songsparrow Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We found a hole in our flower bed that we think is a rat burrow (ugh!). We are taking all of the steps that we know of to encourage this rat to go elsewhere - removing food sources (garbage cans removed, dog waste picked up immediately), removing weeds and ground cover, just got a deterrent spray today and sprayed it in the area of the burrow. Looking for food sources, I noticed that our neighbors in the next house keep their garbage outside in two Rubbermaid sheds. Each has a 2-3" hole gnawed in the bottom, which indicates that the rats are getting into their garbage. Unfortunately, we don't really know these neighbors (and there are multiple apartments with people moving in and out kind of frequently), but my husband stopped over tonight to talk to them about the possibility of rats getting into their garbage. Their response was to be skeptical and also to blame any garbage on the tenant that just moved out. So, assuming that our neighbors will not be fastidious in dealing with their garbage, is there anything we can do to at least keep the rats out of our yard? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 You should find out who owns the property if the tenants are going to be apathetic. If I'd just moved into a place and a neighbor told me there were rats I'd be freaking out calling the landlord for times a day. Eek! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flowing Brook Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 What about live animal traps? Then you can relocate them to a more rat friendly area. Rats reproduce very fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiMi 4under3 Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We are taking all of the steps that we know of to encourage this rat to go elsewhere - It's probably these rats! If you see one, there are many more. :( I'd lay poison in my yard and the neighbor's yard too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted July 29, 2014 Author Share Posted July 29, 2014 My understanding is that live animal traps are not recommended for rats, as there's really nowhere you can rehome them where they won't be a problem (at least here in suburbia). Poisons are also generally not recommended in the yard where there are kids and pets. We actually had a rat problem once before, shortly after we moved into the house. We had a crawl space under two rooms that was lined with gravel, and it turned out they had dug their burrows into there from a neighbor's yard, traversing underneath a 10' wide concrete patio, and from there got into the basement. We had an exterminator in who set traps and put out poison bait (where the kids / dog couldn't get at it) and the poison and traps did little to nothing. They are really smart and avoid them. To get rid of them, we ultimately had to make the area inhospitable - we finished the crawl space with concrete and I found every hole they were using to get into the house, stuffed it with steel wool and covered over it with pieces of wood. So, while I will ultimately call an exterminator and attempt to poison them if necessary - and it may be necessary if the neighbors won't secure their garbage, since they tend to make their burrows close to their food sources - I think methods to make the area inhospitable to them are generally more effective. That's a good suggestion to contact the landlord if the tenants don't do anything. I'll have to see if we can look up the landlord's information. And you're right, there are probably more than one (ugh!). So far, I don't see any additional burrow holes, so I'd like to get rid of them before the problem gets bigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Call your town health department immediately and report your neighbors for not containing their garbage. I don't know where you live, but in our town, if a house had rats in the yard, the owner would be fined and forced to deal with the rat situation immediately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Call the landlord and the health department. Rats need to be dealt with immediately. Hoping the steps you've already taken buy you some time before the situation gets completely out of control! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmrich Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We live behind a drainage area and had rats five years ago. We got a cat, and my neighbors got three cats! These cats are excellent. We never had a problem again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Cats, terriers, dachshunds...all may be helpful. But also come with the responsibilities of pet ownership, including vet bills liable to ensue from run-ins with the rats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 dp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cera Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 A good cat or a terrier would take care of the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SadieMarie Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 I thought rats were too big for cats to take on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 I thought rats were too big for cats to take on. That depends on the sort of rats--and the particular cat. I had one as a teen that would catch rabbits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nd293 Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 You can get holders for the rat poison that won't allow kids or pets to get to the block of poison. They have them at our hardware / garden center. Or you simply put the poison in an area accessible to rats but not to pets and children. Of course, afterwards you have dead-rat smell to deal with. Hopefully your rat(s) considerately die in the neighbours property, as ours did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Rats don't like mint. Or, peppermint oil. Plant some mint! Get some peppermint oil and spread it around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 don't hire this cat Awwwww! So cute! Yes, get a cat, but not that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyS Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Some cats will be a help with this, others will ignore them. Try to find one that you can get from a farm or similar place that is accustomed to doing some hunting. Don't feed it too much! You don't want it to starve, but you do want to leave it a little hungry, or else it may be unmotivated to hunt. I would at least shove some poison into that hole in your neighbor's shed. Since the neighbors have been skeptical, I wouldn't wait on calling their landlord and the town code people. I generally am strongly against reporting people, but this is going to affect you and it will get worse rapidly if it isn't dealt with. Maybe it isn't a rat? There are lots of things that dig; moles, voles, gophers, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Please do not put poison in your neighbor's shed. Unintended consequences could be worse than rats. For instance, what if the rat eats the poison, and dies after eating it, crawls into their yard to die and someone's dog eats the rat? Or the rat dies under their shed and the smell is awful and they get angry with you. We had a gopher snake that took care of that sort of thing. I wonder if you could rent one, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyS Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Please do not put poison in your neighbor's shed. Unintended consequences could be worse than rats. For instance, what if the rat eats the poison, and dies after eating it, crawls into their yard to die and someone's dog eats the rat? Or the rat dies under their shed and the smell is awful and they get angry with you. We had a gopher snake that took care of that sort of thing. I wonder if you could rent one, lol. Stink and a dead dog are not consequences worse than a rat infestation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Our neighbors attract lots of rodents with their garbage. Our dog is part terrier and he keeps them out of our yard. He has taken out a mole, mice, possum, and I have no doubt that chipmunk will be moving out soon. If a dog or cat is not an option report them to the town. Rats are a health issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 the owner of the dog would probably disagree Not to mention that it's not the OP's property to be putting poison on. I'd be super pissed if someone did that behind my back. For all the OP knows, the landlord would prefer to deal with it in a different way. There might even be legal consequences for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 ... We had a gopher snake that took care of that sort of thing. I wonder if you could rent one, lol. If you have a local university that has a herpetology program, or even a wildlife biology program, it's pretty typical for them to get calls to relocate snakes, so if you really want a gopher snake or rat snake to move in, you probably can put it out there that you're willing to provide a home for one to help provide rat control. (If you need venomous snake control, King snakes can do a good job of controlling their venomous relatives). In some states, commercial pest control services also relocate rather than kill non-venomous snakes, depending on how the laws are written (many states have laws in place to protect native wildlife, and some US snakes are actually threatened or endangered). A native snake is also part of the natural ecosystem. Adding an outside predator, like a terrier or barn cat isn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We love our snakes . Rat snakes, black racers, and King snakes help control rats. We also use a professional service that plugs up all the holes. We haven't had them in the main house, but they did eat our pool heater, and they do get in the garage attic. They eat everything in their path including air conditioners and electrical wires. Traps will usually get one, but the others quickly learn to avoid the trap, same with poison. Multiple modalities of death need to be used. We keep moth balls in the pool equipment which seems to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer132 Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We had a gopher/mole or some such animal in our yard, and my dh bought this solar powered spike. You stick it in the yard, and it vibrates the ground every so often. Apparently the rodents don't like it and they stay away. We haven't had a problem since. No idea if it works for rats,but if it does it would be a quick, cheap, easy solution. Our neighbor still has tons of these gophers, but they never dig in our yard due to the spike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 I thought rats were too big for cats to take on. I have a rather proficient hunter living on my back porch. She's caught at least one rat. I didn't see it, but my husband said it was pretty large. She's also caught at least two moles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted July 30, 2014 Share Posted July 30, 2014 Stink and a dead dog are not consequences worse than a rat infestation. You would seriously be OK with it if someone's dog died because of rat poison you'd put out in the yard? :svengo: I would never be able to forgive myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted July 30, 2014 Share Posted July 30, 2014 I wouldn't be glad a dog or cat died eating a poisoned rat. :( I'd just not be as upset about that as I would be about a rat infestation. Pecking order. Rats/health endangerment to my brood > any dead dog or cat. I wouldn't put anything on the neighbors property bc it is not MY property. I'd be bloody FURIOUS if my neighbors put anything on my property, most especially a poison! That's crazy talk inviting more crazy for a visit. Go through proper authorities. Save the crazy for when those avenues have been exhausted. :) However, I'd pour rat poison in every hole on MY property. Or buy a ferret. Or weasels. Hmm. Do people rent ferrets or weasels I wonder? Anyways. Here's a link of basic info. Alas, nothing as exciting as going to get a ferret. http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/service/library/index.php3?docID=420 Scratch that one. I like this one better. You get to buy bobcat urine! Who knew that was even an option?! Come on. This is an adventure. It's us vs the rats. And by golly we're gonna win. http://m.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Rodents-Naturally Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted July 30, 2014 Share Posted July 30, 2014 I had rats in the house I lived in when my eldest was a baby. It wasn't nice. I would ring the property managers of as many properties as you can and remind them of how much damage a rat can cause to pipes and cables - and the damage caused by leaky pipes and electrical fires - and how their insurance may consider letting rats infest the property to be negligence etc. They may decide dealing with the rats is financially prudent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the suggestions! Perhaps the neighbors did contain their garbage better, or if not my strategies seem to have worked, as the burrow has been inactive for several days now. Yay! I also ordered some hardware cloth and I plan to lay it over the bed to discourage any digging in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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