rats in the compost heap

[ellir0305 9]

where is the best place to put the traps bearing in mid my compost heap is 12x 8' plus:D there aer holes in the heap and they are living off scraps. whats the best bait to lure them ojut and the best places and methods to trap i have 3 fenn mk4's, 1 bg 116 and a live catch?

[kingkeeper21 2]

what i would do pal is put you fen traps round the edge if your heap with tunnels over them but try and sink the traps down so as you look through the tunnel theres nothing bloking run through. and if your going to bait the live trap id use chocolate or somthing sweet like that. hope all goes well let me no how you get on.

[trapperman 474]

if you know someone with a terrier smoke em out

[RaiderBoy 19]

if the holes are big enough get a ferret in there

[ellir0305 9]

if the holes are big enough get a ferret in there

 

wont the rats bite my ferrets i have put some fenns out tonight and if not successsful i will move them they are on the inside and outside edges. kingkeeper21 i will try and remember to let you know a bit a rat killing always a testing but fun challenge

[RaiderBoy 19]

if the holes are big enough get a ferret in there

 

wont the rats bite my ferrets i have put some fenns out tonight and if not successsful i will move them they are on the inside and outside edges. kingkeeper21 i will try and remember to let you know a bit a rat killing always a testing but fun challenge

if its a good fast ferret the ferret will have the rat by the neck before the rat knows it

[Guest ROUGH COATED]

if the holes are big enough get a ferret in there

 

wont the rats bite my ferrets i have put some fenns out tonight and if not successsful i will move them they are on the inside and outside edges. kingkeeper21 i will try and remember to let you know a bit a rat killing always a testing but fun challenge

 

Ferrets are they way forward

[Neal 1,870]

I had a similar problem ie a rat in my compost heap until today when one of my kelpies dug a two foot hole in the middle of the heap and another nailed it as it bolted.

[kingkeeper21 2]

how did you get on pal have you got the little feckers??????????

[Quixote 9]

if the holes are big enough get a ferret in there

 

wont the rats bite my ferrets

 

Quite possibly! But the main issue is that you'll be exposing your ferts to the rats environment. They're not the nicest of critters to be dealing with in the best of circumstances. Don't use your ferrets against rats.................quite apart from the risk of physical injury, rats carry a host of nasties such as leptospirosis, salmonella, weils disease, etc, & you certainly don't want to be messing about with them! If you care about your ferts, and yourself, don't use them!

 

If you want rid of the rats, you first have to address the issue of harbourage.............deny them food, warmth & shelter, & you'll have gone a long way to sorting the problem without even setting a trap!

 

The first thing I'd do personally would be to identify whether the rats are actually living in the heap, or visiting it from elsewhere. If they're visiting you'll be able to identify the runs (areas of flattened grass, marks in bare soil, gaps in nearby fences, etc etc) You need to have a good look round first before you thin about where to best site any traps..................and remember, a trap is only as effective as the guy who sets it in the first place?

 

You haven't said whether the compost heap is within an enclosure or bin? If the rats are living inside the heap, they have little incentive to leave if they have what they need already, so setting traps outwith their regular environment won't have a huge impact. If that's the case, then the best thing to do is to disrupt their environment by pulling the heap apart & rebuilding it, dealing with the access issue at the same time.................otherwise, you'll be chasing your own tail.

 

There's limited advice I can give you without knowing exactly what you're faced with, but the main thing is to address the harbourage!

Edited April 18, 2009 by Quixote

[PeakOil 352]

Seen a ferret lose an eye and get badly bitten by a doe rat that had young in the nest. Wasn't too happy about using ferrets on rats after that.

[Coneytrappr 30]

I agree with Quixote, lots of sense in his post.

The less contact with rats, the better. And I like my ferrets too much to want to risk them on rats when a trap will do the same job!

[postiepaul 0]

Dont put edible scraps in the compost because it is bound to attract rats sooner or later. I had the same problem in my last home, and Im afraid its an ongoing problem, if you catch some this week, next week there will be fresh ones arriving. grass cuttings, weeds, teabags etc is fine but nothing edible.

[ellir0305 9]

how did you get on pal have you got the little feckers??????????

 

got one but lifted the traps cos me ferret escaped, caught him now so can reset

[ellir0305 9]

Dont put edible scraps in the compost because it is bound to attract rats sooner or later. I had the same problem in my last home, and Im afraid its an ongoing problem, if you catch some this week, next week there will be fresh ones arriving. grass cuttings, weeds, teabags etc is fine but nothing edible.

 

where do you propose i compost my edible food waste it needs to be done as we have over 10 tons of mashed apple every year from cider making that gets composted rats just need controlling