Handguns
Subscribe
Digital Now Included!
Current Subscribers Click Here.
Current Subscribers Click Here.
All Florida Sportsman subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. This means you have the option to read your magazine on most popular phones and tablets.
To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine.
Replies
My posts are my opinion only.
Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for. Will Rogers
My posts are my opinion only.
Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for. Will Rogers
"Winners take responsibility, losers blame others"
Megyn Kelly
Yesterday, I found where they seem to be concentrated. I have a "loft" above the finished enclosed insulated inner-shop inside the pole barn. I haven't been up there for many months - sort of dead storage for stuff I never use. Anyhow, the floor of the loft was covered with rat turds. Set some traps up there and caught one more last night.
I need to clean up that loft, sweep up the turds and go through the empty boxes and rolls of carpet and other junk, but I want to catch some more first. Don't want to disturb where they are living too much so they move elsewhere, like into my house.
All the recent ones are just slightly bigger than the one in photo. Not sure if they are juveniles, of they just are smaller than "regular" rats. I'd get a cat, but the dogs would kill it.
My posts are my opinion only.
Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for. Will Rogers
Take every precaution to avoid the dust from entering you nose mouth and eyes.
I AM NOT A RACIST
Youre teaching them to be trap shy, doing 1 at a time.
Jeff Cooper
Caught one more last night. One trap went off but no rat (that particular trap was very sensitive and hard to set). Also, one new large trap went missing. Same spot I where two others have disappeared. I am going to start tethering them.
Interestingly, they seem centered on one end of the barn, and on the loft. Haven's seen droppings or caught any near the dog's food.
Neighbor who is an exterminator and owns 3 houses (one abandoned) nearby has not seen any rats in our neighborhood ever.
If the rats can get at the dog food, then they will take it and hide it. You will find it in small piles stashed behind stuff or up in the attic or anyplace the rat thinks it's safe. If you set traps near the dogs food, the dog is going to get snapped before you catch any rats there.
This instinctive habit of storing food is just another reason why they are so hard to control.
You should have at least 6 traps working. you can't have too many. If you don't catch a rat in a few hours or overnight, move the trap. Try different baits.
I would quietly ease into the shop/pole barn around 8pm with the lights out. Take a flash light and a hammer or something to bang on the rafters or poles. Just as you hit the pole turn the flashlight on and shine it at the scurrying sounds.
This should tell the story on the size of the problem and it will give you a better idea of how and where they move so you'll know where to put the traps.
You may have to go to def. con. 1 if this trap thing doesn't start to get real effective real soon.
If you have a .22 pistol, get some rat or "snake shot" rounds and take that with you at night with the flashlight. Just be careful not to hit the wires or spray paint cans or both....don't ask me how I know.
The Winchester rounds are really hot, so get the CCI, they are loaded more appropriately and don't make as much noise or do as much damage. It's a good way to hone your marksmanship skills and your reflexes.....they are not easy to hit once they realize what is at stake. It's not bad entertainment and can be somewhat rewarding, in a primal way.
Employing some snakes or cats to help with the problem is an excellent idea. Finding the cat with the desire and skills is the hard part.
Someone killing snakes may be part of the reason you have this problem in first place.
I AM NOT A RACIST
A southeast Florida laid back beach bum and volunteer bikini assessor who lives on island time.
Fish haid, I forgot to mention, but with a rat infestation that bad, you won't have to worry about mice any more. Rats will eat all the mice in the area as they take over.
Get you some Rat Terriers if you want to avoid poison and let them work,
Former Mini Mart Magnate
I am just here for my amusement.
Jeff Cooper
I've never really been around a major rat infestation, but many of my friends in the airgun community like to rat hunt around dairy and poultry farms with their smaller airguns. They'll kill hundreds in a night. Its unreal how many rats an otherwise clean and normal place can have. All they seem to need is food and shelter and a quiet place to reproduce.
You might want to shine around at night with a crimson red light to see if you see their little eyes darting around. You might be surprised how many you have.
Found it!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-pqFyKh-rUI
I had 36 (yes, 36) rat traps in my attic. Once they got used to the traps being there, I caught 8 or 9 in just a few nights. Then sealed their access point about midnight one night. Caught one more after that that was trapped in the attic. No problem since in the house but they still have exterior nests I'm sure as I see evidence of them hear and there.
Other things you can do include removing food sources around your house. They love fruit of just about any kind (mangos being at the top of their list) as well as palm berries (christmas palms are among their favorite). As my palms create seed pods, I cut them off before they have a chance to mature. I cover all my mangos with wax paper bags about a month before they are ready.I like to grow my own pineapples. They would eat them from the inside out about 2-3 weeks before they were ready for harvest. I now cover them with a wire basket before they get too mature.
I'm about to try to tackle roof rats at our hunting club now. That is going to be a much bigger battle...
-- Tug McGraw on getting a raise
Get Down Fishing Charters - Port Canaveral, Florida
“Everyone behaves badly--given the chance.”
― Ernest Hemingway
Well, haven't caught one in a trap in over a week. On a hunch, I checked on my long-neglected Model-A Ford stored in the rat barn. Pulled off the tarp covering it - Yep! First thing I noticed was rat poop on the floor and a big hole chewed in the front seat. Pushed it outside and lifted out the bottom of the front seat - huge nest under there - mostly made of the seat stuffing. Bad rat **** smell too. Got out the shop vac and started sucking-up the nest. The kid with me said a big rat ran out and into the barn. I didn't see it, but he said it was huge.
Fortunately, the Model A is not pristine, and there is no problem to hose-out the interior. I gave it a big dose of Pine-Sol, and hit it all with the pressure washer. Rats also chewed up some of the door panels, but no big deal. I just hope they didn't get up into the exhaust.
Anyhow - while the car was out, I was able to clean out behind one particular shelf unit. Managed to snake the shop Vac hose back behind it. I recovered at least 4 of my missing traps (3 small and 1 large). The large trap had a dead rate (dead about 2 weeks - smelled BAD). It had been caught by the tail.
Then, I tackled the loft. vacuumed up all the poop, moved out a lot of junk, and also discovered nest #2. Inside a 6" (8") diameter spiral-wound flex duct that goes to a leaf vacuum. nest occupied about 2 feet of that duct. Did not see any rats. They gnawed lots of holes in the duct (trash).
Collected-up all the traps. Put out some rat bait. Will keep an eye out to see if it disappears. Plan to put moth balls in the car, and behind the shelves, and in the loft (and RV). My one concern is that I'll drive them out of the barn and into the house.
Pics of Model-A:
No.