There's a rat in me kitchen what am I gonna do?

[nicknack]

Saw a strange sight today. As I was driving past a farm cold store I spied a commotion in the gutter. About a dozen rats stopped what they were doing in the gutter (dust bathing?) and disappeared into the long grass. I don't think I've ever seen so many rats in one place before.

[Mrs Pingu]

_{[1] O'Brien, R. and Bernstein, Z. (1999). Mrs. Frisby and the rats of Nimh. New York: Aladdin Books.}

Great book

[Wowbagger]

Saw a strange sight today. As I was driving past a farm cold store I spied a commotion in the gutter. About a dozen rats stopped what they were doing in the gutter (dust bathing?) and disappeared into the long grass. I don't think I've ever seen so many rats in one place before.

When I were a wee lad, we lived next door to a farm. Our house had been the farm house at some point in the past. On summers evenings, as the hens went to roost, we would go through the gate that connected our garden to the farmyard and watch the rats emerge and feast themselves in the hoppers of chicken food. There must have ben dozens of them.

I believe I have recounted somewhere on these pages the occasion that our dog and I killed 21 rats in my dad's heap of chicken shit & straw during a half-hour spree. The dog was armed to the teeth and I was wielding a cricket bat.

[Kim]

I believe I have recounted somewhere on these pages the occasion that our dog and I killed 21 rats in my dad's heap of chicken shit & straw during a half-hour spree. The dog was armed to the teeth and I was wielding a cricket bat.

Did you then head to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for it all to blow over?

[Wowbagger]

I believe I have recounted somewhere on these pages the occasion that our dog and I killed 21 rats in my dad's heap of chicken shit & straw during a half-hour spree. The dog was armed to the teeth and I was wielding a cricket bat.

Did you then head to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for it all to blow over?

I had to google that and it worked.

[Kim]

I believe I have recounted somewhere on these pages the occasion that our dog and I killed 21 rats in my dad's heap of chicken shit & straw during a half-hour spree. The dog was armed to the teeth and I was wielding a cricket bat.

Did you then head to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for it all to blow over?

I had to google that and it worked.

How's that for a slice of fried gold?

[andrewc]

My schoolboy cricket bat is currently propped up in the parental hall 

[Mr Larrington]

These are tree rats though, and their prowess with electricity and plumbing is an unknown quantity.

[andrewc]

They are now getting water leaks in the kitchen under the bathroom. This started when my father started fiddling under the bath, so hopefully that’s the cause. Google tells me that rats & mice will chew through pipes to get to water. 


It also appears that many household insurance policies exclude damage caused by animals.  I’ll have to check theirs.

[Kim]

They are now getting water leaks in the kitchen under the bathroom. This started when my father started fiddling under the bath, so hopefully that’s the cause. Google tells me that rats & mice will chew through pipes to get to water. 


It also appears that many household insurance policies exclude damage caused by animals.  I’ll have to check theirs.

Do humans count as animals for in-sewer-ants purposes?

[Cudzoziemiec]

Rats are just a more advanced species of human anyway.

[Ginger Cat]

Mate of mine is a farmer's son, his dad keeps pigs (and grows veg).

Apparently rats develop immunity to rat poison, plus Vitamin C is the antidote to rat poison, so if rats get into the pig-pellets (which contain Vit C) poison will never kill them. He reckons the farm feral cat colony is the only answer, plus occasional visits by another mate with a ratting terrier.  Plus putting edible stuff in secure metal bins.

There's plenty of cats in our area, at at least 2 spray around the garden. We don't tend to see any rat signs- I think the scent of cat urine puts them off. 

Moral of that: be nice to cats (especially Ginger ones  )

GC

[andytheflyer]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7qAIwysavo

[hellymedic]

I thought Vitamin K (not C) was the antidote to coumarin rat poisons like warfarin but I'm a rusty doctor.

Vitamin K is abundant in trendy 'superfoods' like kale and broccoli.

[Ginger Cat]

I thought Vitamin K (not C) was the antidote to coumarin rat poisons like warfarin but I'm a rusty doctor.

Vitamin K is abundant in trendy 'superfoods' like kale and broccoli.

Could be, in fact thinking about it as Vit K is involved in blood clotting, most likely. My mate probably got his "C" and "K" mixed up. 

A few years ago, a depot I was working with had a rodent issue in the mess-room, they were also skint so I pointed out to the Finance guy that getting some "working cats" from Cats Protection was much better value for money than a permanent contract with a pest-control company (which are expensive). 

So, we got a feral cat, the workshop chaps warmed to her very quickly when they saw her catching rodents. (She would line the dead ones up neatly out the back  ) ). Soon the rodent evidence in the mess room went away and that cat was the best looked after cat ever- nice bed-box-den, tasty food and before long she wasn't very feral any more. She still caught loads of rodents, but liked sitting in the sun with the lads at their dinner. My team ensured there was always a supply of cat necessities and we had a voluntary roster to make sure she was looked after (food etc) over the holiday periods. Her photo was on the notice board as the "head of pest control."

Then (a couple of months after I left the place having been made redundant) a smart-ass young kid manager decided the cat was "unhygienic" and must be persuaded to leave- he told the workshop lads anyone caught feeding her would be disciplined.  The cat was such a pet by now she had a new home within the week and the rodents were back within the month (and as with most such seagull managers, after making a noise and mess everywhere this chap left- but the rodents didn't).

GC

[andrewc]

Was it really 2 years ago I started this thread ?    Parents complained of a very nasty smell upstairs in their house.    I ventured into the loft & there was a definite hum , and also a few flies buzzing around. 


After the last incursion I left loads of traps up there,  but hadn't been up to check in over a year.   2 dead rats ,  one practically mummified,  the other a bit fresher,  the springbar of the trap embedded in a load of tiny wiggly maggoty things.   


Into a plastic bag with the corpse & nuked the area with dettol.   I suppose I'll have to re-check next week & reset & bait all the traps. 

[ian]

Back in my student days I used to work in a flour mill. Big rats. Lots of rats.

Then I worked in an animal feed mill. Let me just say, we had rats we'd only approach in a battalion of forklift trucks with makeshift armour and weapons. There was a factory cat but it only ate Whiskers. Those rats were immune to all poisons and probably high explosives, their diet of high-energy, antibiotic and vitamin-filled animal feeds pretty much made them invincible.

[CommuteTooFar]

Cats are scared of large rats.  When you really want to get rid of a rat problem, use terriers to chase the rats into the path of a man with a pole mallet. Splat, no more rat, no room for the squeamish. To repeat dogs not cats.

[Gattopardo]

There was a rat in my kitchen, I used two large spring loaded traps.  One baited with Nutella and one baited with peanut butter.  Monsiur le rat ate the nutella and didn't set off the expensive trap then went to nibble peanut butter and set the trap off.

Had to finish him off, as it didn't kill him.

Now feel bad about torturing a rat before I killed him with a spade

[Kim]

Then I worked in an animal feed mill. Let me just say, we had rats we'd only approach in a battalion of forklift trucks with makeshift armour and weapons.

Legend has it this is how Robot Wars was invented.