What is eating my strawberries?

[blueskythinker]

Something is taking huge bites out of the side of the ripe ones - I don't think it's birds, over half of each strawberry has been scoffed, and you can see teeth marks.

I'm hoping against hope that it is not rats (scream)(shudder)

What can I do to stop this? They are planted in pots placed on the ground.

Slugs? I've actually found them inside half-eaten strawberries before now.

Neighbours

I cannot tell a lie - it's me

Slugs and snails. Put some beer in a flattish dish nearby and they will go for the beer instead everytime - and deep enough beer that they will fall in and drown. We have assorted beer traps in the garden now - DS3 counts the dead slugs each morning .

Slugs and snails yes.
Cover strawbs and spray pots with WD40 and then put copper tape (gardening shop) around it. this method has kept them well away from my hostas thsi year.
Good luck, spent about half an hour pulling them off my herbs with large tweezers earlier. YEUCH..

It could be mice, especially as you are seeing teethmarks. Slugs etc leave a smoother hole.

Or voles are common, tho' field voles apparently only eat grass. Bank voles will eat fruit.

Could be woodlice, I have the same problem!
Can't really blame them, if I found a strawberry 10 times my size, I'd be munching on it too !
I have been given the advice that there is not much to do this time round, but next year to plant them in hanging baskets or on a strawberry 'table'.
If you put planks of wood held up with bricks around the strawberries, the woodlice will hide in there and you can hoover them up with a dust buster, this seems a bit too much like hard work to me, but maybe you're not a lazy gardener like me .
Hope this helps x