blasted rats!!!

whiterock · #1 02/20/12, 12:57 PM

Took my F-150 down to mechanic neighbor today, he put another wire on it. Last month he replaced a number of wires on my car. Then he brought me 4 cats, which promptly left my place to go who knows where. I have poison out not 6 feet from where the pickup was parked, and less than 12 feet from where the car is parked. I HATE RATS!!!
All feed is in metal cans, except what is out for the chickens. Dog food is in metal, except for feeding time, cat food is in metal (last cat that stayed here disappeared before car wires were eaten through).
Vehicles are in open carport, not a shed or garage with hiding places. I HATE RATS!!!

Ed

andyd2023 · #2 02/20/12, 01:07 PM

We live in North East Texas and had problems with rats damaging cars and trucks wiring also. Some of our cars and trucks sit for weeks between uses. A trick my Father-In-Law found somewhere has really helped. We now prop up all hoods on cars and trucks when parked. Keep the hoods about two feet open. ( I made props from 3/4" PVC pipe that hang on the ends of the car ports.) This has reduced the amount of rat nests on engines by a lot. If the hood is propped open 2 feet or so, then it's no longer a cozy warm place to make a nest. FWIW the cats didn't help us either.

Speckledpup · #3 02/20/12, 01:14 PM

Having the same problem this year, but mine are mice. They got inside the car and ate anything they could.

I'm diabetic so kept peanut butter cracker, peppermint candy and gloucose tabs in the glove box. Now they have to be in something mouse proof.

As far as we can tell they haven't gotten into DH truck but they have gotten in the engine compartment and messed up the firewall insulation. He's having problems with the heat/AC so we are thinking they have done something to it.

Put a Live trap in my car and caught 3 adult mice in 1 night.

Had read on here that they hate peppermint oil so sprayed under the hood and put some on cotton balls inside the car. They don't hate it, they love it. Seemed to draw even more to my car.

DH is allergic to cats but he has mentioned getting one.

flewism · #4 02/20/12, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andyd2023

A trick my Father-In-Law found somewhere has really helped. We now prop up all hoods on cars and trucks when parked. Keep the hoods about two feet open. ( I made props from 3/4" PVC pipe that hang on the ends of the car ports.) This has reduced the amount of rat nests on engines by a lot. If the hood is propped open 2 feet or so, then it's no longer a cozy warm place to make a nest.

No rats in cars or trucks, but that's what I do with the tractors in the barn to keep the mice from nesting in there when it gets cold. Plus plenty of mice killer bait boxes.

pancho · #5 02/20/12, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whiterock

Took my F-150 down to mechanic neighbor today, he put another wire on it. Last month he replaced a number of wires on my car. Then he brought me 4 cats, which promptly left my place to go who knows where. I have poison out not 6 feet from where the pickup was parked, and less than 12 feet from where the car is parked. I HATE RATS!!!
All feed is in metal cans, except what is out for the chickens. Dog food is in metal, except for feeding time, cat food is in metal (last cat that stayed here disappeared before car wires were eaten through).
Vehicles are in open carport, not a shed or garage with hiding places. I HATE RATS!!!

Ed

I used to put out poison all of the time.
Rats walked right by it.
I finally decided to look for a poison that they liked.
Finally found some. Put it out and it was gone the next morning.
I put out some more. A few days later I began to find dead rats.
Poison don't do any good if they don't eat it. If you find one they will eat you can kill them. If they don't like the taste you can put gallons out and not kill a single rat.

andyd2023 · #6 02/20/12, 02:54 PM

We use open carports for parking, so putting poison out would not be an option. I do use rat poison blocks in the screen shelter we have and a barn. They are peanut based and something is eating them. I have only ever found one dead rat inside. Mostly we try to keep everything eatable picked up. so as not to attract rats and mice. Ya that only works so so... Now how do I kill the gophers??? We have them all over the property. Can't seem to get rid of them.
Andrew

Pony · #7 02/20/12, 03:41 PM

Nick thoroughly cleaned my car, and then placed baited traps as well as poison pellets.

So far, so good.

CarolT · #8 02/20/12, 03:45 PM

You can get bait holders that let the rats get to the poison but nothing larger (like cats). Has a locking top. Squirrels can get to it, so you have to worry about that if you like your squirrels. You can fasten it down to a big board so nothing else takes it off to chew into it. Find a bait they like and get one and see if that doesn't help.

agmantoo · #9 02/20/12, 04:03 PM

Mice leak pee as they travel. This pee scent alerts all mice to where the trail exists. This scent allows mice to find their way in and out of wherever they go. The odor lasts for months or longer. It is this lingering odor that attracts more mice even after you have eliminated the current occupants. If you have no pets place sodium hydroxide (lye) under the hood of the vehicle where the mice will walk. They get the lye on their feet, lick it off and they die. I know of a house where mice got in the attic and 3 different exterminating companies could not prevent more mice from returning. Spreading a thin layer of lye on the ground adjacent to the house perimeter foundation corrected the problem.

TedH71 · #10 02/20/12, 10:29 PM

Get a terrier and your problems are solved.

rockhound · #11 02/21/12, 08:10 AM

Yep, a Jack Russell will kill rats all day long, they don't get tired. Make sure he's young and playfull, not old and fat.

salmonslayer · #12 02/21/12, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockhound

Yep, a Jack Russell will kill rats all day long, they don't get tired. Make sure he's young and playfull, not old and fat.

Now you tell me! My Jack is a great old guy but a bit long in the tooth. He did get a rat the other day and we made a big fuss over him but he seems to be content with that kill for awhile. Still, he is the best dog I ever had.

meanwhile · #13 02/21/12, 08:40 AM

I agree with above (Pancho) who points out the need to find a poison the rats like. We had a neighbor tear down an old Cabin and rats and mice moved all over the area. Thousands of them were living in the walls of the Cabin.

We set out DCon all over the place and they did not eat it. But - when we set out the Tom Cat granular, they gobbled it up. We also set out the Tom Cat chunks and they did haul it all off - we are not sure how much they ate but they did take it to the nest. But the granular is my favorite.

Good luck - it took us a full year to get control of the rats and mice mess made by the neighbor.

Actually - that reminds me that really the only way we did solve it was a group effort by four neighbors. We all literally spoke to each other every weekend, we set out fresh poison at the same times, we all used the same bait. For a while my older boys had to help one neighbor who is not here much but it was worth it.

What we think was happening was that Neighbor 1 would set out bait but the rats just moved to my place. Then, I set out bait and although some might have died back, the rest moved to Neighbor 2 and so on. We all had terrible rats/mice.

But! Once we all talked and decided to fight it together, THAT was what got it under control. If you have a closeby neighbor who will help fight the problem with you - that might help.

Good luck.

Big Dave · #14 02/21/12, 09:56 PM

Peanut butter and arsynic. Black rat snake. I have used both. Did lose a gueaniea to the snake but we have no rats. They love peanut butter. Oh yeah they like Dr. Pepper too. Drink it and they go to rat heaven.

Micheal · #15 02/22/12, 05:40 AM

After reading all the posts - sure your problem is rats?????
Why I ask is my problem is squirrels, specially the red ones, building nests in and yea have even eaten the wires in my tractor.
That is unless rats have a taste for black walnuts and the bark on my firewood.........

JohnL751 · #16 02/22/12, 05:45 AM

Thats the good kind, but they sure are a mass to pick up after thay have been blasted!

dragonfly65 · #17 02/22/12, 07:11 AM

Whiterock,

I use the "Just one bite" rat bait bars strung on metal clothes hangers. I wire them in something like an old dog carrier (that the blasted things chewed a hole in the side of) or even a live trap (holes are too big to catch the cotton rats I have (they just squeeze through the holes). Keeps the chickens and such from getting to it. I would just toss it under the coop or shop, but I'm afraid of them dragging it out where the birds could get a hold of it. We haven't had many rats or mice since we started having skunk problems. I think I preferred the rats....

Txrider · #18 02/22/12, 02:11 PM

I prefer to put a pile of sunflower seeds out in a nice place where I can sit in chair a ways off and shoot them with an air rifle.. generally from the back porch.

It's entertaining and keeps my shooting skills up.

A light backstop helps with night shooting. Let em eat for a week or so and then sit out at dusk and have a shooting gallery every other night or so.

I ran out of rats last time when the rat parents were gone the kiddos came to get shot, then there were none for quite some time.. It's about time to get em again though, my german shepherd wants to catch em but they are too fast.