Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

There’s a rat in my garden

75 replies

Springsnake · 05/02/2021 12:40

I just saw it run out from under my shed ,run round the plant pots and back under the shed ..it’s huge .
I’ve 3 dogs as well ,how have they allowed this to happen.

OP posts:
TonTonMacoute · 05/02/2021 13:25

There are traps for catching them live but don't think it's legal to release them elsewhere

This is correct. If you trap them live you must kill them, it is an offence to release them.

The thought of killing them is horrible, I don't like it either, but it is better to kill one or two now than have to kill hundreds of them later this summer.

A female rat typically births six litters a year consisting of 12 rat pups, although 5-10 pups is more common. Rats reach sexual maturity after 4-5 weeks, meaning that a population can swell from two rats to around 1,250 in one year, with the potential to grow exponentially.

Meggymoo777 · 05/02/2021 13:27

@TonTonMacoute

Fairly sure you can get humane traps OP

And then what...?

Throw him out in a big field somewhere? I know it doesn't solve the problem as such, I put poison in an attic years ago for a rat problem, found the offending rat dead outside a couple of days later and he was so big, it actually broke my heart that I had done that to an animal. I've not been able to so much as kill a fly since. I'm probably a bit soft though tbf
FatCatThinCat · 05/02/2021 13:28

You can also get rat traps which look the same as traditional mousetraps except they're much bigger and stronger, which kill them instantly.

Teentitansonloop · 05/02/2021 13:28

The main thing is to make sure you don't have any food or water out, the make sure you seal up any gaps that might allow it into the house. Also look for burrows (holes in the ground) as that would indicate if it is living in your garden our just passing through. If you are still seeing it then consider a humane rat trap perhaps and catch and release it elsewhere.

Also the rat I saw in daylight was actually dying, probably due to poison and I think the poison was making it act differently. That might be the case with yours.

Meggymoo777 · 05/02/2021 13:28

Oh wow @TonTonMacoute didn't actually realise it was an offence to release them?

Llamapolice · 05/02/2021 13:33

This happened to is, we got the council in but they weren't able to do anything because the nest is not in our garden. Said there's no point putting out poison etc you have to go for the nest. So that was that, we still see the bloody thing from time to time!

Teentitansonloop · 05/02/2021 13:33

Wow I didn't realise that. I would just monitor the situation then, no point killing it if it is just passing through.

Teentitansonloop · 05/02/2021 13:35

They are part of nature I suppose, not in the house obviously but outside isn't such a problem unless you have a burrow nearby.

Whengodwasarabbit · 05/02/2021 13:39

We have recently had a rat in the garden, it was living there for ages feeding from bird table and our guinea pigs bowls. It got really big and sometimes came out during the day. One day we found it IN the guinea pigs sleeping area under the hay fast asleep!
We also have 4 little terriers who did not deter this rat.
Anyhow we are vegan too so we bought humane traps and set them with a small piece of chocolate the next day ratty was in there going mental!
My fella put his gardening gloves on and took this rat a short walk away and released him to open fields during the morning so it had chance to find somewhere else to hide/ live.
I know everyone says it’s never just one but in our case it was, no sign of anymore at all. This one was a big grey one with a white belly, he was a similar size to our guinea pigs, who didn’t seem one bit bothered by their visitor. They are only trying to survive and our guinea pigs have a heated chicken coop and plenty of food so it was good for ratty while it lasted but I couldn’t risk him staying 😂

AbstractHeart · 05/02/2021 13:40

@TheMandalorian

This is what happens when you create wildlife areas for your garden. You get vermin. Not cute hedgehogs or pretty birds. Speaks the voice of bitter experience.
Hedgehogs are not inherently cuter than rats. & both are wildlife aren't they?
Pippapotomus · 05/02/2021 13:41

Poison.

We have bait boxes surrounded by bricks along a fence. The dogs can't disturb the box and rats apparently like to run in straight lines along fences.

I have rabbits, they only get a small amount of rabbit food a day (90% of their diet is hay for good gut and teeth). I used to put out their food in their runs when the dog went out for her last wee before bed. (spoilt gits have tunnels connecting the runs to the hutches) I turned around one night to shut the patio door behind me on my way in and there was a huge rat sharing the rabbits food with them. The three of them were sat in a circle and the buns didn't bat an eyelid. God knows how long it had been going on for. The next night I could see it sat under a conifer when I let the dog out waiting for the food to come.

thebestnamehere · 05/02/2021 13:41

If caught in a cage you could drown them?

fannyFERNACKERPANN · 05/02/2021 13:44

@LittleSwede

Our neighbour two doors down the road had a massive rat feeding off her bird table the summer before last. Neighbour in between called council who put out poison. End of story, or so we thought. End of last summer it decided to move into our loft, making occasional trips over to next doors loft too as we are semi detached (they've caught it on camera). We named it Ratzilla.

13 pest control visits later, two litters of rat babies running around in the caviry walls (one made it into the kitchen cupboards but went in a trap a few days later) and many broken nights sleep and we were finally rid of the problem a couple of weeks ago. Lots of flies but luckily no stench so we thought they were all dead under the house. DH went up to clear up the mess in the loft and promptly discovered a 25 cm long dead rat, that's without the tail. Still lots of messand chewed up insulation to clear and we'll need to insulate the loft again after but at least we can sleep at night now.

So, do whatever you can to prevent this rodent from your house, remove any bird food, check shed for tennis ball sized holes in case it's moved in there. Maybe consider some bait stations with poison. The dogs shouldn't be able to get to that and could be placed behind shed, or under.

We had a dead rat above our bedroom ceiling yesterday... the smell was horrific! Had pest control over today whose put poison down... dear god I hope there's no babies
fannyFERNACKERPANN · 05/02/2021 13:44

@Springsnake

Why is it out in the daylight
Apparently they're very thirsty animals so need to go in and out to drink a lot
Dogonahottinroof · 05/02/2021 13:45

Find the burrows- look on line- usually 1 in and 1 out

Fill them in- make it as hard as possible. They will probably move. We had some next to our drive during lockdown as a result of the gas digging up the road and moving them,

Lots of advice on line. Once we knew what we were looking for we found the holes really easily. I put compost down them. One was opened the next morning (1 is an in and the other an escape route). Repeated it a couple of time- not enough to trap them in but enough to make it a challenge to get out.

After a week they were gone.

Move all food
Clear wood piles or rubbish as well

fannyFERNACKERPANN · 05/02/2021 13:46

@LittleSwede

I heard ours in the daytime too despite them being meant to be nocturnal.

Peppermint oil is a deterrent but not sure how good it will be outside as rain will wash it away. There are traps for catching them live but don't think it's legal to release them elsewhere. I wouldn't even kill a spider under normal circumstances but having a rat in the house made me change my mind on using pest control for rats. Sorry, I know that sounds cruel. We had mice before and I caught them and released them in a field.

It doesn't sound cruel... especially when they die under your floor boards or in your loft
Dogonahottinroof · 05/02/2021 13:47

Google rat holes- it tells you what to look for.
Typically 2 smallish holes a few feet away from each other near a wall or fence.

GwendolineWindowlene · 05/02/2021 13:50

I had a rat in the garden last summer. I rang the council who said that for one they wouldn't do anything, there would need to be evidence of an infestation. They said often when you see a rat in your garden it's just passing through.

Our cat nearly pounced on it, but chickened out at the last minute. The rat scooted off and has never been back.

Original poster
Springsnake · 05/02/2021 13:50

Yes there’s a hole with a big pile of mud next to it goes under the fence in to next doors garden

OP posts:
Original poster
Springsnake · 05/02/2021 13:51

My son has just put onions down to deter them ..but I’m sure that’s just feeding them

OP posts:
Blessex · 05/02/2021 13:52

At least it’s not in your kitchen (UB40)

Glittertwins · 05/02/2021 13:52

@PrincessSarene

Am I the only one singing “there’s a rat in me kitchen what am I gonna do?”...
No 😆
PurplePansy05 · 05/02/2021 13:53

You get pest control in now, OP. Otherwise the rat will end up in your house even if it seems impossible (from experience!). Don't delay, just get it done. And don't have bird feeders with feed falling on to the ground - worst nightmare for attracting rats, unfortunately.

Dogonahottinroof · 05/02/2021 14:00

@Springsnake

Yes there’s a hole with a big pile of mud next to it goes under the fence in to next doors garden
So now find the 2nd hole- it might be next door and block them both off with soil.

Look tomorrow and see what has happened. If open then reblock them.

Blessex · 05/02/2021 14:01

@Glittertwins am whistling it eating lunch