,thats a very big cat you have there,what a beauty!
we have a visiting cat whom i hope will sort ratty out,or maybe the fox,we spotted a feshly dug den the other day. dont want to use poison as we rehoused hedgehogs on site,and they have bred.thanks all!
Heard good and bad news re rats yesterday- the cold weather is expected to wipe out 40% of the rat population, but is also causing them to get into houses.
Having said that, we had theminour attic a coupleof years ago but no sign of them this year- so far!
Why is this in the swap shop? Don't think anyone will want to swap for your rats! ;)
QuoteWOW lewic,thats a very big cat you have there,what a beauty
Not mine (unfortunately!) He's a Google cat!
;D ;D
im such a dope! didnt realise where i was putting it,sorry everyone!
maybe some kind mod can move it for me
(hanging head in shame)
A Maine Coon I think? Gorgeous. Do cats actually kill rats?
Bet you'd be happy to swap your rat for just about anything though! ;) ;)
we've used avocado skins as reccommended on this site, pushed them into a piece of drainpipe under the shed, don't know if it worked but I haven't seen any since(mind you, could be the cold weather) ;D
He's probabily arrived for the food and I bet its warmer there :)
We've had rats in our loft for the last year, they come and go from time to time, and the cats catch the occasional one.
In the last cold spell they had babies which was quite disgusting.
The ratcatcher has been several times, luckily it's a free service, and he puts poison down where their runs are, but they seem to be coming from the sheds at the ends of the gardens backing onto us, and unless the owners ask for help (their sheds are a long way from their houses, and close to ours) he can't do anything about it. Of course they deny having rats. ::) ::) ::) ::) ::)
Don't know how to get rid of the one you've got but we we're told when he had the same problem to start a new heap with 6-9" of fresh manure.We've got dalek bins and following this advice haven't had any more "visitors"despite our plot being next to a rhyne where we can see the little devils daily :-\
Asbean how come you've got a free ratcatcher my OH has been helping an elderly lady with rats in her loft and even the council charge her :o
Quote from: manicscousers on January 16, 2010, 18:04:17
we've used avocado skins as reccommended on this site, pushed them into a piece of drainpipe under the shed, don't know if it worked but I haven't seen any since(mind you, could be the cold weather) ;D
How does that work please? At least, what is the theory?
When we had a rat in our shed last year I stopped feeding the birds for a while and put all the bird food in tins. It seemed to do the trick. There is no way I'd put poison down and the council do not offer a humane solution.
G x
Quote from: Georgie on January 16, 2010, 18:36:17
Quote from: manicscousers on January 16, 2010, 18:04:17
we've used avocado skins as reccommended on this site, pushed them into a piece of drainpipe under the shed, don't know if it worked but I haven't seen any since(mind you, could be the cold weather) ;D
How does that work please? At least, what is the theory?
Avocado skins and pitts contain high levels of persin which is highly toxic to rodents.
Quote from: Baccy Man on January 16, 2010, 18:41:45
Quote from: Georgie on January 16, 2010, 18:36:17
Quote from: manicscousers on January 16, 2010, 18:04:17
we've used avocado skins as reccommended on this site, pushed them into a piece of drainpipe under the shed, don't know if it worked but I haven't seen any since(mind you, could be the cold weather) ;D
How does that work please? At least, what is the theory?
Avocado skins and pitts contain high levels of persin which is highly toxic to rodents.
Thanks for the speedy reply. I guess that means they still suffer a slow agonising death then?
G x
I just kick my compost bin before I open it and wear gloves most of the time.
The council rat catcher came and put poison around the plot, but it didn't seem to make any difference.
I have now just accepted that they are going to go in the compost bins whatever we do.
On a plus side - if there is one -they do churn up the compost well so it rots down quickly ;D
Quote from: macmac on January 16, 2010, 18:31:15
Don't know how to get rid of the one you've got but we we're told when he had the same problem to start a new heap with 6-9" of fresh manure.We've got dalek bins and following this advice haven't had any more "visitors"despite our plot being next to a rhyne where we can see the little devils daily :-\
Asbean how come you've got a free ratcatcher my OH has been helping an elderly lady with rats in her loft and even the council charge her :o
It must depend on the council, we have had mice on and off for 4 years in our old terrace house, every so often we see a new mouse and call em out again (they put down poisoned seed) and it costs about £25 a visit. Trouble is with all the houses being linked mice/rodents can come in from anywhere and they can get through very small holes.
From talking to the guys, it did used to be free and if one house had mice/rodents they would treat the whole road, but not anymore.
Quote from: Baccy Man on January 16, 2010, 18:41:45
Quote from: Georgie on January 16, 2010, 18:36:17
Quote from: manicscousers on January 16, 2010, 18:04:17
we've used avocado skins as reccommended on this site, pushed them into a piece of drainpipe under the shed, don't know if it worked but I haven't seen any since(mind you, could be the cold weather) ;D
How does that work please? At least, what is the theory?
Avocado skins and pitts contain high levels of persin which is highly toxic to rodents.
I believe it is also toxic to dogs and cats.
Quote from: Georgie on January 16, 2010, 18:44:53
Quote from: Baccy Man on January 16, 2010, 18:41:45
Avocado skins and pitts contain high levels of persin which is highly toxic to rodents.
Thanks for the speedy reply. I guess that means they still suffer a slow agonising death then?
G x
Death usually takes 24-48 hours but as most animals have the sense not to eat things which are poisonous it's debatable wether they would consume them or not when there are other food sources available.
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/htm/bc/211102.htm
I think we'll start eating avocadoes. Unfortunately the artificially ripened ones are rather tasteless.
I am a wimp. I don't have a compost bin but if there was a rat in my greenhouse or sun room I would run like hell and if there was one in my loft I would move!!!! The best rat catcher I ever knew was my late Father-in-laws wired haired terrier, they had allotments at the bottom of their garden but any visiting rats didn't last long.
Hope you manage to get rid of it.
My 3 composters now live on paving stones up at the plot - not seen rat in evidence since ;)
Ninny
I wouldn't buy the avocado's specially because there were a lot of them in my dalek when my rat moved in early this winter.
It was nesting in my shed and feeding from the bin next-door and making me extremely jumpy.
I seem to have got rid of it.
First cleared everything out of my shed, then cut off it's food supply by stopping putting vegetable scraps in the bin and tiling and piling bricks around the sides of the bin and the edges of the shed.
I used this rat 'repellent' inside the shed liberally and regularly
Ratty Instant Rodent Repellent
http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=527299
(BTW, It's not organic like some sites say so I wouldn't personally sprinkle it on any earth)
I don't know which of these worked, maybe in the end the repellent wasn't necessary after cutting off the larder and eliminating it's nest and nesting materials, but it's a big relief.