Rats!

[Naio]

I am trying to help a friend with a rat problem at his S&B, where I am visiting.

I got rid of their food supply, but the rats are still living in the crawlspace under the house. He has put poison under there, but some of the rats are too smart.

The openings where they get in and out are foundation vents with missing screens. A pet or small child could get in, and eat the poison. I want to replace the screens -- but that will trap the rats under the house. They will cause more damage trying to get out.

Any ideas on how I can get the rats out, first?

I read online that ultrasonic emitters don't work and smoke bombs can start fires. I suppose I could leave them one smaller hole, too small for anything else to get through, but that is not really a satisfactory solution.

[RayJayco]

I have a private lake and parts surrounding it are a jungle. A rats heaven, however I have not seen a rat sign... You know why? Better than cats are snakes! They don't escape snakes... 😄

Like others have said, call a pro or use glue traps with fishing line to retrieve. Alternate baits, on some use peanut butter and others use gummy bears. (They love gummies!)
I still say buy a harmless snake or 2 and turn loose under house. Rats gone, no smell!

[PA12DRVR]

"Until you wake-up hearing rat fur rubbing in the walls behind your head board at night, hearing them chewing on the framing near your bedroom window at night, or the framing of the stairs you won't know how willing you are to use poison."

Agree with the above. Had rats in former house in Houston. Strongly recommend hiring a professional exterminator and closely following their advice regarding ingress/egress and sealing. FWIW, we had an exterminator for the Houston rat problem and 75% of their work was ingress/egress evaluation. They used snap traps to eliminate the rats once the holes were addressed.

[westend]

Naio wrote:
Westend, does your ms. kitty want to come for a visit? I have freezedried tuna :B.

Probably not, she is dining on lamb chops, presently.
Six of her progeny are ready for new homes, though!:)

[Naio]

Westend, does your ms. kitty want to come for a visit? I have freezedried tuna :B.

[Grit_dog]

Naio wrote:

2oldman wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
So without reading all 4 pages, there is a cat present in the middle of a rat infestation and the problem isn't solving itself? That cat need s to go for a swim!

That's cruel. If you'd bothered to read, we've already discussed a cat.

Grit dog is presumably much bigger and tougher than any cat. We could lock him in the crawlspace with the rats, see if he walks his talk.

westend wrote:

Naio wrote:
I like the ferret idea! Not sure the owners would take the risk, though, since poison has already been sprinkled around.

I was just thinking to myself that our problem was lack of predators (coyotes, anyone?) But did not realise ferrets hunt rats!

Correct, no one is going to risk their pet ferret when poison has been spread.

The initial problem is probably not a question of predation but an abundance of available food and shelter (nesting habitat). I have one cat that brings an animal home almost every day, sometimes two. Yesterday she brought back an adult rabbit and a grey squirrel.

westend, you have an excellent cat! I had one like that on the farm -- one day she killed a ground squirrel. But, as said, the closest thing to that here is a feral tom and he is not taking on the rats. He's not as manly as Grit dog.

Not me, I'm afraid of them things! That's why I got a killer cat!
My bad, I didn't see that these rats had already kicked the biggest cat in the neighborhood's arse!

[down_home]

Only thing that works for rats, big rats are poison and traps, like most others.
Buy bait stations, at Tractor Supply, or Coop etc. About 15-17.00. Buy a bucket, of baits, for 20.00. The baits fit over wires, in the big bait station and they can't drag it off. Kids and pets can't get it. It is not Decon or Warfram now.
Buy some Decon pellets and put them where kids won't get them. If they do it is not deadly to kids, usually. It is blood thinner. The rats eat it and die, of thirst, even if they drink.
Not so small live traps, from Co-op or Tractor Supply, for rats, squirrels etc or others and make sure to leave no scent on it and bait it with peanut butter.
Sticky Traps. They make large sticky traps. Caught about 3 lb rat on one. I had one, of the critter, sit on the sill plate and attempt to be friends, not really. Wasn't afraid. The woods are full of these things now.
A good rat terrier or Dacshund(misspelled) or feist. Might take a bit of prompting or training. They are a better bet than most cats. It might be an even bout between a cat and some, of these, rats.
Block off opening or put in new screen with large wire in it. They will chew out small wire. They will eat through, low spots, in mortar joints, in foundation or walls. They can chew through the concrete. treated lumber. One chewed through 2x10 may have been treated.
The foam sealants come in two kinds. One slightly expands. One expands, to fill large holes. Rodents won't eat the stuff. Fill all cracks and low places between block etc and sill plates.
Use home defense, on outside, of foundation, and sill plate and inside every few months. Kills bugs that come in contact with it and rodents don't like it.

[2oldman]

DutchmenSport wrote:
Actually, cats are good swimmers, as long as they are not INSIDE the bag! :B

dogs don't do so well either.

[Allworth]

Amazon sells a plug-in gizmo called "Pestacator".

I was in the "Yeah! Sure! Scam!" camp but if she-who-writes-the-checks wanted one I would order it.

One unit has been plugged in in the trailer (on full time shore power in the back yard) and one in the garage for five months now and I have not found any sign of rodents. No bait taken. No droppings. Nothing chewed on. Nothing!

If you have power available they can't hurt anything and they are only about $20 each.

[DutchmenSport]

Actually, cats are good swimmers, as long as they are not INSIDE the bag! :B

[Geocritter]

I used to live in a beautiful Texas subdivision, right on the golf course in fact and we had a roof rat problem as well as a squirrel that'd sneak into the attic. I found where the squirrel was getting in and a small Conibear trap over the opening made short work of him. Then I screened off his entry. The rats were harder because they could get in through smaller openings so I put 3 snap traps out baited with peanut butter and within a few days no more rats. Then I searched out the entry ways and sealed them up.

The last thing you need is one of those filthy disease spreading critters dying in your attic, and yes they do make a stink when that happens.

Steve

[BCSnob]

You need this guy and his dogs


or these guys and their dogs

Ratting with terriers. Which terrier is top?

[westend]

westend, you have an excellent cat! I had one like that on the farm -- one day she killed a ground squirrel. But, as said, the closest thing to that here is a feral tom and he is not taking on the rats.

Agreed, Ms Kitty is a stone killer! I think it starts out with predation at the litter time. Ms K brings back live samples so the kittens can sharpen their skills. She was a farm cat but is now retiring to exurbia.

I would definitely start some trapping. It is less messy in the long run than poisoning but that may be necessary too.

[Naio]

2oldman wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
So without reading all 4 pages, there is a cat present in the middle of a rat infestation and the problem isn't solving itself? That cat need s to go for a swim!

That's cruel. If you'd bothered to read, we've already discussed a cat.

Grit dog is presumably much bigger and tougher than any cat. We could lock him in the crawlspace with the rats, see if he walks his talk.

westend wrote:

Naio wrote:
I like the ferret idea! Not sure the owners would take the risk, though, since poison has already been sprinkled around.

I was just thinking to myself that our problem was lack of predators (coyotes, anyone?) But did not realise ferrets hunt rats!

Correct, no one is going to risk their pet ferret when poison has been spread.

The initial problem is probably not a question of predation but an abundance of available food and shelter (nesting habitat). I have one cat that brings an animal home almost every day, sometimes two. Yesterday she brought back an adult rabbit and a grey squirrel.

westend, you have an excellent cat! I had one like that on the farm -- one day she killed a ground squirrel. But, as said, the closest thing to that here is a feral tom and he is not taking on the rats. He's not as manly as Grit dog.

[2oldman]

Grit dog wrote:
So without reading all 4 pages, there is a cat present in the middle of a rat infestation and the problem isn't solving itself? That cat need s to go for a swim!

That's cruel. If you'd bothered to read, we've already discussed a cat.