Have You Ever Had Trouble With Rodents?

"Sticky Pads" I jest not, lived by a farm once and we had mice so the rentokill bloke suggested trying them and they worked a treat, mice usually scuttle along the edge first so you lay the pads down and "hey presto" next morning they are stuck to the pads, you can then tap them on the head and dispose of, a 12 bore is more fun though

 

Poison! Plenty and in boxes with small holes or wherever your pets cannot access it. We have an annual invasion as the temperature drops and field mice move in.

 

A guy I know suggested non-polluting rodent poison. 50/50 mix of chocolate powder and plaster of paris. The rats/mice eat it and go stiff. No environmental damage.

 

No more rodents since we have a bloodthirsty cat. That avoid the poison, but before the cat, had to use some.

 

I tried "no kill" traps, and they worked fine. Apart the trapped mices even released hundred meters away came back next day. Much smarter than we imagine.

 

Mouse traps baited with peanut butter have always worked for me -bonus: when they're dead, they don't come back! Though since we've had the Dobie we haven't had an issue.

 

We've had problems with mice, rats, squirrels and cats.
We're keen bird watchers and have numerous feeders round the garden so that's obviously an attractant.
Mice could get into the old shed easily and raid the bird food store. Mouse traps dealt with those but I built a new shed earlier this year which is mouse proof.....so far!
We get rats occasionally on and around the bird table. A .22 pellet behind the ear takes care of those.
The grey squirrels are destructive little b******s and have trashed numerous feeders despite suspending them on poles and wires etc. I've just installed an electric fence along their access route and I've not seen any for a while so it's looking effective. The same fence is also keeping cats away. One cat in particular that looks ferel tried a few times to get through but has given up it seems. .

 

For mice and moles I find these little babies work a treat.



If we’re talking rats then a Fenn trap placed in a tunnel gets results or if you’ve got an infestation of rats borrow a ferret and stand back.

 

I've worked with a few rats in my time, bastids.

 

Looks like something you'd see on "Mousetrap Monday" (YouTube). Pretty cool.

 

A rat tazzer I like it

 

Removing access is another approach. Add seals to doors and windows. Use wire mesh in places if you need airflow.

 

I remember a conversation I once had with Vermin Control Officer, rat catcher to you and me.

He said if you can poke a biro with its lid into a hole then the hole is big enough for a mouse to get through.

 

Mr. Sandi and I have both had extensive damage to our vehicles (truck and car but not bikes) by pack rats which are a problem here in the desert. We tried numerous "home remedies" but none worked until a mechanic told us about "Rid-A-Rat". We both bought one at our local Ace Hardware and haven't had any problems since (over three years ago).

There are probably other similar brands out there but this one is made just up the road from us in a Phoenix suburb. The device either runs off your vehicle battery or you can buy one that's battery operated. It has a magnet so you just attach it to something under your hood and it emits a flashing light approximately every three seconds. Evidently the pack rats are scared off by or hate the flashing lights and stay away. We also bought a small unit that we set on the garage floor among the motorcycles that flashes in the same fashion.

We still see evidence of pack rats nearby (yeah, pack rat poop) but since we started with the Rid-A-Rat solution we've had no damage whatsoever to any of our vehicles. We use a version of the sticky traps that others have discussed on this thread to actually trap the pack rats as they damage other things in addition to vehicles. We've had decent but not perfect success.

Good luck figuring this out, @johne. Those rodents can create a real--and expensive--mess.

https://www.rid-a-rat.com/index.html

 

Rats
Rider association of Triumphs. Best cure get a cat.
Joe.

 

I use it in my garage and the garden shed
I’ve never had any problems with rodents in the garage but mice made a right mess of the cushions on our garden furniture
Sprayed with peppermint spray and have had no problems since

 

Unfortunately, cats don't last very long in Tucson, Joe, unless they are strictly indoor pets. Coyotes and bobcats and all that.....