Rat on board suggestions please

geem said:
Find somebody with a good ratting terrier. Their noses are 10000 times more sensitive than ours. it will locate it for you. The trick might be removing floorboards etc to get at it. if you can corner it somewhere that the terrier can get to it will dispatch it. There is no point in borrowing a terrier that isn't used to ratting as it wont know what to do. A good ratter will sort it out.
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Yes two even better.

We had a pair of Jack Russells which we would lend out to all our neighbours in the hamlet years ago, to sort the rats from the various compost heaps, one of their favourite breeding grounds.

Without any managing from us, ours worked in partnership where one would go in and root around, whilst the other would keep watch from a few feet away.

Once detected the rats never stood a chance. The terriers have a kill switch similar to the most vicious of certain breeds.

However, not ideal on a boat as they could do more damage in a few seconds than the rats in a week.

I think you are on the right track with bait and traps. As said, to poison is not a good idea if you have inaccessible places where they can go to die.
My old house was built up on low stilts. Too low for human access and perfect for rats. We did bait with poison and chicken wire off to stop our cat from entering. Unfortunately the foul smell of the corpse' was worse than the rats alive!

A friendly cat very good but again, as above, a timid cat would probably not be too interested.

Good luck....

Mrs S. and I had a slightly different stowaway this summer, but we have vowed not to reveal the type until we give our club talk about our adventures. :)

S.
 
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pcatterall said:
Yes the four legged ones. All food is in bins so its taken to eating the wiring!!
Traps seem favourite with poison as a last resort. Has anyone tried the electronic detergents or the sticky pads?
Any other advice welcome. Potentially dangerous damage to wiring. Not so bad where I can see the damaged bits.
Help!!
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The most important thing after you've removed all the critters is to replace all the damaged wiring. You don't want a short circuit, and a potential fire.
 
Jack Russels are superb rodent killers but cats are rubbish at it. Is this only a warm country problem? I haven't yet added rodents to my worry list for UK sailing!
 
Colvic Watson said:
Jack Russels are superb rodent killers but cats are rubbish at it. Is this only a warm country problem? I haven't yet added rodents to my worry list for UK sailing!
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I think my cat would disagree. Barely a day goes past where he doesn't bring us a little furry present :D
 
Glue traps work but they are a horrible way to catch them. We caught three rats on different traps, nobody wanted to deal with them still alive and struggling on the glue. I'm sorry to say I put the lot into a plastic bag, tied a rope to it & drowned them. I thought that was more humane than letting them struggle and eventually die through starvation/exhaustion...:(
If you can find a trap that will kill them quickly or allow catch & release you'll feel better...
 
Colvic Watson said:
Jack Russels are superb rodent killers but cats are rubbish at it. Is this only a warm country problem? I haven't yet added rodents to my worry list for UK sailing!
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Rats are everywhere and water is very attractive to them because it brings food regularly to their door. We have a good supply of rats in the marina, I see them on the sea wall not the pontoons thank goodness. The only stories I have heard of furry boarders was a fishing boat that did a very poor job of cleaning off fish bits and bait, so it must have smelt like a rat restaurant with a Free Food sign outside.
 
We had rats in our greenhouse a few years back, put out a modern plastic trap and yes - it caught it but not instant death, it had dragged it to a far corner and the it's mates had eaten it! - just left the head in the trap. Also use a length of wire to fix the trap to something immovable(not string - they chew through it!) I understand FENN mk4 traps are the best traps BUT they need to be in a tunnel and are so strong they will break your finger! Poison works but they die in inaccessible places, fortunately when this happened in our garage in the loft the first board I lifted found it.
 
We saw one of the biggest rats ever in Aldan, just north of Baiona, this summer.

We seemed to have cornered it accidently whist strolling the lanes. As many rodents can, it managed to get down a drain with less than an inch diameter and was gone.

Message here is no matter how small the holes the wretched things can hide away in the tiniest of places.

One thing you could do is divert the exhaust fumes up into the hiding places and gas them out.???? ......
Perhaps not though, bound to be something wrong with that suggestion, ah yes death in that difficult place not good.... :confused:

S.
 
Take a long hard look at ALL your water pipes - fresh - engine -etc. -They seem to be able to eat just about anything but they still need water and if that water is in a non metal pipe they will eat through it to get a drink.
So no matter what else you do close all sea-cocks etc.
We have had rats twice and both times could only get rid of it/them with poison, as I found that any trap was far too big to get into the places the rat had been.
But whatever steps you take I can only say do it now!!! The damage a rat can do is unbelievable - unfortunately I know.
 
In my younger days our family firm was building houses near Tilbury docks & we were overrun with rats as the works in the docks drove the rats out around the area of the docks. There was always talk of rats the size of cats etc etc. In those days some of the more superstitious workers would believe anything.

We used to catch loads of them in cages so we could all take them out to the football pitch at lunch time & 20 or so of the workers would form a ring round the centre spot. The person who caught the rat would release it on the spot & we would all run round the pitch flicking it back to the middle with pick handles. 20 mad blokes all running round with staves after a rat was quite a laugh

One day a rat ran up a pick handle of a teenage tea boy & ran right up to his throat where it clung on to his jumper. The lad fell to the ground screaming because he could not get the rat off & thought he was going to die. The rat was probably scared & was just clinging on to his chest.

However, we got the rat by which time the lad had now filled his pants . We had to give him brandy & take him home for new clothes & a wash.

The other option was to catch them in cages but instead of releasing them, gradually lower the cage into some water so they die slowly. They do get quite lively for a while

If you are into fishing then carp boiles seem to get good results for both mice & rats
 
pcatterall said:
Yes the four legged ones. All food is in bins so its taken to eating the wiring!!
Traps seem favourite with poison as a last resort. Has anyone tried the electronic detergents or the sticky pads?
Any other advice welcome. Potentially dangerous damage to wiring. Not so bad where I can see the damaged bits.
Help!!
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Had some mice on board couple of years ago, used the sticky glue on pieces of paper with some cheese surround by the glue, only takes a tail or foot and they are stuck, more they struggle the faster they stuck.
I also made a trap, saw the idea on the net, where a drinks can, suitably baited, with a spindle threaded through it so it can spin, and suspended over water in a bucket or drum, the spindle is fixed to the bucket, with access across it to the can.
The rodent has means across the spindle to the can, he steps on it to get to the bait, can spins rodent drowns.
I fixed mine on my heads bowl, worked for 1, others got stuck.
 
Very much like an idea I have relayed here: 200lt drum, 6in plank across inside the top, screwed into the ends though two holes, offset so it hangs sideways. Long screw with a weight on it to swing the plank horizontal, just. Bait on top and access provided. resets itself ad infinitum. In the drum is water with oil and sawdust, although you could just dispose of the collection elsewhere.
 
I can see good reason to kill the rat but none at all for doing so inhumanely. I believe in the UK it is an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any animal (rats included).
 
Daydream believer said:
In my younger days our family firm was building houses near Tilbury docks & we were overrun with rats as the works in the docks drove the rats out around the area of the docks. There was always talk of rats the size of cats etc etc. In those days some of the more superstitious workers would believe anything.

We used to catch loads of them in cages so we could all take them out to the football pitch at lunch time & 20 or so of the workers would form a ring round the centre spot. The person who caught the rat would release it on the spot & we would all run round the pitch flicking it back to the middle with pick handles. 20 mad blokes all running round with staves after a rat was quite a laugh

One day a rat ran up a pick handle of a teenage tea boy & ran right up to his throat where it clung on to his jumper. The lad fell to the ground screaming because he could not get the rat off & thought he was going to die. The rat was probably scared & was just clinging on to his chest.

However, we got the rat by which time the lad had now filled his pants . We had to give him brandy & take him home for new clothes & a wash.

The other option was to catch them in cages but instead of releasing them, gradually lower the cage into some water so they die slowly. They do get quite lively for a while

If you are into fishing then carp boiles seem to get good results for both mice & rats
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Why on earth would you want to do either of those things! If they need dispatching because they are a pest quickly and without suffering!
 
steve6367 said:
Why on earth would you want to do either of those things! If they need dispatching because they are a pest quickly and without suffering!
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When i was young I worked in the family building firm & saw all sorts of weird things around the Tilbury dock area. Watching the strike meetings on the dockers field was an eye opener.

55 years ago it seemed like a big laugh to loads of builders to chase a rat around a football field. First thing when we opened up site in the morning was to look for a trap to see how many rats we had caught

Things have changed a lot in that time & the mentality of some of the labourers had to be seen to be believed. You have to remember lots of them lived in the Tilbury slums with little cash etc & no TV etc. They could dig holes & lay concrete like no one else though. There was certainly no thought of care to animals.

I often tell my son that he does not know how the other half lived ( shades of living in a shoe box)

I do recall as a 10 year old being in a tea hut when a foreman explained to the men that a haggis was a wild animal that roamed the Scottish heather & if one did not have a haggis basher one could be eaten alive. Most were in awe of him & believed every word.

& that is how we know that the earth is banana shaped
 
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