Rat with broken leg in my garden

[HgnncaNameMy]

There's a grassy area behind my house full of rats and mice. I moved here in February and the neighbours said theres a massive rat problem

I have 4 cats so don't have many issues

Theres currently a rat hiding under the kids garden toy and its leg is definetly broken, 3 of its legs seem fine but it's dragging one behind it

Who can i ring about this? Will someone come out and take it?

I know people class them as vermin but it's still a living creature that must be in absolute agony right now

Anyone near you have a little terrier? They'll kill it quick

It's not something I'd be able to do again if I'm honest Queef, it stayed with me for days.

Yes, small terriers instinctively for the job very fast, which is kindest for the poor rat.

Leave nature to sort this one out. If your cats don't catch it then the local crows or raptors will pick it out easily.
We have rats in the farm sheds here and the crows and buzzards spend most of the day sunning themselves on the telegraph line waiting and watching for the rats to break cover for easy pickings.

It’s a rat, just bash it over the head with something heavy, kindest thing.

I don't think you should denigrate someone for not wanting to kill another living creature even if it is for the laudable goal of putting it out of its misery. I have been in that situation and didn't have the stomach for it. I imagine that the posters who are advocating this may not ever have done this themselves

Never heard of anyone wanting to take a RAT to get medical assistance!!!

Have to admit, I agree with this. It shouldn't be left in pain, but it is also vermin, possibly your cats have inflicted the injury and it might be more injured than the broken leg that is visible.

If you cant bring yourself to finish the job quickly, is there a neighbour who can do it for you? (not being sexist, but men do tend to be better/less squeamish at this stuff!).

I doubt any vet or rescue is going to be interest in this during lock down, all they would do is put it out it's misery anyway, and it will just continue to suffer while you procrastinate.

Oh OP that poor little rat! I'm exactly the same and would want to help it. No advice, just sending support

I would get a pest controller in to be honest.

My God the rats would have been gone as soon as i knew, dirty things.
how can you have so much vermin around you, yuk.

Put it out of its misery with a heavy brick. Seriously. The thing will be in pain and faffing around isn't doing it any favours.

Agree with pest controllers too, if there's one, you can bet there will be more.

Anyone near you have a little terrier? They'll kill it quick

Not always - mine breaks the back then carefully and delicately picks them up by one toe and gaily tosses them in the air until all the frilly bits appear, yet still very alive

Another one who says put it out of it's misery with a spade to the head. I did it once with a dying bird.
MUCH better than to let it die slowly, or carting it off somewhere else to be killed. but please make sure it is properly dead.

Mine give a couple of violent shakes and it dead. Then they aren't interested in anymore.

Having once been bitten on the face for not killing it quick enough, they learned their lesson 😂

I'd probably just leave it. I couldnt just clobber it with a spade. Or get a neighbour to deal with it. Not sure a vet would want to save it but happy to be corrected.

A rat? Really? Get your cats to take care of it before we have another plague ... oh never mind too late. Just leave it be, natural selection and all that.

If it survives the next day or so it will probably be ok. It won't die of a broken leg. It might heal at an odd angle but if it can still run around it will be fine.
Leave it alone.
My DH had a gerbil that broke a leg, we decided not to take it to the vet. It looked a bit miserable for a day or so but carried on hopping about and eating. The leg healed and it lived a long and happy life. With a wonky foot.

My lurcher caught a rat in our back garden before. I opened the back door and could hear the rat screaming. Traumatised.

I've done this. Only it wasn't a rat, it was a rabbit that had been run over right in front of me & had its back broken, & I was a vegetarian teenager. Just do it.

The funny thing is you are actually causing harm to the thing by faffing around trying to work out what you should do. Prolonging its suffering - that's not kind at all.

Maybe you could call a Vet, and ask them what you should do, as in ways to kill the rat. It is horrible to say that, as in kill an animal. But nobody really likes rats, and would usually get a vermin control person in to deal with this.

One of my cats brought a rat in the house at one time, I found it dead on the kitchen floor, and it took me all my time to scoop it up with a small spade, and dispose of it.

wringing a living creatures neck

For heaven's sake - don't even try to wring a rat's neck! It will bite you and the last thing you want is any of the nasty diseases a rat carries.

1. are you sure it's a rat? It looks small to me. If it is a mouse, or even a very young, non-bitey rat) you would be best to take it by the tail and swing it HARD against the edge of a low wall or even table. This will break its neck instantly.

Otherwise, if you can't find a rescue place (I'm not sure if they'd even take a rat, because it is illegal to release them into the wild, so they'd have to keep it forever if it recovered), then do as others have suggested and decapitate it with a shovel. Again, steel yourself and do it very quickly and as HARD as you can - no tentative "patting" it with the edge.

I've done this myself. It's horrible, but it has to be done.

And then wash down all of the toys in the garden with disinfectant, because if there is any rat urine on them you, or your children, or your dog/cat could contract Weil's disease, and that is pretty horrible.

Are you likely to want to get pest control in for the rats at some point? If so, I don't see much point in making a special case out of this one. The stress of being handled by a human while injured may be enough to carry it off anyway. And don't try to hit it with something if you are feeling squeamish, you're likely to miss or not have good enough aim/strength to do it right. Just herd it back in the direction of where they are usually based and let nature take its course.

Call the Council. We had a rat problem due to demolitions down the road; the Council sent the rat catcher.