To ask for another explanation for this other than a giant plastic eating rat?

[BramblyHedge]

Just cleaning the downstairs loo and discovered this. WTF has happened to my toilet? Has this ever happened to anyone else? I can't find the missing plastic so that kind of suggest something has eaten it ....boak

Thanks for all the tips. Feel bit sick. Husband will sort out the loo but but concerned about finding this rat now. Hadn't even thought of fire risk. We have been using the loo but the volume of water obviously wasn't enough to make it leak (doesn't smell either).

Do you have small children? That looks like a broke it by accident and threw away broken bit to me. Odd route for a rat to choose !

I've been trying to get rid of mice in the cupboard under the stairs for the last week. Got a snap trap and caught 5 in 3 days. Then nothing for two days but now the peanut butter bait keeps going missing without the trap going off. I'm terrified there's a giant ninja rat in there now.

A friend of mine had one of those daft humane traps in the loft. The first they knew about trapping anything was the smell - not at all humane.

I had pet rats and one of them ate half of one of those diablo toys. They can be quite partial to gnawing on plastic.

Despite their pitfalls, I'd vote for a humane trap. The main thing you need to do is find out where it is entering the property and block it up.

You're supposed to check the humane traps every two hours. Did they expect the rodent to shout them when it was ready to be set free or something?

Ooh a giant plastic eating rat...

Good luck searching for it.

If it were the kids they'd just stand on the loo itself so don't think it is them. It does also look nibbled.

Are there any droppings anywhere? If you do your own cleaning surely you would have noticed them. If you have a cleaner maybe ask.

Have you got a blacklight? If so, turn off the main light and shine it around that area. Rats piddle constantly to leave a scent trail, and it glows under UV light.

Also, could it have been kicked or bashed when in use/cleaning/playing even? Old plastic can become brittle.