Long Key State Park. Rat infestation.

[TNRIVERSIDE]

We just left Long Key State Park. Our favorite campground. Each year we have had rats in our campsite but it was just a nuisance. No big deal. Not this year. They got into my truck. And did damage. Why would they chew on a seat belt? Urine was on every seat. There was a Rice Krispie treat in the truck. It was in a sealed ziplock. I normally remove all eatables each night. But not this one time. So I put out a rat sized sticky pad. Found one large rat. Modified the trucks interior exhaust vent flaps hoping this was the entry point. It was not. After thoroughly cleaning the truck two sticky pads were placed in the floorboard. No rat this tim. Just rat hair. The third night the process was replayed and a large rat was in a sticky pad. Our stay was over so we checked out. The staff at
Long Key are trying hard to control the rats but they are loosing the battle. I did try the moth balls. The dryer sheets. And Irish Spring. The rats did not care. My neighbor had damage to his motorcycle seat. Rats got under his cover and chewed holes in the seat. I'm not trying to slam the staff. They are trying to control this. But if you have a stay planed at Long Key be aware there are too many rats there. Maybe after the campground is closed for a year next October thighs will improve. And I have not found the entry point yet.

[magnusfide]

agesilaus wrote:

magnusfide wrote:
I'm sorry this happened to you. Perhaps the owners need to call in a professional who can identify food sources and breeding grounds then set traps. I would certainly make that suggestion to the owners.

That's a state park.

Chillax. It still has owners: the state's dept for natural resources.:B

[agesilaus]

OK my guess is that the park rangers hands are tied because of this:

Florida Rats

Endangered rats

More rats

The two at the bottom of the list may be endangered or threatened. That would make it impossible to set out rat poison because the endangered rats would eat it too.

Plus these critters complicate the problem: Giant Rats

So my guess is that the park service is very aware of the rat problem but don't know how to deal with it. Mongooses are out....heh

[TNRIVERSIDE]

I found out that all the keys have an abundance of rats. Well all but one. We are now at Key Largo. No rat problems here. Lots of feral cats here. I think the cats are a better concern.

[petendoll]

Pythons are moving into the area. They will have an abundant food supply. Then that nuisance will multiply. Better keep the cocker spaniel in then.

[RoyB]

I had to chuckle abit when I read about the motorcycle seat. A friend of mine and myself was visiting an old friend who had a pet goat running around his property...

The goat ate up my Ham Radio microphone cable and we was all laughing and talking about that and then my fiend found his motorcycle seat was eat up as well...

The same goat earlier eat up a court summons that a deputy had left around the front door. I guess there is some good from this story haha...

We live right next to a woods here in Virginia and any car that get parked for a long period of time next to the woods gets all eat up by field mice and squirrels... It's amazing what they all like to eat

X2 on reporting your incident to the State Dept. No excuse for that at a public camp ground.

Roy Ken

[darsben1]

Write the state parks via the governors office and let them know of the problems.
Sometimes staff is ignored but if the public starts to complain then things may happen.
If you know someone with a Florida address have them complain as well

[Ozlander]

Sounds like a 12 gauge solution is needed.

[agesilaus]

magnusfide wrote:
I'm sorry this happened to you. Perhaps the owners need to call in a professional who can identify food sources and breeding grounds then set traps. I would certainly make that suggestion to the owners.

That's a state park.

[magnusfide]

I'm sorry this happened to you. Perhaps the owners need to call in a professional who can identify food sources and breeding grounds then set traps. I would certainly make that suggestion to the owners.