Rats

Callistemon

^Squirrels (rodents by another name) in my loft gnawing on electrical wires, another matter altogther.^

Squirrels are rodents, yes, and can be a nuisance but I'd rather find out how they were getting in the loft and block up any entrances.

It was a hot summer and drought. Apparently, they had found some loose mortar around the chimney and scratched at it until they had a hole large enough to get through. That's what the roofer said anyway. It's not a part of the roof that can been seen unless you climb up there, which I can't. Seems, the animals were coming in, flipping a rather flimsy lid off the water tank to drink as well as having a gnaw on the wires. It was a few days before I could get anyone to come to fix the roof and I was afraid of an electrical fire in the meantime. I didn't like that they had to be killed once caught but that's the law.

Other neighbours were reporting similar problems and reported finding squirrel corpses in water butts and other receptacles that hold water. There seemed to be a lot of them about that year. There was an elderly woman who used to put heaps of peanuts in their shells out for them. She died and the numbers reduced.

Squirrels (rodents by another name) in my loft gnawing on electrical wires, another matter altogther.

Squirrels are rodents, yes, and can be a nuisance but I'd rather find out how they were getting in the loft and block up any entrances.

Weil’s disease (Leptospirosis): this is a disease humans can catch from rats through water or wet vegetation contaminated with rat urine. Rats also transmit salmonella.

You don't have to swim to catch it.

If you have DGC who play in the garden I would say it is important to call in the rodent inspector.

Namsnanny

Isnt it illogical to balk against killing rats (or anything I suppose), if your prepared to use bleach to kill bacteria?
It's all life after all.

We kill what threatens us or interferes with our enjoyment of life or livelihoods. What some find acceptable, others don't.

Rats along the riverbank carrying Weil's disease? I'm not planning to go in the water. Squirrels (rodents by another name) in my loft gnawing on electrical wires, another matter altogther. The pest controller caught and killed them, taking them home to feed his ferrets so they become part of the food chain. It's illegal to capture and then release them into the wild.

Rodents are neophobic, which means that they have a deep fear of new things. Therefore, those who are released back into the wilderness have a very low chance of survival as they are likely to starve, become dehydrated or be eaten by predators due to the unfamiliarity.

I heard this too StatenIsland

We bought a humane trap because we had a mouse in the garage, released it in the countryside and were told it would probably die or be killed anyway.

I would not use a humane trap for rats. They carry disease.

Isnt it illogical to balk against killing rats (or anything I suppose), if your prepared to use bleach to kill bacteria?
It's all life after all.

We also had rats in our garden. We spotted 3 or 4 several weeks back. Tried to contact env health. They couldn't come out for at least 2 weeks. We went privately. It cost us £150.00 but worth it as they were nesting under the shed. We had to put wire around the shed and they now seem to be gone. I am now using peppermint essential oil around the shed as they hate the smell, just in case.
We had to stop feeding the birds though which has upset us.
There is a major problem with them as at least 5 other houses have had problems in our cul de sac.

Have to say I hate rats and wouldn’t hesitate to put down poison, then once I’d stopped seeing them get DH to rat proof where they had been living.

As others have said and from my own experience, the rat relocation will be shortlived. Traps and killing don't work if the environment has food and shelter because new rats will move in. If you keep overgrown areas, which I do for hedgehogs and other wildlife, then disturb them regularly. Poking around with a garden can works well. Compost heaps and bins do provide warm shelter. I had to get rid of mine even though I only used it for non edible garden waste because they became rat and mouse HMO's Be obsessionally careful about feeding birds and where you leave your food waste. Get your neighbours to do the same if you can.

We had rats in our garden. DH bought rat boxes and poisoned bait. They ignored them.
They disappeared when we had a man in the garden to trim some branches from the trees, and prune the overgrown shrubs.
Rats don't like disturbance and will move on to somewhere quiet.

I am an animal lover - however these rats are far too close for comfort!! It has already been mentioned how often and quickly they breed. You will be surrounded very quickly. I would speak to your neighbours and get your heads together and agree to find a pest control expert. Releasing the odd few will not eradicate your problem.

I saw one (big one) last year in my garden near a woodpile and when improvement works began on the public building next door. and there were overflowing bins
I tried the council but nobody replied and I haven't seen one since.(that's council workers or rats)

If I thought they were in the house I wouldn't hesitate to get pest control.

Thanks for all your advice. This is a real problem. I'll keep you all updated on Project Rattus

This ...

Live traps are popular amongst those, who don’t like the idea of killing an animal. They are seen as a catch and release solution usually using a mechanism in which to trap them securely until you are in a position to relocate them.

With a live trap you need to be able to check these traps regularly and I mean at least every 12-24 hours, otherwise you will cause distress to the rodent.

Once you know an animal is confined in a trap their welfare is governed by the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The person setting the trap has responsibility for their welfare and it is an offence to cause, or fail to prevent, unnecessary suffering to the animal.

One side effect of being left too long in the trap is that they can start to develop hypothermia, due to the breath of the rodent creating moisture in the trap, which wets the fur and makes them extremely cold.

Releasing them can also become an issue because:

It is illegal to release them onto a neighbours property.

Releasing them less than 100metres away will provide short-lived respite as they will likely find their way back.

Rodents are neophobic, which means that they have a deep fear of new things. Therefore, those who are released back into the wilderness have a very low chance of survival as they are likely to starve, become dehydrated or be eaten by predators due to the unfamiliarity.

Source: www.dalgettypestcontrol.co.uk/blog/are-humane-traps-really-humane

We used to have a Jack Russell. She died a few years ago unfortunately, but she would've sorted them out.

Dont make a compost heap ' they love the food and the warmth.
Our neighbour's garden is a wilderness but they tunnelled through and nested in our compost heap!
Councils and Environmental Health say it is not in their remit now so private rodent inspectors have to be employed.
£100 for doing very little!

Animal lover or not, rats carry disease.

We had them nesting under our shed, blocked all the holes up and trapped their runs.

We live across the road from wood land which was a railway line. We do see wood rats but usually only this time of year. I don't like them but could not kill them. I love birds but refrain from feeding them if I see a rat. Our council does not do pest control. I did try using safe traps a few years ago without success. Rats are scared if they see you and run off. There is good advice here about filling holes in fences and rat runs under sheds too. Keep your doors closed if you sit in the garden and keep it closed even if you are cooking.

Let them go in the garden of someone you don't like supernanaunal

It's true they breed at an alarming rate best to kill them. Borrow a Jack Russell that will sort them out.

Rats breed at an alarming rate. A pregnant female can give birth to 8-10 after just 21 days. I couldn’t rest easy after seeing them in the garden. I’d seek professional help with the local council being the first contact in the hope they’d intervene.

grannyrebel7sorry but I think you have to kill them. If you saw 4 or 5 even if you trap a couple that will still leave 2 or 3to breed. A female rat typically births six litters a year consisting of up to12 rat pups, although 5-10 pups are more common. Rats reach sexual maturity after nine weeks, meaning that a population can swell from two rats to around 1,250 in one year, with the potential to grow exponentially.
You either need a qualified pest control person or a poison trap to kill them. Then you will need to clear under your shed , fill holes and any access points and rat proof it. Good Luck!!!

I agree with others who have posted. Try to keep your garden as tidy as possible, with no nesting sites or food available ( including bird food) and they will soon head off to another garden with plenty of both. We used to have two water rats that visited our garden occasionally when we kept chickens (there is a river running not far from the end of our garden.) We blocked off the chicken run with sunken wire and concrete blocks and kept the rest of the garden very open and tidy but with secure boundaries and the problem didn't get any worse. We haven't seen them so far this year. Actually, we quite liked to watch them and they were very clean and healthy, not like sewer rats.

Our council don't do pest control anymore.

I moved some flower pots today and I think I disturbed them. They're living under our shed and we've got a compost bin and a water butt either side so they've got everything they need! If we caught them in a humane trap we planned to release them somewhere out in the countryside.

Contact your local council, the environmental department. If they're anything like our council, they will come out to deal with rats.