What an earth is stealing our food and making loud noises?

[Tiina78]

Okay, here’s the dilemma: we have recently rented an 150 year old house. It has been fully refurbished to a very high standard very recently. But I’m afraid we have a pest problem. Most nights around 4am we start hearing very loud scratching or chewing noises. I mean really loud. Like something is chewing on wood. The noise usually comes from behind the walls or under the floorboards or from the attic (we have no access the the attic space).
Lately we’ve notice that food have started to disappear from the kitchen. Toast and some biscuits. Last night at least 6 pieces of toast disappeared from the plastic bag. There were some chewing marks in the plastic but no crumbs left behind. What sort of animal would leave no trace after stealing that much bread? No crumbs, no urine, no poo!
I have searched the kitchen for entry holes or droppings without success. We had mice in our previous apartment and they always left poo/pee marks. Plus were not as loud.
Is it rats? Could it be a squirrel? Or a damn ghost? How do I find out?

[MikeUniformMike]

I think they're bread rolls not bead rolls.

I came on to suggested teenagers but it's probably rats.
Make sure you leave no food out. put everything in sealed containers. Even toast.

[MikeUniformMike]

suggest not suggested.

[Lovelydovey]

We call that “plastic bread” as opposed to “real bread”. An old man in the supermarket once commented on the accuracy of the phrase when I asked one of the DC to pick up a loaf of plastic bread.

Seriously it sounds like rats. My parents had them one very wet winter when all the rats tunnels flooded. Wire wool in every possible hole and call out a pest controller. I won’t get over seeing tooth marks in Tupperware containers they had tried to get into....

[MikeUniformMike]

They can break into packaging. Put everything edible in sealed containers, even fruit.

[ivebeenanddoneit]

It's rats. Entirely possible for them to leave no urine or feaces. They are not incontinent like mice. They prefer their own latrines. And they can eat/move a lot of stuff without leaving crumbs. Wire wool is good in holes, or concrete mixed with glass. Are they coming from outside drains - could get a metal rat flap put in manhole to stop them coming in from the main sewers in the road. Good luck

[Wincarnis]

Rats! I had one in my house, I caught it in a humane trap baited with peanut butter.

On the bread list....oven bottoms.

[Theresahairbrushinthefridge]

My first thought was - my husband!

Just me then.....

[sluj]

If you are in parts of Hertfordshire there is a huge destructive population of glis glis, brought over by Lord Rothschild. Very destructive but look cute

[smurfy2015]

Couldnt bear to read full thread

but reminded me of my mums house on a visit home the toaster that had been a constant thru my childhood was sitting outside in a small trailer for next trip to the local dump,

i was chatting to her sitting on the garden wall outside, she said walk into house and smell where it usually sits, i opened back door and ran back out and threw up, the toaster was over 15 years old and still worked but

that morning she put her bread into it to toast not knowing that a little mouse had been investigating the inside and was trapped between the elements - the smell of toasted mouse was not nice, She unplugged toaster, took it outside and poured a saucepan of water over it,

i got someone in to check out rest of house as she wouldn't let me do it and took her to stay with me for a few days

Mice are partial to chocolate and nutella not cheese if that helps

[lulusayshello]

If you live anywhere near the Chilterns it might be a glis glis - my cousin had them in his house for ages running around under floorboards, eating food & they even chewed an electric wire at one point.

[eloisesparkle]

Rats suffer from incontinence so pee as they move about apparently.
This 'fact' (?) stuck with me after being told on a tour of a natural history museum.
They can also jump very high.