Sewer rat

Go, lurcher!

According to reports...we are never further than 6 feet from a Rat! I actually like domestic Rats, think they are cute and I imagine if I was doing a trial on I'm a Celebrity I would cope really well with the rats climbing over me.

Not so, with sewer rats lol .... Get the pest control out lol

What makes humans think they are better than rats, or any other animal come to that!!

Disease Quizqueen

Hantavirus that Rats carry is a potentially life-threatening disease that currently has no specific treatment, cure or vaccine. ...
LYMPHOCYTIC CHORIOMENINGITIS VIRUS (LCMV)
PLAGUE.
SALMONELLA. ...
RAT BITE FEVER. ...
TULAREMIA.

Would you risk it quizqueen?

Like most creatures we regard as 'pests', rats take advantage of human activity. If they are a problem, look to your own habits and ask yourself what is attracting them.

We have them under the shed and in the compost. I know feeding the birds brings them in. Has anyone found a way to stop the birds food dropping on the floor? I would like to feed the birds but don't want the rodents. We are planning to put the compost 'cone' on paving to put them off as it is on soil at the moment.

We are fortunate that our house is built upside down, with the sitting room upstairs and a small balcony leading off it. We feed the birds on the balcony so that both birds and food are out of reach of cats and rats.

I have seen a mouse creeping across the balcony though. Now where did that come from?!

I like the sound of your upside-down house, Septimia

Do you ever get squirrels up there?
Our regular pest control guy says that they can climb straight up the side of a house if they want to, so they might be tempted your bird buffet

Yes, they can climb on stone or brickwork, no problem?
We see the odd rat now and then in the garden, but we have two fat pigeons who patrol under the bird feeders and don’t leave anything much for rats/ mice/ squirrels.

With 3 cats I don't even see a mouse anywhere. I'd die if I saw a rat !

...but they have such beautiful little faces...

My cousins husband has slotted a large piece of metal under the bird feeders on their pole-thing, mess drops on that rubysong. It doesn't look pretty, but it does work. So far we haven't seen rodents here but we are surrounded by cats so have built in rodent catchers, one cat thinks it lives here which can be more than helpful as long as I don't find it on a bed! In our previous home rats became a problem, we stopped feeding the birds and still saw them so it was pest control. Apparently a nest under our neighbours shed.

We don't necessarily feel better than animals, but we happen to know that both rats and mice spread diseases that we would rather not suffer from.

A sewer rat does some good in the sewer, As it is above ground, you should contact your municipal council, as there is obviously a defective man-hole cover or a damaged sewer line nearby.

I'm cheering on the lurcher and sending him my rat-catching cat's encouragement.

Septima, why do you think rats are unable to get to your first floor?
We lived in a series of flats when was young. We didn’t feed birds but that didn’t seem to deter rats.

Yes MamaCaz, we do sometimes get squirrels. Unfortunately only grey ones these days although there are red ones a bit further up the valley. We don't see as many greys as we did, and seldom on the bird feeders. We used to get one that would sit on the balcony railing and stare though the patio door, making us feel guilty so that we would feed it. They jump across from the adjacent tree rather than climbing the house.

We do get a wide variety of birds, though.

PamelaJ1, I think it's mainly that they haven't yet found it! And there are plenty of alternative food sources around here.

Lemongrove, I have 'domesticated' wood pigeons too but they dont assert themselves.

I'd call the council if I was actually plagued by rats or mice except I fear the methods are cruel.

Grandetante, my manhole covers are okay and my place is at the top of the sewerage line , but can rats some and go via small drain covers?