Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Who will rid us of this tut turbulent rat?!

12 replies

GoAwayRatty · 09/04/2026 23:34

Hi all,

I’m dealing with a really frustrating pest issue and would love to hear from anyone who’s been through something similar—what you did, whether it worked, and if you’d do anything differently in hindsight.

For the past six months (possibly longer), we’ve had a brown rat visiting our back garden. We live on the edge of a large park, with a railway line behind a high wall, so I appreciate it’s probably a bit of a hotspot for this kind of thing.

For context: we own a ground-floor Victorian maisonette in South West London. There are three of us—me, my partner, and our 2.5-year-old. No pets. We have two outdoor spaces: a south-facing back garden (where the rat has been seen) and a small internal courtyard patio, which is sheltered and therefore unaffected.

A couple of nights ago, we heard loud scratching/scuffling behind the kitchen kickboards. It sounded too big to be a mouse, which really worried us. We checked but couldn’t find anything conclusive.

I called Rentokil for a survey. They couldn’t find evidence that a rat has actually got inside or identify an entry point, but they did find droppings under the shed—so it’s definitely hanging around outside.

Their recommendation is a two-stage plan:
Clear out the droppings and set traps (with a follow-up visit in 7–10 days)
Full disinfection of the garden (and possibly some indoor areas)

There’s also a third stage if needed later, to investigate entry points more thoroughly.
The issue is the cost—just over £1,000 for stages 1 and 2.

I’m inclined to just pay it and have professionals deal with it properly, especially given the hygiene aspect and having a toddler. My partner, however, thinks we can handle it ourselves—he’s very practical and confident about setting traps, but realistically I don’t think he’ll deal with clearing up the droppings, and I’m not keen on us doing that ourselves. I'd have to burn the clothes worn to do the job, the broom, shower in bleach etc. What a rigmarole.

I also tried contacting the council but couldn’t get through their stupid switchboard sent me round on a loop, and the online system wouldn’t let me book anything (message told me it their service wasn't available at our type of property) WTF?! Would that be because we’re homeowners? Not sure if anyone knows the current rules on that.

So I'm thinking I'll just pay it myself, as partner isn't supportive a d thinks it's a waste of money. I'm not in amazing final shape myself as I work three days a week and £1,100 is a big wad of cash in the current economy.

Any ideas from anyone who has been through similar and came through the other side rat free?

Oh to make matters worse my parents had mice not that long ago and got the council in to sort it out and lay the traps. Wasn't too much month but my mum wished in hindsight she' done the job herself, so she's more supportive if my partner's position. I'm annoyed.

YANBU - just pay Rentokil to do the job and have it done with

YABU - just let your partner crack on with it, it's just putting down traps

Thank you!

OP posts:
PinkNailPolish2026 · 09/04/2026 23:44

We live on a farm and believe me when I say this, you don’t just have one rat… If you’re not confident that your DH can get get rid of them then get a professional in. Why have you waited six months to tackle the problem?

I'd have to burn the clothes worn to do the job, the broom, shower in bleach etc. What a rigmarole. Why would anyone need to shower in bleach and burn clothing and brooms to deal with a rat infestation?

ChangePrivacyQuestion · 09/04/2026 23:50

Get rentokill guys to sort it out, I wouldn’t risk it with a toddler.

Also, I second PinkNailPolish2026's consternation... burning stuff and showering in bleach - I hope that was a humour attempt???

EmmaStone · 09/04/2026 23:51

We’ve got a rat(s) that come into the house, we’ve put down poison, traps, a sonar thing to deter them, had a professional team out 4 (yes 4) times, water company to look at drains, a private company to look at drains, we’ve stuck chicken wire in every drainage hole we can find. We still have a rat(s). They’re really, really clever.

parthyphibday · 09/04/2026 23:53

It's not one rat OP...

Original poster
GoAwayRatty · 09/04/2026 23:53

PinkNailPolish2026 · 09/04/2026 23:44

We live on a farm and believe me when I say this, you don’t just have one rat… If you’re not confident that your DH can get get rid of them then get a professional in. Why have you waited six months to tackle the problem?

I'd have to burn the clothes worn to do the job, the broom, shower in bleach etc. What a rigmarole. Why would anyone need to shower in bleach and burn clothing and brooms to deal with a rat infestation?

why have you taken six months to tackle the problem?

Rats are part and parcel of urban living. They're everywhere in London. They were everywhere when I lived in central Berlin.

Why would anyone need to shower in bleach and burn clothing and brooms to deal with a rat infestation?

I was being facetious.

OP posts:
Original poster
GoAwayRatty · 09/04/2026 23:55

ChangePrivacyQuestion · 09/04/2026 23:50

Get rentokill guys to sort it out, I wouldn’t risk it with a toddler.

Also, I second PinkNailPolish2026's consternation... burning stuff and showering in bleach - I hope that was a humour attempt???

Also, I second PinkNailPolish2026's consternation... burning stuff and showering in bleach - I hope that was a humour attempt???

Yes.

And they say women can't be funny...

OP posts:
DoctorMartin · 10/04/2026 00:21

We have pest control included as part of our home insurance emergency cover. Try that? I’d strongly advise getting a professional- especially as they are now getting in the house.

Tcateh · 10/04/2026 00:26

Clear any overgrown garden, don't put bird feed out.
Double check any air bricks at ground level.
Check under sheds.
Put up cameras to see if you can spot where they're coming from.
Ask neighbours to do the above re overgrown lawns or bushes and food/debris.

Zippidydoodah · 10/04/2026 00:27

When I read your title, I thought you might have been referring to Mr Trump.

InterestedDad37 · 10/04/2026 00:33

My council ratman (I'd heard them, then saw one in the kitchen) made 5 visits, and got rid
Grand total cost £65.
🐀

MySpiritAnimalIsAPanda · 10/04/2026 00:55

GoAwayRatty · 09/04/2026 23:34

Hi all,

I’m dealing with a really frustrating pest issue and would love to hear from anyone who’s been through something similar—what you did, whether it worked, and if you’d do anything differently in hindsight.

For the past six months (possibly longer), we’ve had a brown rat visiting our back garden. We live on the edge of a large park, with a railway line behind a high wall, so I appreciate it’s probably a bit of a hotspot for this kind of thing.

For context: we own a ground-floor Victorian maisonette in South West London. There are three of us—me, my partner, and our 2.5-year-old. No pets. We have two outdoor spaces: a south-facing back garden (where the rat has been seen) and a small internal courtyard patio, which is sheltered and therefore unaffected.

A couple of nights ago, we heard loud scratching/scuffling behind the kitchen kickboards. It sounded too big to be a mouse, which really worried us. We checked but couldn’t find anything conclusive.

I called Rentokil for a survey. They couldn’t find evidence that a rat has actually got inside or identify an entry point, but they did find droppings under the shed—so it’s definitely hanging around outside.

Their recommendation is a two-stage plan:
Clear out the droppings and set traps (with a follow-up visit in 7–10 days)
Full disinfection of the garden (and possibly some indoor areas)

There’s also a third stage if needed later, to investigate entry points more thoroughly.
The issue is the cost—just over £1,000 for stages 1 and 2.

I’m inclined to just pay it and have professionals deal with it properly, especially given the hygiene aspect and having a toddler. My partner, however, thinks we can handle it ourselves—he’s very practical and confident about setting traps, but realistically I don’t think he’ll deal with clearing up the droppings, and I’m not keen on us doing that ourselves. I'd have to burn the clothes worn to do the job, the broom, shower in bleach etc. What a rigmarole.

I also tried contacting the council but couldn’t get through their stupid switchboard sent me round on a loop, and the online system wouldn’t let me book anything (message told me it their service wasn't available at our type of property) WTF?! Would that be because we’re homeowners? Not sure if anyone knows the current rules on that.

So I'm thinking I'll just pay it myself, as partner isn't supportive a d thinks it's a waste of money. I'm not in amazing final shape myself as I work three days a week and £1,100 is a big wad of cash in the current economy.

Any ideas from anyone who has been through similar and came through the other side rat free?

Oh to make matters worse my parents had mice not that long ago and got the council in to sort it out and lay the traps. Wasn't too much month but my mum wished in hindsight she' done the job herself, so she's more supportive if my partner's position. I'm annoyed.

YANBU - just pay Rentokil to do the job and have it done with

YABU - just let your partner crack on with it, it's just putting down traps

Thank you!

we had what we thought was a mild rat infestation in our previous property (a bungalow alongside a field boundary). The council came out and laid traps, we could hear the rats scuttling about in the night, chewing on pipes/wires etc. The noises stopped for a day or two then came back again so we called a pest exterminator out. The lad who came out was incredibly thorough - he found the entry route which was a tiny crack in a pipe and laid dozens of packets of bait. My husband had to go away for work before the bait was laid but I was assured everything would be sorted before he came back. Within a few hours of the bait going down all I could hear was scrabbling and chewing in the loft with some shrieking which all settled within about 5 hours. A couple of days later we had the most
horrific smell in our house and maggots dropping through the ceiling where the pipework was in the second toilet. We fed the maggots to our chickens and within 24 hours we were clear of rats apart from one that got stuck in the loft. It took another day for the smell to go, we blocked every single tiny hole around pipes/drains etc and checked the loft
where there was a tiny bit of rat torso left behind. Look out for pest exterminators who are linked to farms/shoots etc as they have way more experience and work out a lot cheaper in the end. I wouldn’t wish a rat infestation on my worst enemy - I was diagnosed with PTSD after our first lot of pests and am still terrified of having another infestation now

DrFoxtrot · 10/04/2026 01:04

What does ‘tut turbulent’ mean? I’ve never come across that expression before. I also though you might mean Trump 😆

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread