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Great big rat- what do i do about it? urgent problem.

Ambience

Warren Veteran
I've just seen a massive rat in the garden. What do i do to get rid of it. Can it hurt the buns and how should i protect them??

Thanks
 
Rats do go for buns. Even our pet rattie, although shes old (2) and not very agile...if she gets anywhere near Rolo bun, she will have a go!

I would think a wild rat would be alot more vicious and stronger and have the killing instinct alot stronger than a domestic rat. Only thing to do is trap it, either humanly or not. Im not sure if Enviromental Health Dept at the local council still do this.

Rach x
 
Rats do go for buns. Even our pet rattie, although shes old (2) and not very agile...if she gets anywhere near Rolo bun, she will have a go!

I would think a wild rat would be alot more vicious and stronger and have the killing instinct alot stronger than a domestic rat. Only thing to do is trap it, either humanly or not. Im not sure if Enviromental Health Dept at the local council still do this.

Rach x

Can a rat bite them through the mesh if it's tiny mesh? I am going to make sure i don't drop rabbit pellets on the floor- didn't realize i was feeding the local wildlife.

There are some feral cats round here so it's survived awhile being the size it is. Its scared me how big it is. I know we had a mouse, would the rat eat that?

Quite worrying.
 
We have rats in the garden at this time of year. I try everything to deter them but they keep coming in! My buns have free range time a lot in the garden and they and the rats just ignore each other. I don't like them being in the garden but when the weather warms up they disappear again. (We back on to a railway line so there will always be rats). I have tried the non poisionous rat deterrant but they don't seem to mind it!:roll:
 
We have rats in the garden at this time of year. I try everything to deter them but they keep coming in! My buns have free range time a lot in the garden and they and the rats just ignore each other. I don't like them being in the garden but when the weather warms up they disappear again. (We back on to a railway line so there will always be rats). I have tried the non poisionous rat deterrant but they don't seem to mind it!:roll:

Yes i don't want my landlords to see it or they will kill it for sure. It seems harmless, just pottering and collecting stray pellets and hay, but it is a worry. I've never had this before. We are very in the country though now.
 
Trying to make sure there is no food supply for it helps deter them. Also if you can see where it's coming into your garden try blocking the holes. They don't seem to like things being disturbed!

We feed the birds at this time of year and it's the seeds they come for.
 
Rats have teeth that can chew and bend anything. They can chew through brick and some wires.

Its the smell of the bun that will attract them. Wild rats can grow as big as a cat. Im so not kidding! We went to a campsite a couple of years ago and I was in the Laundry/washing up shed, I heard a rustling in a paper bin and looked in and I thought it was a cat curled up. I bent down to stroke it and this HUUUUUGGEEEEE rat slowly uncurled and lumbered out of the bin! I wet myself!!!! Bolted out the door shrieking! And this is me whos had pet ratties for years. I couldnt get over the size of the thing!

I'd prob put a couple of layers of extra wire over buns cage and set about catching it. Its not just the danger of the rat getting to bun, but also the fleas that might be on it or the illnesses it could give to bunny.

Rach x
 
Where there is one rat, they maybe others.


IMO I would try to humanely trap it and release it miles away in the countryside.
 
Trying to make sure there is no food supply for it helps deter them. Also if you can see where it's coming into your garden try blocking the holes. They don't seem to like things being disturbed!

We feed the birds at this time of year and it's the seeds they come for.

I'm sure it's the bunny pellets- i drop alot outside when i'm feeding them at night.
 
Personally and from experience here I would check for and fill any rat holes/burrows and remove ALL food sources and then put a bait box down safely away from the bunnies handling the bait carefully. They breed VERY quickly and if it is a female she may well be getting ready to nest.
 
The problem with rats is that they are good at getting into anything - they will burrow under sheds and hutches and easily chew their way in.

To protect your rabbits make sure their housing in on a solid surface, and if there is a small gap under the hutch protect it by running a "skirt" of mesh around the botton which will stop access, and protect the bottom corners.
 
The problem with rats is that they are good at getting into anything - they will burrow under sheds and hutches and easily chew their way in.

To protect your rabbits make sure their housing in on a solid surface, and if there is a small gap under the hutch protect it by running a "skirt" of mesh around the botton which will stop access, and protect the bottom corners.

Thanks alot i appreciate the advice.
 
Despite not liking to kill animals I would make an excception for wild rats
They are viscious and carry awful diseases..and yes they will go for the bunnies and/or can spread disease to them
You cannot safely use poision incase they carry it and drop it in the buns area...as cruel as it seems a trap is the only safe way with other pets around..but make sure none of your other animals can get to it.
We had pet rats a few years back and they are great..but you cannot be soft hearted about a disease carrying pest that threatens your pets and yourself

in the mean time stop dropping food as this will encourage them..disinfect the areas where you know they go regularly and wear gloves when handing anything they have touched or..if you kill them..the bodies..then throw gloves away to safeguard yourself
 
Despite not liking to kill animals I would make an excception for wild rats
They are viscious and carry awful diseases..and yes they will go for the bunnies and/or can spread disease to them
You cannot safely use poision incase they carry it and drop it in the buns area...as cruel as it seems a trap is the only safe way with other pets around..but make sure none of your other animals can get to it.
We had pet rats a few years back and they are great..but you cannot be soft hearted about a disease carrying pest that threatens your pets and yourself

in the mean time stop dropping food as this will encourage them..disinfect the areas where you know they go regularly and wear gloves when handing anything they have touched or..if you kill them..the bodies..then throw gloves away to safeguard yourself


I have to agree with this. We also had pet fancy rats as a family but wild rats are a totally different kettle of fish. A few years ago a female nested under nextdoor's decking. Within a few weeks we were overrun with rats. We used a trap (I had nothing to do with it, couldn't bare it, hearing it snap made me burst into tears :cry:) but my husband dealt with it all. I know I mentioned a bait box but I do agree that traps are generally much faster and therefore more humane in some sense. The reason we had to use a bait box eventually was that one adult rat broke through TWO heavy duty metal traps :shock: It is possible to use a bait box safely if you are responsible and careful.
 
My parents have a problem with rats in the garden. They go after the bird food, even though Dad has tried everything to make it impossible for them to get hold of...they are very clever. He bought a humane metal cage/trap off Amazon for £10 and uses strong smelling cheese as bait. So far he has caught 6 :shock: when he catches one, he then takes the cage and lets the rat loose a few miles away on some land that's away from houses.

They don't have rabbits though, so don't have the worry of infection etc.
 
Be aware that rats will come into houses via open doors. My next door neighbour thought the rat on their decking was very sweet until it ran in their patio doors where it cause mayhem, chewing cables, stud walls, kitchen units & its way into fridge, plus keeping them awake at night with its scurrying & gnawing.
 
Did you see it in daytime? For every rat you see in daytime there are at least 20 more. It is rare to see them out in the day and only the very bold ones do it.

I know someone who had rats burrow into the rabbits' pen and lived there. The owners had no idea until they saw 3 sets of eyes in the run one night. They dug the whole place up and found a nest with loads. Unfortunately a rabbit got bitten, it was very ill and went mentally ill too and cant remember fully but I think it had to get put down.

Do you have a dog? When our entire street got infested with rats (they dug up a sewer opposite) the rat-catcher said that the only reason we didnt have them in the house was because of the dogs, they act as a deterrent.

We did have them in the stables and garden though. The buns didnt get ill, but I think the rats were wary of them as we had a group of over 10 bunnies at the time. We did find a dead rat in there one morning though, and a nest of kits missing :( We tried traps but they were too smart for it, by the time we had caught one, another litter of rats would have been born. They put rabbits to shame in the breeding category.

Moral of these stories - dont let it/them get established, nip it in the bud. Call a professional asap and ask which method of getting rid would be best in your circumstances.
 
Got any friends with rat catching cats/dogs you can borrow for a few days. My terrier seems expert at it, though I don't approve of her hunting (its always mice/rats/toads/birds.....shes never dared even lick her chops at a bun)it does seem pretty quick, and IMO, natural. I hate poisen and traps.... We once lived in a converted barn that had traps and we would often find legs or tails in the traps or hear them squeaking and dragging the trap around with it :cry:

Good luck :wave:

I would be VERY worried about rat bites... They are dirty so I would worry about abscesses which are such a pain to treat, and not nice!!
 
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