Sloter Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Hiya, I was sat in the sunshine happily chilled out having just light the BBQ, just opened a bottle of wine looking around thinking what a gorgeous day. When something caught my eye at the bottom of my garden, we often have neighbours cats prowling round and a hedgehog but no to my amazement it was a ***** Rat, a big fat *** running from one hole to another. So the question is what to do? I live on an estate so swinging the 12 bore round isn’t an option. How can I get rid of the little ****? Am I best just calling pest control. Or is it easy enough to get rid yourself? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teal Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Set a spring snare for him, if you want a bit of a challenge, otherwise a fenn trap in a tunnel that cats and dogs can't get in, or a bog standard livecatch trap. let us know when you get him, i hate rats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngshot Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Set a spring snare for him, if you want a bit of a challenge, otherwise a fenn trap in a tunnel that cats and dogs can't get in, or a bog standard livecatch trap.let us know when you get him, i hate rats i think teal has sayed it all!!! good luck and keep us posted!! Young Shot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sloter Posted June 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Thanks guys, I'll let you know when i've got it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigbob Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 a ***** Rat, a big fat *** running from one hole to another If you have rat holes in your garden id be setting a mk4 fenn 24/7 you wont catch every day but it will be there and ready if any more move in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeboy Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 If you have seen one the chances are that there are at least a few more. poison can be effective but not everyone likes to use it for various reasons. Fenn traps are fantastic and work very well if situated correctly and baited with something sticky and preferably smelly. chocolate/toffee is good so is marmite. often it will be a few days before you score, but reset the trap every time you catch one. obviously the trap needs to be in a tunnel of some sort, this will stop you from catching non target species. Like I said poison can be very effective but you cannot force them to eat it and it needs to used in a proper bait station or else other animals will eat it. I have spent a small fortune this year on poison, it usually works very well for me. this year however the rats have not touched it so I'm using Fenn traps for the most part. good luck Leeboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sloter Posted June 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 Hi guys, Well managed to get a Rat trap yesterday not had chance as my uncle died on Sunday! :( I didn’t even know he was ill. He only told his wife and kids a week before he died and told them not to tell anyone. Cancer! It’s a nasty ****** disease that. He was a good man he shot an awful lot and inspired me in to getting into it. I now have to sort his guns out. But a top bloke! Anyway I get the trap bait it up with some chocolate. Left it over night got up this morning and the door was shut! All chuffed as punch I wander out half dressed! (not a pretty sight) I’ve successfully caught a hedgehog! So I’ve let him go I’ll try again tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flytie Posted June 15, 2006 Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 Sloter, sorry for your loss mate! I would try poison as well as a fenn trap. I use plastic pipe about a yard long with a 1ft T piece in the middle. At the top of the T piece I put a screw top, I put the poison in through the screw top. Fasten it up on a rat run and load the pipe with poison. I use garden gloves rubbed in freshly turned soil for handling traps and snares as i believe it masks my scent. An old Farmer friend of my father's told me to do this and it seems to work for me. Ft Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted June 15, 2006 Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 You should ALLWAYS use gloves when dealing with rats. The disposable ones are good, make sure they dont rip. Another salution, is an air rifle. Isint their not a thing in the UK, where you can get an air rifle without a licence? As long as its under a certain Ft pound? When i lived in the Uk back in the early 80s, i use to have a BSA Mercury s, found it great for poping off rats and safe. Sorry about your uncle :( . Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted June 15, 2006 Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 One major problem with the live catch traps is, that mice will go after the chocolate, spring the trap and squeeze out through the bars. I finally resorted to poison, using a pipework setup very similar to the one posted by flytie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killer rabbit (r1000) Posted June 18, 2006 Report Share Posted June 18, 2006 You should ALLWAYS use gloves when dealing with rats. The disposable ones are good, make sure they dont rip. Another salution, is an air rifle. Isint their not a thing in the UK, where you can get an air rifle without a licence? As long as its under a certain Ft pound? When i lived in the Uk back in the early 80s, i use to have a BSA Mercury s, found it great for poping off rats and safe. Sorry about your uncle . Frank. :( sloter, sorry for your loss mate . it's obvious he wouldn't want you to feel miserable, so you try to enjoy yourself, & get the little ***** . air arms are a good investment, particularly in close quarters like built-up areas. but BE CAREFUL, make sure you have an adequate backstop (sheets of wood should be fine, just leave them there for a little while so the rats get used to it), also make sure you don't shoot outside your boundary as this could get you into lots of trouble :( . where power is concerned, up to 6 ft/lbs for a pistol (very few actually reach this level), up to 12 ft/lbs for a rifle before requiring an fac. if it's just for occasional use, then a spring rifle would be ideal. there are a great many air arms available, take a look & decide for yourself (it would also be worth investing in a silencer in your case so as not to disturb neighbours, some are specific to some weapons, so don't rush into anything) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertie Posted June 18, 2006 Report Share Posted June 18, 2006 Sloter sorry to hear of your sad loss. Good luck with the rats! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leepylee Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 all you need is a good springer a glass of wine a deck chair and blast away Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 You should ALLWAYS use gloves when dealing with rats. The disposable ones are good, make sure they dont rip. Another salution, is an air rifle. Isint their not a thing in the UK, where you can get an air rifle without a licence? As long as its under a certain Ft pound? When i lived in the Uk back in the early 80s, i use to have a BSA Mercury s, found it great for poping off rats and safe. Sorry about your uncle :( . Frank. :yp: sloter, sorry for your loss mate . it's obvious he wouldn't want you to feel miserable, so you try to enjoy yourself, & get the little ***** . air arms are a good investment, particularly in close quaters like built-up areas. but BE CAREFUL, make sure you have an adequate backstop (sheets of wood should be fine, just leave them there for a little while so the rats get used to it), also make sure you don't shoot outside your boundary as this could get you into lots of trouble :yp: . where power is concerned, up to 6 ft/lbs for a pistol (very few actually reach this level), up to 12 ft/lbs for a rifle before requiring an fac. if it's just for occasional use, then a spring rifle would be ideal. there are a great many air arms available, take a look & decide for yourself (it would also be worth investing in a silencer in your case so as not to disturb neighbours, some are specific to some weapons, so don't rush into anything) Great info their Killer Rabbit, i know now if im ever in the Uk, what to get, Cheers. Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 I've seen pest control people use co2 pistols at close range, in practice they don't hit hard enough for rats in my experience (at any reasonable range beyond 10m). In fact I have shot a couple recently with my AA s410, right on the button and seen them run off, I know a few people who have had the same thing happen, hard heads these things. Sometimes they drop, sometimes they run off The beretta with 4's in it deals with them nicely, though I know thats not an option where you are Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killer rabbit (r1000) Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 Great info their Killer Rabbit, i know now if im ever in the Uk, what to get, Cheers. Frank. we're all here to help each other m8, why keep things to myself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAJ2 Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 If you can locate the holes, a hose pipe on the exhaust of a chainsaw, lawnmower etc, and a couple of good Jack Russells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 If you can locate the holes, a hose pipe on the exhaust of a chainsaw, lawnmower etc, and a couple of good Jack Russells. I have seen this done before, deadly combo. Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go3321 Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 Why not just get a catch and release trap without bringing any harm to the rat? i don’t believe in killing animals unless its my life on the line i would just rather remove them and then sort out my fencing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 nice thought but in practice you're only moving your problem to someone else. like the tree huggers that like to use live capture traps on foxes in towns then release them on game shoots. Ok makes for some good fox shooting as they are definitely not lamp shy but not in their best interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quist Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 Why not just get a catch and release trap without bringing any harm to the rat? i don’t believe in killing animals unless its my life on the line i would just rather remove them and then sort out my fencing Your life is on the line. 30% of UK rats carry Weils disease and it can kill which is why you should wear gloves handling the bodies or recently used traps. They also carry about 21 other diseases which is why they are the number one public health pest. If there's rats around your garden, they're going to be all over the place and the urine of the female is going to be dropped on your chairs, tables barby etc. If they get into your house, they can cause additional damage by chewing cables and pipes. You don't have to be your own judge and jury and wait until you get evidence of being ill before you go at them. Learn from the scientists and others. If you've got rats and want to keep well and your loved ones safe, deal with them in a terminal way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
30-6 Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 Well said Quist As long as it's killed humanely (even though it's a rat) that's ok, and correct in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go3321 Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 My life is also on the line from other humans and i find them pests but i can't do much about them Yes i am going to probably be the first person on here that does not agree with killing rats when i say my life on the line i am talking about if i had a gun and i new for a fact that a lion was about to kill me Sorry but you wont change my mind killing is wrong and i will not kill them i will catch them and release them far away from the house, it’s not their fault they carry diseases they are just trying to survive like the rest of us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 Great fun though The kids love it, after Sunday lunch a nice walk round the fields in the fresh air and a few rats as a bonus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted June 26, 2006 Report Share Posted June 26, 2006 Bet your kids don't love it as much as my Jack Russels they seem manically obsessed with rats at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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