I've a small invasion of rats and am terrified

My cat would kick box them all around the back garden.

Love it!!

DD's cat is huge and plays with the hens.
DIL's cat is tiny and a killer.

Horrid scenario, a rat in the loo swimming about😖
We have a large brown rat that sits in the yard sometimes, near the bird feeder, I know it’s the same one as it has a kink in its tail.It’s not at all nervous and needs to be shoo-ed away just like a cat.Am now hoping it won’t get into the house.😲

Hellowgirl
I’ve had several pet rats. My favourite was Lennox. He was black and beautiful 🥰

Oreo, rats don’t travel alone. Your large brown rat will have many friends - maybe relatives wuth similar tails 🐀🐀🐀

Not going to read all the posts as I dont like them either.
Nearly didnt even open the thread either.

Someone I know pays a subscription[whatever it is called] to pest control.

Allira

Mt61

Was it not some rodent disease that killed Gene Hackmans wife?

Yes.
And someone we know too.

4 more people in the US have died from this Hantavirus lately. There is no cure.

Have you considered a Jack Russell?

I have one you could borrow 🤣

Little horror disembowelled and tore the leg off a precious frog in the garden last summer 😠

We have a large brown rat that sits in the yard sometimes, near the bird feeder,

Many years ago I watched a rat run across the patio from under the wendy house to the bird ground-feeder tray and back again. Then I realised there were two of them to-ing and fro-ing, yikes 😬
Apparently they don't like noise, so my husband pushed a broom handle under the wendy house, rattled it around noisily and shouted loudly.
We never saw them again!

Macadia

Allira

Mt61

Was it not some rodent disease that killed Gene Hackmans wife?

Yes.
And someone we know too.

4 more people in the US have died from this Hantavirus lately. There is no cure.

Weil's disease killed the person we know of.

V3ra Oh, how I wish I knew someone that has a Jack Russell I could borrow...

We've had rats coming in the roof on and off for years. It took a long time to get on top of the problem. Yes you have to kill them but more importantly stop them getting in.
My pest controller put some one way valves in the drains. So water and waste can get out but rats can't get in. I think you should ask for those.

What a terrible experience for I'm feeling scared just reading about it I had mice in the house at the start of the year and it really shook me up and I felt uneasy in my home so I really sympathise with you sending for pest control was best thing to do I hope you get over this horrible experience

Goodness me , a rat in the toilet - I am not surprised you are freaked out!
Like most women of my age I visit the loo during the night , the thought of a rat being in the toilet bowl fills me with horror. Hope I don't have a nightmare tonight!! Please keep us posted on progress , good luck .💐

You can have an anti-rodent valve fitted in your waste pipe.
My plumber told me about them.
He suggested metal ones rather than plastic.

Apologies.
I seem to have skipped past several valve replies by clicking to the end accidentally.

BlueBelle

Ahh it’s so hard to kill them just for being on your turf why nota humane trap and het it go into the wild

Nice thought, BlueBelle.
Years ago, my late husband and I had a house in France. One night, we were woken by scrabbling in the loft, which turned out to be a rat. We put a humane trap down and the next day, my husband took the rat to a place about two miles away, and let it out. (When we caught the rat, it’s tail had been caught in the drop-down door of the trap and had got a definite ‘kink’ in it).
Three nights later, we were once again woken by scrabbling, and, you’ve probably guessed it, when the culprit was caught, it was ‘our’ rat. We recognised it by the kinky tail. I wanted to put it down (I’d had enough, especially as I am not a lover of rats, but my husband refused).
The next morning, he drove it 20 miles away. Thankfully, that did the trick as, in the four following years we were there, we were never bothered again.

my neighbours 2 door down told me they have rats and mice scurrying about , , I also heard some scraping noises in my loft, and thought it might be rats, there are a few cats about in our neighbours gardens, so they might keep them away I have put garlic around our garden and doors, they say that rats don't lke garlic or mint, mice are bad enough but I don't know what I'd do Ifound a rat, I hope you get it sorted out soon..

pably15 I discovered rats do like garlic (and raw onion) I put both down one night and by the morning they'd disappeared

petra

Hellowgirl
I’ve had several pet rats. My favourite was Lennox. He was black and beautiful 🥰

I believe a pet rat saved a family from burning to death by chewing through its cage, running to the parents bedroom door, scratching it to wake them up.

My aunt used to feed the birds, then one day she said to mum, “ oh look a cute squirrel on the bird table”, mum said, “ that’s not a squirrel, it’s a bloody huge rat” 🥴

When we spotted rats in the garden, admittedly 40-odd years ago, we called the Council and the ratcatcher came, free of charge, to set traps. The nest turned out to be in the neighbour's compost heap. Presumably, potato peel and other food waste is very attractive to vermin.

BlueBelle

Ahh it’s so hard to kill them just for being on your turf why nota humane trap and het it go into the wild

Because they just come back

Last night I put the heavy toilet lid down and will continue to do so now after reading this thread

I've had to stop feeding the birds because of a rat sighting. Such a darned nuisance. I'm planting lavender and mint around where I think they might be, hopefully a deterrent. And putting scented things in the toilets etc.
I hate rats.

Cossy

BlueBelle

Ahh it’s so hard to kill them just for being on your turf why nota humane trap and het it go into the wild

Because they just come back

And because they probably won't survive.

It is not a humane thing to do.