Rat Attack. Bait advice needed

[james333]

Sorry if this is in the wrong section.
Got rats running around my house.
I have purchased cheap traps, from the poundshop, all the way up to top of the range ones which state
" guaranteed to catch " But nothing. The rats will not go into any of the traps.
Have tried every kind of bait, but the rats will not eat the bait.
Even heard that rats like chocolate, so gently melted some chocolate and mixed the bait in, but they will not even eat chocolate.
Desperatly need recommendations for any good bait/poison. Have you tried anything and got good results, commercial stuff or even homemade.
Many thanks.

[PurplePillowCase]

call in an expert.
your council should have a list of recommended pest control companies on their website.

[Hoppinggreen]

No, it’s not the right section - unless it’s your pet rats that are “attacking” you

[exLtEveDallas]

Peanut butter caught the rats that were attacking our rabbits

[EBearhug]

How long have the traps been down? Rats will be wary of anything new, so they'll take a few days to get used to them before exploring. Also, they tend to run beside walls and so on, so there's something they can touch, do traps need to be on their runways.

A country supplies store will probably be best for bait, but if they're actually inside the house, I'd definitely be calling out professionals. Or possibly burning the entire house down.

[shhhfastasleep]

Call in the Council or pest controllers IMMEDIATELY.
We had it. They sort it.

[james333]

Hi. Thanks very much for the replies.
I can't afford to call in the pros at the moment, but am trying out the bait/poison possibility for a few more days. Fingers crossed.
I have had the bait down for four days now, but not even a nibble, tried a few different types, also mixing the bait in with chocolate, cocoa powder, melted mars bars, but they refuse to go anywhere near it.
What i have been told by the neighbours is that there is a nest of them underground, and they keep popping in whenever they feel like, i think this is what is atttracting them to come in.
May well be a long term problem and can't afford to keep calling the pros in again and again, much as i would like to.
So need recommendations for a good bait, have googled and heard a few good things about Neosorexa gold and Roban.
Would dearly appreciate any and all advice.

[EBearhug]

Have you checked with your council? Some will deal with rats for free.

[shhhfastasleep]

The Council will help. It's not free but you need experts. And it's cheaper than a private company.
Please look into it now.

[james333]

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated.
Called the council and they want £45 as a call out charge, then labour, traps, bait etc are charged on top. Looks to be nearly a hundred pounds for one visit. Going to need several visits, maybe hundreds of pounds. I'm really worried, i can't afford it.
They rats usually climb up the walls and get into the loft. It's warmer up there and they have the loft insulation to snuggle in to. Do you think it may be a good idea to board up the top of the walls where they meet with the loft and block the access.
Many thanks.

[twinone]

We were overrun by rats when we moved into our farmhouse. The previous owner was animal friendly so didn't deal with them.
Thankfully our council dealt with them for free.
They put down a bait that you need a license to buy. It absolutely did the trick. Only a handful were caught in the traps, the others took the bait and died that way.
In the meantime, they advised on where they were probably gaining access and we filled those gaps.
I hope you get it sorted. I hated hearing them scrabbling round in the loft at night.

[james333]

Many thanks.
Looks like i may have to call the experts in.
One last thing, do you think it may be a good idea to stuff fibreglass wadding type material into the space behind the skirting boards. The rats are using this space to travel from room to room.
The fibreglass has bits of glass in it, when they try to push their way through it may hopefully jab into them and deter them from coming into the property.

Thank you.

[Animation86]

Poison is never a good idea in the long run, they die in the walls and you won’t get rid of THAY smell.

However the only failsafe trap is pretty inhumane (glue traps)

Fucking horrific but depends how desperate the situ is

[twinone]

They will eat through fibreglass wadding. Wire wool is your friend if you are looking to block any access holes.

[mumworkingfromhome]

Use Jack Fruit and / or coconut. It works great as a bait. Jack fruits give some good smell that easily spreads to the surrounding area. So, that will attract the rats.

[AussieSon]

Use cheese or spam everytime. In Aus my husband Vin just used to catch them with his hands.

If that's not your style. Then mouse trap or rat trap. Cheese or meat. Then splat.