rats!

[dr-solo]

I would recommend professionals. I fought mice in the house for years, finally hired somebody and the mice where gone in a week. our house is 130 years old, cant find all the leaks. they now come back every 3 months to rebait and havent seen any scurrying around. Ingrid ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere between zone 5 and 6 tucked along the shore of Lake Michigan on the council grounds of the Fox, Mascouten, Potawatomi, and Winnebago

[brooklyn1]

That's expensive and and really doesn't do the job.

This is a professional:

[despen]

Amazing! Now you're worried about rat suffering.

9 times out of 10, the trap snaps on the rats head or neck. All the rat will notice is a flash of light as it's brain is squished out of its ears and eye sockets.

Plus you can hear the thing go off so you can run over and stomp the rat if it's still wiggling.

If it was my problem, I'd eliminate the food and then worry about something else. I don't find rats outside to be a problem.

[Susan]

Possibly, though I doubt they're hanging out with the rats.

I never put them near the house.

I have never seen a dead rat lying around here, so perhaps they're dying in tunnels and not being eaten? There may well be taste and smell cues for the other animals that let them know to avoid the dead rats.

I'm on a wooded property in a small, city like suburb. I hear an occasional owl and saw a red tailed hawk once, but nothing I can count on for varmint control.

The boxes just turned out to be our best bet.

And I switched to a songbird selective feeder with only sunflower hearts in it; zero waste nothing on the ground, hence no rats there for 6 years now.

A field probably suits them better.

Bait boxes.

BTW, I used to feed birds in my old house with all sorts of waste on the ground, and never saw a single rat. This town has plenty, though.

Susan

[Susan]

I've never seen a live animal trapped in a snap trap. If it's baited properly, it snaps on their necks for a quick kill. More humane than any other method, probably.

Eeeesh.

It's not just the food; it's water and/or shelter, too.

Folks I know didn't see any rats until their car didn't start and they discovered the insulation chewed off the wiring in their cars, and a nest with baby rats in it there.

Plus, they gross me OUT.

Susan

[Jeff Thies]

appreciable size. BTW, cats do not usually eat mice, they just kill them.

Had to capture a young possum last night. Cats are completely indifferent to possums. I've seen them lay against a possum that was eating their food.

Jeff

[Jeff Thies]

I have. Broke it's neck but did not kill it. Big trap, bigger rat.

If it's baited

What about lethal injection? After all the appeals have been exhausted of course.

I'd like to see that!

Jeff

[Susan]

Better to use one of those execution style zapper boxes, then. Rats that big require bazookas.

You go first.

Susan

[despen]

...

Gee, everyone here is complaining about the patch of blood I left on the basement floor.

Sorry I don't have pictures.

There wasn't much to see, first a mouse wiggling around, then my foot, then a slightly flatter mouse not wiggling and some blood and guts.

I once got a mouse with a hammer. No complaints from the mouse.

[John McGaw]

[Jeff Thies]

I've heard that when exterminators ask whether it is a mouse or a rat, most people don't know. But you can tell by the fear in their voice whether it is rats.

Post back when you kill a rat with your foot, I'd like to hear about it!

Jeff

>

[dr-solo]

the mice cats drag in are the ones they want you to put in the frig for them for their late night snack. Ingrid

On Tue, 15 Jun 2010 02:11:07 -0400, Jeff Thies wrote: BTW, cats do not usually eat mice, they just kill them. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere between zone 5 and 6 tucked along the shore of Lake Michigan on the council grounds of the Fox, Mascouten, Potawatomi, and Winnebago

[dr-solo]

I have been so ticked off with them everywhere that I have killed them with my fist. I have also used one of the larger Stanley tape measures. while we were painting there was a layer of clear plastic and they thought this was great cover.. bird cages are like a mouse catnip and they will crawl all over them quite unaware of nearby predators. I hate mice. Ingrid

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere between zone 5 and 6 tucked along the shore of Lake Michigan on the council grounds of the Fox, Mascouten, Potawatomi, and Winnebago

[despen]

When I was 7 I found a cute little mouse out on the front lawn. I captured it and carried it around in a matchbox. I really liked to crawl up my sleeves and under my shirt.

Eventually he got to live in a fish tank in our basement.

My family kept telling me it was a rat, not a mouse.

I kept saying it was too cute to be a rat.

I'm pretty sure if I step on it firmly and it's smaller than a cat I can kill it in one go.

Anyway, we have a shortage of rats where I am now. How about a chipmunk?

:)