Shadowchaser Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 I'm posting here as it doesn't really fit the category of shooting or vermin control. Some of the land we have is rough land. Trees, brambles, undergrowth, tall grass, small earth bankings etc. I've noticed in recent years more and more rat activity such as rat holes and runs. I saw one a few weeks ago scurrying across the top of a banking near one of the ponds. This is essentially in the middle of nowhere. No food source from human activity. I understand that rats need to drink a lot of water which isn't an issue for them here. But what are they eating? Grass, worms or insects? I could understand seeing more rats around the actual farm or being closer to the neighbouring farms. I could understand the odd rat hole appearing near a food hopper during the season. But what I'm seeing is a bit baffling. Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 hello, are you putting any duck feed down ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enfieldspares Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 (edited) Ground nesting birds eggs. Fledgling birds that fall out of the nest and die. And the leftovers after Mr Fox has had his pickings of Mr Rabbit. Plus nowadays all those half eaten pork pies, steak slices, and etc.. sold at petrol stations. But most of all they dine and dine well out of the hundreds, nay thousands of ducks that die each week for ingesting lead shot. God Bless the countryside rat for without it the fields and forests of Great Britain would be ankle deep in dead wildfowl carcases. Edited April 29 by enfieldspares Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadowchaser Posted April 29 Author Report Share Posted April 29 1 minute ago, oldypigeonpopper said: hello, are you putting any duck feed down ?? Not at the moment. We only start feeding the pond when we put new ducks on usually in July. We only put food in the pheasant hoppers from September - February. There's only a few of us that shoot the land so we keep things as minimal as possible. I can understand rats being around then, especially when food is more scarce but not now. 3 minutes ago, enfieldspares said: Ground nesting birds eggs. And the leftovers after Mr Fox has had his pickings of Mr Rabbit. Plus nowadays all those half eaten pork pies, steak slices, and etc.. sold at petrol stations. We don't get the latter as we're too far from any roads or people. Birds eggs and leftovers are a certainty though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 We have the odd rat about the place and have found old nests and feeding places and they eat a huge number of garden snails, hundreds of them. I'd guess they will eat whatever they can find, dead animals, seeds, nuts, plants etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadowchaser Posted April 29 Author Report Share Posted April 29 7 minutes ago, Windswept said: We have the odd rat about the place and have found old nests and feeding places and they eat a huge number of garden snails, hundreds of them. I'd guess they will eat whatever they can find, dead animals, seeds, nuts, plants etc. I believe they can pretty much eat anything. I just wasn't sure if living in the complete wild was viable for them. I'd always assumed they relied somewhat on living in close proximity to humans. I don't like rats but they are a resourceful creature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stonepark Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 Rats are omnivores but also rodents, main wild diet is seeds, insects, slugs, worms, snails, succulents, fruit, flower heads, baby rats, baby mice, baby voles, etc, effectively if they come across it whilst foraging they will eat it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jall25 Posted April 29 Report Share Posted April 29 Rats are true survivors - they eat anything - they climb hedges and trees - dig holes - chew through plastic and other materials - incredible creatures really They also store so much food when its available On another note as a gameshooter may i encourage you to keep feeding into March /April and May - you and the birds will reap the rewards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tedward Posted April 30 Report Share Posted April 30 13 hours ago, enfieldspares said: But most of all they dine and dine well out of the hundreds, nay thousands of ducks that die each week for ingesting lead shot. God Bless the countryside rat for without it the fields and forests of Great Britain would be ankle deep in dead wildfowl carcases. Excellent ! - made my day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nublue 22 Posted April 30 Report Share Posted April 30 Macdonalds and KFC in the towns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mice! Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 On 29/04/2024 at 22:47, jall25 said: Rats are true survivors - they eat anything - they climb hedges and trees - dig holes - chew through plastic and other materials - incredible creatures really They also store so much food when its available On another note as a gameshooter may i encourage you to keep feeding into March /April and May - you and the birds will reap the rewards Spot on 👍 On 29/04/2024 at 20:30, Shadowchaser said: I believe they can pretty much eat anything. I just wasn't sure if living in the complete wild was viable for them. I'd always assumed they relied somewhat on living in close proximity to humans. I don't like rats but they are a resourceful creature. Lots of lads are still shooting a lot of rats around the farm yards because everywhere has been so wet, but they generally do leave for the hedges and fields, obviously once the easy feed starts to dry up. Have you looked around at all with a thermal, you might be surprised at just how many rats you actually have around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigbob Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 Not only do they seem to manage to fed on nothing but are really good at raising litters off it too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jall25 Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 Years ago on an island on a pond we planted - wrongly - some laurel - these harboured rats Once i realised my error a few years later and cleared the laurel and planted native shrubs and flowers - but as i was doing so i came across some deep rat holes - digging into them were duck egg shells - several feet deep - This was the start of my rat control passion Indeed i was out last night foxing and spotted rat trade - so i will be back tonight as the fox is no more - the rats it is Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouser Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 When we have shot some rats in one of the sheds ,when it’s gone quiet, often see rats dragging there dead mates off for a easy meal.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadowchaser Posted May 1 Author Report Share Posted May 1 Thanks for all the replies. I'll try the thermal suggestion and report back. Will be interesting to see what's out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scolopax Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 The rats on my shoot have been going out onto the spring drillings at night and digging up the seed corn. Really easy for foxes or owls to catch as they out in the open away from cover, but they do not seem to bother. rats can and do scratch a living ‘wild’, but much prefer to utilise whatever food we leave about the place for them, whether it is animal feed on sheds, pheasant feeders or crops in the fields. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 I found that rats are very trainable. Had some turn up a few years ago. used to put food out every day at 4:00 pm. After a few days they would turn up at that time…….over a week a .410 did the rest. Haven’t seen ant since…. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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