Bloody rats!

[rick]

If you remove the food source (I know someone who has rats because they feed the birds and there is spilt food which is a feast for pigeons and rats alike) will rats actually move away? I was wondering if they had become used to the food, and set up home giving birth to more rats, would they move on?

Yes, they will - ultimately. Trouble is they are very persistent and inventive (like mice.) I guess it may be different in a rural setting with a long way between properties and stores of feed - around here they could easily move on to where there are better opportunities just up the street. One problem I have noticed is that although mice leave clues to their raids (like poos in the feeder and generally in places they hang out) rats dont seem to leave evidence like that - except, of course, enormous excavations but if that is under the neighbours shed then you dont get to see it and might not notice the feed going down faster for quite some time.
The only real way of knowing that they have left is to put out the trail camera. I think that our rats have been pushed by shortage of food to go for the neighbours poison. There seems no sign of them lately but I bet, if I put the camera out I'll get a surprise!

 

[MrsBiscuit]

Thanks for the response Rick! At the moment we will just have to wait and see what happens. I get very nervous around poison and pets, no matter how well you think you have hidden it/put it under something heavy. I guess a bait trap might be the way to go. Just this week we heard a continual racket from upstairs and upon investigation I found the cat playing with a small (live) snake. What disturbs me more than that actual sentence is the fact that the cat presumably caught it and brought it in, whilst we sat, oblivious on the sofa! Yesterday afternoon I found a baby gecko in the bedroom which I removed for its own safety. This morning when I got up there was a lot of unusual miaowing, investigation showed the cat had moved his litter tray (no small feat) to deal with something (blood traces), knocked over bottles in the shower, and then the poor prey creature had dived under a bureau. I expected it to be dead, but no, it was still a hale and hearty field mouse. So, after a couple of minutes of comedy chasing, a la Benny Hill, I managed to corner it and scoop it up, and took it up the road to release it into a different place.

 

[rick]

Its interesting that the only reason that the rats would be tempted by the poison is when they were getting desperate through lack of food, To their credit, the council has signs by the bridge (a place where people dump piles of bread for the ducks and pigeons) saying not to feed them there as they are not putting out poison to control the rodent problem due to the risks to wildlife.
I have seen one rat this morning. I think it is down to one smart survivor now, eking out a living on the margin. Its when it gets out of hand due to lots of food that it's worrying.

 

[rick]

Well yes - persistence and they are very smart! Its been fascinating watching them outsmart the defences. The run is now, basically, a big rat trap - they can get in but it is very difficult for them to get out. Trouble is that then I have to let them out in the hope that the trauma of being trapped will put them off trying again but, of course, it doesn't. Its not just the run where they are getting food, I sure, but we are on our third generation at least now so although I remove all the feed at night they seem to be doing fine. I've ordered a .22 and a tin of lead free pellets. I like the little guys but for years there were none and the the party has to be over. I'm wondering now if the council putting up the signs not to throw bread around by the river was the reason that they turned up here - it was at about the same time come to think of it.

 

[tomdhu]

Well yes - persistence and they are very smart! Its been fascinating watching them outsmart the defences.

They are indeed smart and they do communicate between themselves with a language of various sounds - squeaks, muttering etc etc so the you are taught early on by the elders to be wary of certain things. They are also neophobic ie they have a fear of new things appearing in their environment. But they are particularly wary of new items that have the scent of humans on them.
The best way to eliminate them is with traps but It is imperative to take multiple measures to remove any trace of human smell on the trap and in the area of the trap.

Worthwhile reading this
https://www.trapbarn.com/get-rid-of-rats/
and
https://www.trapbarn.com/human-scent/

Works for us anyway