rats

purpleybat

probably the wrong place to post...

i bought dad a bird hanging feeder but nextdoors rats are climbing the pole and scoffing the fat balls.
obviously we dont want rats.

i was thinking, does the 'anti-climb' paint work with rats? or will i have to put poison down?

-taff

vaseline..

balabooberlies

I was reading about rats last year and there are certain scents they don't like.  Google it, buy the essential oil if you can and place it at the base....

mumf

Bird feeders bring in rats like flies round s***. I would do away with the bird feeder.If you want to keep it though,poison is the way. Enclosed bait points ( it’s law) set against wall or fence. Rats don’t like to cross open ground as a rule- they are true survivors! Keep a check on the poison and keep it replenished. Change the type of poison frequently too,as they do become resistant to a degree. Forget aromatherapy,the only good rat is a dead one as they carry Weils Disease,which I nearly died from when I was 17. Good point there too- ALWAYS wear gloves/ wash your hands when handling bait points or anything rats may have been near. Weils ( Leptospirosis) is transmitted through rat urine. Rats P*ss constantly, so it is a real and present danger.  Hope that helps. 

zaxdog

I'd go with a mint oil or a eucalyptus to deter them.

Poison is a horrible way to die and even if that isn't a concern they will get into walls etc and die causing terrible smells etc

thriftwizard

Poison will also kill any cats or dogs that catch a rat that's slow because it's already dying of poison. A trap is equally effective and less likely to cause collateral damage - that said, my nose is still sore from where I triggered ours to check that it was working properly, and the bait tray flew up & hit me in the face! However the rat was history a few hours later, so a well-placed trap can do the job without risking anyone's much-loved pets. 

ETA: ours cost about £30 for two on Amaz0n. Two because we keep poultry...

balabooberlies

When I queried my vet on the necessity of booster shots for my dog he told me that the only one they need is the leptospirosis.  The other 2 every 3 years.

As we are a nation of gardeners and animal lovers I wonder if we could get the vaccine for ourselves.

mumf.....sorry for your awful experience.

bala

purpleybat

thanks all for your comments

i will look out for the traps, i dont want to deter birds from the garden as my aged dad really enjoys watching them

cymruchris

I had a rat problem for a while - I started by using the non-lethal traps and bait food - but they didn't fall for it. I then bought an anti-rat deterrent spray and that didn't seem to do anything. I watched the behaviour for a few days to see where they were coming from and going to - and started hunting out the nooks and crannies they were appearing from. I bought some wire wool (cheap) and started blocking up all these little gaps and holes I could find around the area I suspected they were living (apparently rats don't like chewing wire wool) - and it seemed to move the rats around the garden. Each time I'd find a new hole, block it up, and then watch where they came from. After about 3-4 weeks of blocking up holes, with one or two instances of the wire wool being pushed/pulled out of the nooks and crannies and then me pushing it back in a bit firmer - they didn't come back to our garden, and we've been rat free ever since. 

Misslayed

We've invested in spring loaded rat proof feeders from Homgar, not cheap (about £28), but they really work, our rats have just gone elsewhere. They also prevent squirrels and crows getting at the goodies, so an unexpected benefit is a vastly reduced bill for sunflower hearts and fatballs. All the finches, tits, robins, sparrows have no problem accessing them, as they are so light they don't trigger the spring loaded shutter. We still have one traditional feeder for our collared doves. 

nosuperwoman

A friend had the same problem. She had left a bucket of water at the bottom of the pile the rats were climbing and has found 3 drowned in it over a few weeks. She didn't do it on purpose but does now!