boxst

Hello

** Long post: If you get bored, the question is just in the last paragraph **

I found in the last few days that I have some sort of rodent in my garage. Having heard it scraping around in a box I go to gently go to pick the box up and the thing jumped at my face. It hit my cheek and bounced off. Uuggghhh. Not a pleasant experience.

So off I go to Homebase to buy a humane mouse trap. The first one has a huge piece of plastic inside on which is some chemical that attracts the animal. I come down in the morning, the trap has been set off, woo-hoo. But there is no rodent. And more to the point, it somehow managed to steal the bit of plastic from the inside with the food! Mmmm.

"Too small" is what I thought. So I got a LONGER trap (sold by rentokil), placed some chocolate inside and wait. A few hours later, I go and check and the trap has been tripped again. And again food gone, no animal! Sigh.

I'm annoyed now, so I buy a proper mouse trap. The "I'm going to break your neck" type. I have just checked it, and the trap is on it's side (not tripped) and the food gone!

What the HELL is this? Being outwitted by a rodent is extremely annoying. Any suggestions? Is it actually a mouse/rat? If I use poison, wont it just go and rot somewhere? Not pleasant.

Thanks!

Steve.

wheeler_dealer

Get one from a farm supplies store.

Make sure u put it where they are running or put it at the end of a pipe cos they love to run down those.

You should get it then.
But make sure you dont catch your fingers when you make the trap live cos it will hurt your fingers seriously !!!

ProperCharlie

glue traps work well for mice - don't know if you can get them for rats. i have caught rats in rat traps (you need a decent size one for a rat - about 15cm long with a spring that is quite stiff when you set it). trouble is rats do learn about traps, although that's not so much of a problem if there's only one in the first place.

ScoobyDriverWannabe

big gun & lots of hand grenades will probs make a mess and very unlikely to catch it but will be fun ;o)

boxst

Hello

Most definitely. Unfortunately it is MY house.

I have thought about lurking in the garage with an infrared sight on my air rifle, but my wife just thinks I'm suffering from some mid-life crisis.

When I get back from America, I think that glue traps it is.

Steve.

Faire D'Income

Can't you borrow a cat from one of your neighbours? They generally have no problem sorting out rodents.

Tracey

A couple of months ago, we had a rat, pest control came out (free of charge)and put a few special chocolate blocks down for them to choke on. The rat was found dead about a week later under my next door neighbours kitchen sink. It's worth giving pest control a ring. I haven't had any other sitings since

Cheers
Tracey

Ratman

TRUE story: just last night at dinner the waitress was telling us
that her landlord had a mouse in his flat, and wanting to be
able to remove it alive, the waitress had bought some glue traps.

I said, "No, they are the worst kind of traps! You'll never get the
mouse off alive!"

She said, "I thought I could put oil on it."

I said, "You can't oil a mouse! Then it won't squeak any more!"

(pause for hysterical laughter to subside)

At that point, people started offering their condolences to my
wife....

ProperCharlie

a rat against a cat? - my money's on the rat every time.

Spoon

Simple- In strategic places of your garage you should just put down rat bait in a dish of some sorts. Somewhere else outside place a bigger container of water that is easy accessible for them.

They will look on the interior of your garage as a rat restaurant and sit for a meal. Afterwards they tend to go towards home via the drinking water you have supplied.

They then drown here well bloated or make it back to their home, then die.

Faire D'Income

Are you having a laugh? My wife's cat who's not particularly hard regularly brings in rats from the brook at the bottom of our garden and he's a towny cat who has only adapted to country living (and hence killing things) in the last year or so.

When I was a kid we used to have this vicious little sod called Dominoe (black and white) who'd kill for the fun of it. The garage used to look like a slaughterhouse with rabbits, rats, mice, squirrels, birds of all shapes and sizes all left out for approval in the morning.

I'm not overly keen on cats but as killing machines they're pretty impressive and even a fox won't try it on for fear of injury unless its desperate for food.

Spoon

Now a cat with a gun would be impressive.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

My favourite after a particularly log mouse problem was humane traps, then put live mouse down bog as the buggers come bag otherwise, surfs up mouse dude !

Got rid of the Mice, wife has bought a Hamster !

JimmyRB5PRO

and what's more they are round like a shot and its free of charge, just tell them its rats !!!

ScoobyDriverWannabe

what if the rat had a gun aswell, now that would be a good fight

Spoon

Yeh but how could a rat pull a gun trigger?

ScoobyDriverWannabe

well if u wanna be pedantic how could the cat pull the trigger ;o)

David_Dickson

fpmsl

ProperCharlie

i reckon a mouse could probably survive being flushed - it's quite a short journey to the sewer, where he can paddle to the shore and no doubt find some tasty snacks.

Puff The Magic Wagon!

iTrader: (2)

Live rat cage - nfw he can get out before gate comes down but remember to wire-up the secondary gravity drop entrance.

Then its off to find a stream...

Spoon

With it's claws of course.

Sith

A rat has a better chance of pulling the trigger. The front paws act like human hands. So in a gun fight my moneys on the ratty.

Go ahead you *****, make my day.

andypugh2000

My first suggestion would also be a cat, my one brings in all sorts inc magpies, suirrels, rabbits ect and we all know that nothing will f**k with a magpie for fear of injury, second would be to set a rat trap, the type that snaps the neck, placed in a piece of plastic soil pipe

MooseRacer

Call the council, they'll come out free of charge and sort it for you.

Simple.

ScoobyDriverWannabe

thats boring way though the cat with gun idea much more fun

mart360

try a jack russell!!

seriously my sister had a mouse invasion and the next dooe neighbour went in with his jr...

little bugger sniffed em out and gave em no quater...


my old boss had a big cat.... lovely cat ... mean as **** with the game!!!

i had picked it up once when it saw a rat coming out of a box.... bloody thing launched itself off me and took the rat mid leap!!!! it used to take pidgeons..... 6ft up a bird table!!!!!!!!! from the ground !


our current mogs a bit like this.... i saw it in the garden one night with what looked like a bit of wood... it was a bloody stoat or weasel and the cat was giving it merry hell..... it came over the fence once mid leap with a bird in its gob....... ita a mouse a day thing at the mo!!!




a good trap baited and set on a skirting board will do the trick...

use chocolate or bacon..... works ever time...

oh and youl never only have one!! usually 2 or 3


mart

Ian_S

have you tried a horse?

Sith

Apparently the horse was butchered......

BeverleyJM

If you go for the chocolate approach, Maltesers come highly recommended......apparently they lick at the chocolate, and when they go to bite the biscuit.....BANG, off goes the trap.