To sell this stinking rat hole, I mean house because we have rats?

[RedWineAllMine]

So to cut a long story short, purchased first house a year ago, have since discovered the bastards that sold it to us never told us of the rat problem. I found rat droppings tonight in living room, and knawed pieces of wooden coving and doors throughout the house. I have been away so noticed it when I came back. I have just paid £99 for the council pest control, they will be here within the next 2 days. I know it's rats because we caught one in the loft not long ago, but laid down poison and that was the end of that until now....
So, told my Partner we are selling or I'm leaving him once council have sorted the rats. I can't live here.

I live next to a park, do you think that will have something to do with it? Maybe I'm over reacting, and just let the council do their 3 visits and see what happens, try not to see things so bleak?

Yes, let the council do their visits. That may well sort it. I found the guy from the council was really really good. (If you're worried, you could also seek recommendations about a private company - if you are concerned about it every happening again. But rats are actually creatures of habit, so they don't want to explore new places - especially ones that aren't an easy source of food.)

Moving is hugely expensive and stressful. So it's worth telling yourself that it is a problem that is sort-able. Other people have dealt with this sort of thing before. Eventually the place will become home.

The council should be good.

Im not sure I would get a cat to live under there. It would surely get bitten/attacked by them? Then infections could start.

Over 90% of septic wounds in cats result from cat bites sustained during a cat fight. Dog, rat and other rodent bites can occur but they are much rarer I wouldnt do it.

Council did a great job for us.

It must be the time of the year for them!

I've just spotted one in the garden eating the bird feed that the resident bloody squirrel keeps throwing round. The dogs are going batshit but it doesn't seem to care!

I'm not concerned about them getting in the house again but I would rather them out of my garden.

Guess I'm off to get some traps after work, I won't use poison in the garden.

Council for big problems. Wool wire at likely entrance spots. And cayenne pepper.

We've got something in our walls too. We are assuming rats. Council coming out this week. It doesn't bother me much tbh but I know we have to get rid as they will breed. No idea how they got in but they're clever little things.

Zintox let's hatch a plan how we can burn down our houses
It's good your getting it looked at, ours obviously got worse as time went on, best to nip it in the bud now.
Brother in law is coming to fit the door this week to under the house, then surrounding cracks are going to be filled with cement & broken glass. So that will be the outside sealed. I can't see how they will get in once that's done. So that's a start at least!

Then it's getting the man hole drain up once partner gets back next month, so council man can access that too.

Our pest control guy got us to fix a piece of sheet metal across the bottom of our outdoor cupboard door so the rats couldn't chew their way in. Can your brother do this when he does your door? Also we had to mold bird wire (smaller holes than chicken wire) over the top of our drainpipe. He advised changing the bottom angled spout of the drainpipe to a straight piece that only left a tiny gap above the ground. We also had to make cone shaped from. The bird wire and stuff them in the gaps left in our kitchen roof tiles. In fact, when he went in the garden he was mainly looking up at the house to see where they could get in. He told me that mice can get through a hole the size of your little finger and rats the size of your thumb. They do a freaky collapsing bone thing - yuck.

Op have you had your drains looked at? We had a rat problem a couple of years ago. We spent ages getting to the bottom of it (turned out to be as simple as a old tumble dryer vent). However I learned that a lot of rat problems come from rats getting in through cracks in pipes.

Op, if you imagine your house's floor plan, instead of the actual house, is there any problem with the layout, or do you just hate the experience of being in it, iykwim?

The council will sort the rat problem (get a terrier - they're bred for this, to prevent recurrence). You can get a plasterer to layer up the plaster. Even doing all the walls and ceilings is likely cheaper than moving considering the price you'd be asking for a house covered in artex. Then rip out all carpets, curtains and furniture from the old owners and replace with cheap but clean stuff. Can you do laminate flooring or tiling everywhere - Mediterranean style? Or even the good quality vinyl flooring (someone had a thread on it recently and honestly it's not lino! You can get really good wood effect flooring now.

Hopefully you can love the house once it's sorted but even if not it will definitely help sell it, and for a much better price too.

OP I really feel for you. I’m sure you’ll get the situation sorted with help from the Council. Like PP have said maybe moving out until situation is sorted may be best thing for you. As you’re allergic to cats, how about a patterdale terrier. They’re bread for hunting and tend to be kept on farms to catch rats. Here’s a link to wiki’s info

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patterdale_Terrier

All the best

I looked into this when I saw a rat in the garden and a bedlington terrier was my preferred option. They look like lambs on crufts but are very tough and were bred to kill rats down the mines.

My private pest guy can get into man hole covers, so maybe rather than wait for your husband to get home, give some a ring to see if they can look there?

How's it going?

Personally I would get the professionals in rather than the council, who will just do the bare minimum. The professional company (I would recommend rentokil) will be more thorough, will follow up, will find how they got in and offer strategies to prevent future problems. You may need rat boxes outdoors around the perimeter of your property and all access points to the house properly blocked (I would be tempted to fill the hollow under the house with cement haha). I promise this can be sorted but it will take time and money and personally I would move out in the interim.

DH got poison boxes - plastic containers where you fix bait blocks, means no cat or bird can access bait.
If previous owners did nithing then they’ve made themselves at home. But pest officer should fix it no probs. But there will be some in the park where there is litter, unless foxes are getting them. So you might need to keep bait handy to use eg when the weather turns cold.

You need a magnetic cat flap! My friend found rats/mice were getting in overnight through the cat flap...they bought a cat to get rid but couldn't for ages work out how they were still getting in...saw a video on YouTube of a woman who filmed her kitchen overnight with infared cameras (woman's kitchen was covered in mice from them coming in through cat flap) and bought a magnetic cat flap next day...solved problem pretty much overnight in addition to putting poison down (lace chocolate with poison they love chocolate), leaving no food out on the sides etc. Rip out the old carpet and get rid of curtains scrub everything with bleach they hate it...like others have suggested get some cheap off cuts of carpet from an independent seller (their more likely to give you a discount), full entry points with foam and then ready mixed cement on top to stop them chewing up the foam! Also check wardrobe/bedroom draws...when I was at uni they somehow chewed through from housemates room (she left dirty plates of food under her bed and would use everyone else's dishes ) into my room and set up home in my wardrobe draws I had no clue as it was bedding I never used (parents had bought me 6 sets of bedding to keep me warm even though I had 4 with me to take)...writing my dissertation one night I thought it was a massive spider as it moved so fast when it scuttled across my room...later that night you would have thought a murder had been committed!! I screamed so loud I woke up the house two doors down and that was at mice god knows what I would have been like if it was a rat!! Probably would have keeled over!! They had knawed through the plastic wrap on the bedding and set up home in my various assortments of bedding (especially picked by DF according to my DM) I wish you all the luck in the world OP, definitely look into legal action see if you've got legal cover on your home insurance and get the neighbour on to her infestation pronto!

Council did their second visit today. But I'm absolutely fuming with them! Here's the story...
So he did his first visit last week on the Monday, said due to the bank holiday he would come today. Time was getting on, I rang him today on his mobile, he forgot he had me booked in, he came into work in the morning but left on his own accord in the afternoon due to mouth abscess. So he told me he would get someone in the morning to phone me to re arrange. I took the day off work today and waited in all day, so I was not impressed.
So anyway I decided to phone the council to complain...spoke to a lovely woman who transferred me to pest control supervisor. He apologised for the delay and said he would send someone round in 15 mins, I said great thank you. As I told them the guy is off sick but he could have arranged for someone else to visit me, and what kind of service is this?
Anyway who turns up knocking on my door? 😳 Only the guy I complained about! I said what are you doing here and he said you complained about me so here I am. 😳. But not only that, they work to their own schedule so he worked in the morning, then didn't have any other appointments so took the afternoon off work, forgetting he had me booked in. He said I grassed him in for being sick as he didn't tell anyone. So I got him in trouble! I felt bloody awful and it was a uncomfortable experience having him round today, as they dragged him in from home, he could barley talk with a massive swelling on his mouth due to the abscess. I could only apologise and said I didn't complain about him directly, but I could just tell he hated me! Talk about a difficult encounter, I couldn't wait for him to leave!

Anyway good news, as the outside door to under the house got repaired there are no longer any signs they are getting in. Their was rat shit there last time, n this time poison wasn't touched and no rat shit. He said we need to just kill the ones in the house. They ate the poison in the loft, he said them rats will be dead now and they ate the poison under the floor boards, all of it. I haven't heard noises in the loft but hear them in the floor boards where the poison is. It seems it's a key point where the floor boards are, above my living room. As tonight I heard the scattering of the poison and tiny feet, as if they are having a feast on the poison.
So I'm sorry to anyone against me using poison, but the fuckers are eating it and I'm glad. Hopefully it will rid me of them once and for all. He put extra poison under the floorboards in that area.
So next visit is. Next Wednesday (let's hope he shows up 😳)
So it seems that once the ones that are all dead in the house that will be it 👏
As they aren't getting in now. Drains is highly unlikely so he isn't worried that I wasn't able to get the manhole drain up.
But seriously why send a guy round that I complained about ? Surely they knew it would cause tension and a uncomfortable atmosphere?
I paid £99 for a service, and my problem is not to just be forgotten about. But to send someone round with a mouth abscess swelling not being able to talk, especially when I complained about him not coming is bad service. It was horrible, as he secretly hated me n I knew it.
But I didn't know he didn't tell work he was sick and took the afternoon off? And it's not my fault he forgot about me. But I just feel feckin awful now. 😩

It wasn't your fault OP - he is trying to make you feel guilty because he messed up.

Whoever is recommending rentokil...I just had a quote from rentokil after seeing a mouse in my dining room. 3 visits were included. 618 quid!! I nearly laughed aloud down the phone. It's a private house, not a business premises. Price from the council for 3 visits, 69 quid. Even if the council is less thorough, I can have 27 visits for the price of 3 from rentokil. Incredible!

Council guy said they do the same job as rentokil...but of course they would say that. To be honest I've not gained much from the council, apart from laying down poison and being told where the key areas are of where they are feeding and getting in at. But I suppose we would have struggled to work out that info. So maybe they have been some use.

The councils tend to have stronger stuff than Rentokil...that's pretty much what they did when they came out to my uni house...3 visits and then said shouldn't be a problem now but give us a call again if needs be (wasn't any problems after).

Oldbirdy it obviously just wasn't worth their while taking the job so they over quoted. Happens a lot. We have had that with various workmen over the years.