Best Way to Deal with Rats?

AlienC on 19/12/2016 - 00:02

So my place has some ginormous rats like surely big ones

One I saw was like the size of a subway foot long but maybe fatter

Do you guys have any good tips to dealing with rats or proven effective methods?

I will probably buy some rat poison pellets and make some bait stations around the house mainly the kitchen and pantry area

Saw some good traps on YouTube might try that if these don't work

Recommend me some good bait or poison or tips or traps or cheap post control operators if you know of any good options

Cheers again and thanks ozbargain

You my number one ninja for life

Peace

Home & Garden

Comments

        • penthius on 20/12/2016 - 23:16

          I bought one of these and it worked great for the first time, but tried it again a few months later and nothing! It wont zap the buggers! Have you used yours more than once and some time after first use? if so it might be the one I need to buy.

        • Filbert on 21/12/2016 - 22:26
          +1

          @penthius:
          Tried to post a link to the original Ratzapper but I can't.
          Don't buy a cheap one. Get the original blue Rat Zapper.
          Mine cost me about $130 about 6/7 years ago and still going.
          Reckon 15-20 rats/mice been nailed by mine

        • penthius on 23/12/2016 - 18:32

          @Filbert: thanks will give it a go as soon as budget recovers again lol. cheers and merry christmas

    • obsolet on 20/12/2016 - 08:27
      +1

      +1,000!
      Got one of these from a friend after a rat sneaked into my basement and made a lot of damage. Used a bit of peanut butter, put it next to a wall and turned it on. The following morning I had a stiff rat in the cage. No mess, no blood, no second chances!

    • chiefbodge on 21/12/2016 - 21:23

      I have one of these and am yet to catch a rat / mouse in it, despite having lots of them around. To be honest I haven't used it a lot so maybe it will eventually work. I did here a mouse walk into it, squeak like crazy and run out, bastard hasn't been near it since - unfortunately I think it's learnt its lesson.

      I didn't get it from kogan - I got it from a random ebay seller, I think it was more like $20.

    • Name on 23/12/2016 - 19:43

      Got a different one off ebay a year or so ago. Works for me inside.

      Although I haven't caught anything around the chicken coup, and I know they're definitely around as I see the little buggers.

      I think the coup might be a bit harder as there is so much seed laying around that I suspect the mice/rats won't bother to go inside anything suspicious looking to source food.

      But in any case. So much better than glue paper / bait / mouse traps.

  • Conka on 20/12/2016 - 00:50
    +2

    Nuke it from orbit. It is the only way to be sure.

    If you have misplaced your nuclear warheads, ratsak baits work a treat. We have a house in top of a hill close to a natural watercourse which floods when someone spits.

    The rats run up the street into our roof and munch in these delectable little pellets.

    Next day. They're usually gone.

    If not; the baits have run out I then throw more up into the cavity

    I regularly find the buggers drowned in the pool seeking water.

    • AlienC on 20/12/2016 - 01:02

      Is it recommended to put these outside in the backyard of just under the house?

      I am still kinda new ish here but I guess it's time I did more house exploration.

      • Conka on 20/12/2016 - 13:08

        I put them;
        - In the roof (open the man hole and just chuck them in). Works well with the cardboard box version, as the rats chew through the box.

    • Daabido on 20/12/2016 - 05:02
      +1

      Thanks for the nightmares.

  • frostman on 20/12/2016 - 08:37

    1.) Getting a cat is messy; my brother's cat usually likes eating the head of mice/rates leaving the corpse badly mutilated and guts out. It's a luck of the draw/

    2.) Toaday's Rat Poisons are crap & weak; It could take weeks before the rats die via the slow inhibiting process of dehydration and internal bleed. By that time it could breed another 50 in your vent. The only worthwhile Poison is Bromethalin, it's practically a neurotoxin that rips into the brain and liver causing death within 24 hours, think Vx Gas against humans, have you seen The Rock?

    3.) Catch and Release; worst and dumbest inventions made. WTF do you do with a Big Black Rat that's now caught in this plastic container and scratching madly? Drive it around to locate it a safe place? get stuck in traffic whilst trying to get to your nearest nature reserve with a sewer rat in the passenger?

    4.) I'd say you zap them clean

    • jackary on 20/12/2016 - 22:28
      +1

      THIS GUY!

      We had several unsuccessful attempts getting rid of our rat infestation (baits, ratsak, pest controller etc) but it wasn't until he came back and used Bromethalin that they were gone. We've picked up at least a dozen dead carcasses this week.

      Only con is you get very little choice where they die. We've definitely got a dead one in the wall cavity of the garage. But the smell seems to subside day by day, give it a week and I'm sure it'll be fossilised.

  • BertieBrown on 20/12/2016 - 09:17

    Ideally you need to get rid of the rats in your home first, which by using a combination of traps and baits is your best option. Not all baits are created equal, I've definitely had deaths with standard Bunnings ratsack but the majority have been with more commercial style baits. Rats are quite intelligent creatures, they are also social and I have no doubts that if you use a trap and it doesn't work the first time either the rat will never go near it again and others may even steer clear, it sounds silly I know but I've had traps sound once with no catch and then never again. You need to remove all the other food in the house so they have little option to eat the baits. It's also worthwhile at least trying to remove their obvious access points, yes easier said than done. Once you feel like you've at least addressed part of the problem in the home it's best to set outdoor bait stations to try and control the population in the area, which will want to come inside. Best of luck :) Let me know if you have other queries I might be able to help with.

  • Viderzo on 20/12/2016 - 09:33

    Easy,

    Get some of these little fellas: rat problem solved!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYizLAJwt2U

    PS: make sure you spread them around the house and two in your bedroom to get all of them pesky rats

  • shaybisc on 20/12/2016 - 09:36

    I have discovered that cockroaches and slugs absolutely thrive on the most powerful rodenticide available.

    0.05G/KG OF Brodifacoum.

    http://www.easypestsupplies.com.au/tomcat-ii-blox.html

    Used it in a bait station in a farm shed.

  • syousef on 20/12/2016 - 10:00
    +2

    Give them Ninja Turtles to train.

  • [Deactivated] on 20/12/2016 - 12:29

    Christmas is just around the corner and "furry dragon" (rat) meat is considered a delicacy in some parts of the world.

    You could make a killing!

  • aussieprepper on 20/12/2016 - 13:20
    +2

    Do you mean rats as in the rodent? Or rats as in a snitch? You could probably deal with both in the same way

  • roundnumbersonly on 20/12/2016 - 14:40
    +1

    Get a python. Although, they'll probably come to you as it seems you have a good food source.

  • mafmouf on 20/12/2016 - 15:34
    +2

    Whatever you do, don't get the sticky mats! I did it once and it was pretty sad figuring out what to do with a rat that was totally stuck and still alive on the mat.

  • AlanJ on 20/12/2016 - 18:30
    +2

    I live in the Blue Mountains also, and a year and a half ago I had so many rats, appearing virtually overnight, that at one stage I considered just walking out and letting them have the lot (that was the day I trod on one in the dark). However, someone put me on to a place down in Sun Valley (near Valley Heights) which sells you the same stuff that the professional pest exterminators use. While my rats laughed at all the ratsak- type pellets I bought in the supermarkets, these large pink pillar-shaped pellets did the trick in two days. The whole tribe vanished as fast as they'd come, and the only problem was that two died in places in the roof where I couldn't get to them. Luckily, this was in winter — we would have had a much harder time in December! Maybe you'll be lucky, and they'll all go next door. Sorry I can't think of the name of the business, but there are only a handful of businesses along the Sun Valley Road… You won't have trouble finding it. Good luck!

  • Grandslam on 20/12/2016 - 21:51

    I bought one of those Nooski traps. Never caught a thing, despite trying a range of baits and placing it in an area with multiple rats.

  • josepet on 20/12/2016 - 22:20

    Bikies.

  • penthius on 20/12/2016 - 23:24

    Try some old fashioned mouse traps (about $2 at woolies) inside a shoe box (cut the ends away so the mice can get in)

    You just throw away the whole thing once its caught and it leaves all the mess in the shoe box. Plus you dont have to look, just pick the whole box up and throw it away.

  • cybapete on 21/12/2016 - 12:48

    i heard if you get pure peppermint oil and dab it on cotton balls then spread them around the place it repels rats & mice
    because their noses are much more sensitive than ours the smell is a lot worse for them than us

    • penthius on 23/12/2016 - 18:37

      Thats for spiders!! Well it works for spiders anyway ;-)

    • AlienC on 22/12/2016 - 04:29

      Instructions unclear whole family dead

      • whodidthat on 22/12/2016 - 11:24

        Too much ratatouille

  • Cluster on 21/12/2016 - 22:48

    I have a rat problem at my new house. The buggers climb into the ceiling space and scratch at the gyprock… usually late at night when I'm trying to sleep. Sometimes it sounds like a WWF bout is taking place above my bed as the little bastards fight for supremacy and territory.

    Poisoning is an option but you don't want the rat eating the bait and going into the ceiling to die… I would suggest traps of the violent kind but also sealed against cat and dog access. Dispatch them with prejudice.

    • AlienC on 22/12/2016 - 04:17

      I get that and the occasional literal cat fight (not two women going at it like cats kind of fight)

    • shaybisc on 22/12/2016 - 06:53
      +1

      That is a poorly constructed new house. They shouldn't be able to get in. Try and find where they are getting in.

  • JamesP on 22/12/2016 - 07:45
    +1

    Honestly, a few of these comments give me the f'ing creeps. Boiling water once they're in a cage to kill them? Leaving them in the hot sun to die?

    What the flying fark is wrong with people?? Jesus H. Christ… I know rats aren't everyone's favourite animals but this is some serious sadistic shit. If you capture the animal, find a humane way to kill it. Suggesting torturing it is practically suggesting committing a criminal offence. I posted a news link earlier of a man who did the boiling water thing, he got a prison sentence and a conviction for his troubles.

    Don't torture the captive animal. Not only is it wrong, but it's illegal. Perhaps people are just born sadists lacking any common sense?

  • malich on 22/12/2016 - 09:07

    Just leave them.

    Snakes will become more desperate for food as the summer becomes dryer. They'll happily polish off your rat collection.

    • AlienC on 22/12/2016 - 12:41

      But then how will I get rid of the snakes?

      • malich on 22/12/2016 - 13:12

        Post on a forum.

        • AlienC on 23/12/2016 - 02:57

          Which forum any recommendations?

  • rawm on 22/12/2016 - 15:09
    +1

    If you succeed in defeating your enemy you should respect said rat by doing this https://www.reddit.com/r/funny/comments/5jjyfu/battled_egg_s…

    • AlienC on 25/12/2016 - 12:48

      That was legendary

  • Daniel Plainview on 22/12/2016 - 15:19
    +2

    Some seriously bodgy advice in here - as someone who lives on a rural property and deals with rats every day here's my 2c worth:

    • if you want good advice you REALLY have to provide more info on the proeprty you're on - e.g approach is different if you're in a multi-level appt vs rural property etc.

    • clean up all available food sources (e.g don't leave extra pet food around, scraps, garbage bins)

    • identify and seal all likely entrance points to your house using rodent safe materials e.g if covering a hole use something they can't chew through.

    • those two steps ALONE will deal with a lot of your problem if you do them well - traps should be your second option, personally I find most traditional snap style traps work well BUT you have to be patient with rats, who are FAR MORE CAUTIOUS of new food sources/items in their areas. Mice are inquisitive by nature and thus much more easily caught but rats will stay clear of something new if they're unsure about it. Peanut butter(with a lil bacon fat mixed in if you like)/dog biscuits work well - you might have to give them a week or so of 'free feeds' first, which is putting out a little of the bait by itself with the trap there but not set, then after a few days set the trap with the bait. You have to put them in the right areas, where you're seeing lots of droppings is the best bet - but patience is key - if there is no other food sources they will go for them hence why thats a key thing.

    FWIW the who use gloves to remove your scent etc is VERY overrated in my experience - rats/mice eat food thats covered in human scents, so to think they'd avoid a trap just as your hands touched it is a MAJOR stretch IMHO - rats as just cautious, folks are mistaking this for something else.

    • Poison which is being so widely recommended by folks is a REALLY POOR first choice and should only be used to mop up a few remaining rats or to provide long term propection in areas too hard to regularly trap & check e.g in roof space. I can strongly recommend any Brodifacoum based baits - personally I use the Tomcat II wax blocks (which I put on home made baiting stations), stand weather and long term use well.

    This is around 12x more toxic than generation 1 poisons e.g ratsak. But be aware it does pose a risk of secondary poisoning e.g the rat dies, your neighbours dog finds it and eats it, the dog then is poisoned by the material in the rats system.

    The missing element here is that you can poison, trap etc till the cows come in but assuming you're living in suburbia and if your neighbours aren't as diligent as you - they'll be back in no time - hence I strongly recommend you instead fouc on removing food sources and making your property impossible or atleast very difficult for rodents to enter. This complimented by a few traps and very carefully placed poisons will give you the best possible result. :-)

  • gstfree on 22/12/2016 - 19:56

    Rat glu pad, buy the ones made in Thailand. Very effective. I know commercial kitchens use this kind of products and very effective.

    • JamesP on 23/12/2016 - 19:17

      Torture devices and illegal in some states. No thanks.

  • SupeNintendoChalmers on 23/12/2016 - 10:41

    You have to wait 4 years to vote them out

  • rav_stk on 23/12/2016 - 15:44

    I had rate/mice problems not long ago and had organise pest controller to take care of it. They made a hole in plasterboard to access the pantry and I had to throw quite a bit of stuff due to them. Based on my experience is you have to get problem sorted out quickly as they grow in numbers very quickly. I was advised to close as all the possible outlet they have entering into the house. You can try various methods but I would recommend a pest controller to deal with it. Also I do understand that they might die anywhere in the house but in my case the smell was gone after 3 weeks or so. But yes till the time it was there it was bad.

  • PJC on 23/12/2016 - 15:53

    If you find entrance points, stuff them with steel wool. Rats dislike the feel of it and cannot bite through it.

    • AlienC on 25/12/2016 - 12:47
      +1

      Right now I am just using decorative equipment haha lol with paperweights

      Working well so far

  • whooah1979 on 23/12/2016 - 19:25

    like all ferals, we normally catch and release.

  • cybapete on 25/12/2016 - 07:49

    there's a bit of prep involved with this one:
    get a sponge and cut it into small pieces then roll them up tightly and rub them with butter or dip in grease then leave them for mice
    the idea is when the sponge is eaten it will expand inside the mouse and block it's colon which will kill it

  • tanastra on 06/01/2017 - 21:58

    http://enviroshop.com.au/shop/better-mouse-trap.html
    Try this blue mouse trap, very sensitive and 110% works and clean , but the only downside is once you trapped them You need to throw the trap away with the mouse ( best sticky taped the yellow door to prevent it from escaping ) as other mouse would smell " the dead friend " . BTW, I bought mine from Bunnings ( not all Bunnings stock them though ) which is way cheaper around $4.95 last summer .

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