barney2

Hi people

I appreciate this is a pet-rat group, so my question about a wild rat is a
bit OT, but I couldn't find a more appropriate group.

A rat comes in my house periodically - about every other day, usually in
the late afternoon/early evening. I am fairly sure it is coming in from
outside, and not living in the building permanently, because whole days
will go by when I don't hear it at all. (It's definitely a rat, not a
mouse - I've seen it a few times.)

I would like to stop it doing this, for a variety of reasons (it chewed
through an electrical cable; its rustling noise is irritating; I don't
much mind one rat, but I don't want it inviting thirty of its friends).
However, I don't want to kill it if I can avoid doing so.

The obvious thing is to block off its route of ingress, but I have been
unable to establish what this is. There are no obvious ways in but this is
a very old (centuries-old) house, sharing walls with two other properties,
so there could be any number of circuitous paths.

So my questions are:

1. Does it sound likely to the rat experts here that it does indeed nest
somewhere else and only comes in occasionally?

2. Do humane traps work?

3. Failing that, is it a crazy idea to start leaving food for it outside
so it doesn't feel the need to come in?

4. This has been going on for many weeks, but just in the last couple of
days it has started to squeak sometimes - what does this indicate?

Many thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

phlip

Rent a live animal trap from a fish-and-game supply store. Google will find
you a mail-order or local solution.

Live trap the critter. These traps will work, after you put it in a familiar
area and leave it there for a few weeks. Even with bait, the rat will avoid
it at first discovery. Part of the rat's nightly behavior is patrolling a
territory and mapping each small change.

Some of us here would put it in a cage and feed it. We would know how to
avoid getting bitten. However, it would never bond with you as its Boss
Rat, and would never stop trying to escape. And keeping a rat in a cage
forever without playtime is cruel.

But once you have the critter, note that its lifestyle is home invasion. No
matter where you release it, it will find a house and invade it. So you
might have to consider euthanasia.

If that worked, everyone would do it. Wild rats can gnaw thru concrete, and
can negiotiate the most complex and secret mazes. And don't put food out,
because that will only fuel its patrolling.

--
Phlip
http://www.greencheese.us/ZeekLand <-- NOT a blog!!!

tracey

You can buy humane rat/squirrel traps, there are quite a few on eBay, which
aren't very expensive. Here's a couple:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Humane-Small-R...cm dZViewItem
and
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Used-Trap-Man-...cmdZViewIt em

You may find this info useful too: http://www.ratfanclub.org/wildrats.html

Tracey

whinging courier

In alt.pets.rodents.rats, belched forth and ejected the following:

Sir needs something like this:

http://www.pestfree.co.uk/ultrasonic-rat-repeller.htm

barney2

I tried one of those (not the same brand but a similar thing) and it
didn't seem to make much difference. I've read wildly varying reports as
to their efficacy.

tracey

Here's an interesting essay by Paghat on ultrasonic repellers:
http://www.paghat.com/ultrasonic

Tracey

julie kay

for a lost pet, we devised a ramp leading up to a wastebasket. we put
food along the ramp, and lots of food in the wastebasket. He followed
the food, fell into the wastebasket. Now that was for a hamster...
admittedly, not the smartest rodent. This would be a cheap way to trap your critter...

it's coming inside to explore... food is only part of the reason.


He's lonely? Got a cold & it has lowered his voice? Maybe your
hearing is improving? Sorry... just ideas.. it may not mean anything.


you are welcome. I've been hanging around here since my daughter
presented me with a grandrat... now there are two...

This newsgroup is wonderful...

toby

mark thompson

I'll second this. Had a look at a "scientific" study that was given as
proof by a manufacturer for their products efficacy. Both the study itself
and the concluions of the authors were complete balls(tm).