How to Get Rid of Rats?

[MrJimi]

I have a 24' X 24' 2 story garage and I have a neighbor that does not know what a garbage can lid is and his yard at night is a rats nest and they have moved in my garage. I have an alarm with a motion detector and it went off 3 times last night from them running around in there. My eaves are open for ventilation as we live in Florida and it gets warm and thats how they get in, if and when I get them out I will close them off.
I was thinking of some sort of smoke creating device or something like that, I am not wanting to have a bunch of dead rats in the building rotting away and stinking. I just want to get them to leave. We must have some scientist out there that have the menu that I'm looking for.
Thanks
Jim

 

[1bush2hog]

Give your neighbor a cat.

Or, just buy the big rat traps and throw away rat, trap, and all when you catch them.

I would think the small live traps would work good too. Then you could regift

We used to shoot wharf rats with a .22 when I was young - A friend's family raised hogs and also processed them on site. Talk about some BIG rats - even the cats were afraid of them.

 

[MrJimi]

These things are the size of Florida squirrels and the rats can get in but the cats cant, we do have some wild cats in the neighborhood but they can't get in the garage, I am not fond of cat Pee. I have been searching a product called D-con, its looking good and I live on a small lot 50' X 100'. I am thinking about going to local fire dept and ask them what I can do as far as smoke goes. Last year I ran a car in the garage for almost 3 hours? that just wasted gas? LOL
Jim

 

[billbill1]

Mr. Jimi, if you have a Tractor Supply near you, tell sell block bait that is supposed to kill the rats without odor. You could also set up some peanut butter (over something they couldn't get out of) on a board slat that would pivot and drop them into liquid-drown them and throw them away. A 5 gallon bucket should work with 6" of liquid in it. I feel for you, I hate mice and rats. I'd rather have snakes anyday.

 

[dmccarty]

Mr. Jimi,

We have(had?) a mouse problem that I'm hoping is solved with the one that broke its neck last night.

I have had killed four in the house. One got itself into the toilet and was flushed, two captured on sticky traps then frozen, , while last night was the old fashioned spring traps.

I looked at poisons and I still might do it to control the population around the house. I found some poison in a farm supply catalog that was approved for use in food production facilities AND it was not poisonous to any animals that ate the dead mouse/rat.

I would try traps first and then poison if required. You could block the rat's entrances and then set out the traps.

I'm hoping that I know how the wee mice got in the house and the problem is solved.....

Later,
Dan

 

[MrJimi]

Right now, I'm trying the smoldering rag trick and wet leaves, its in a metal pan like a hubcap and sitting on a concrete block and its small, lots of weird smoke LOL
I hope they leave
If any of you have a better idea for making allot of smoke, I am listening
Jim

 

[1bush2hog]

Jim,

Doesn't the smell of the smoke permeate the garage interior?

Maybe it smells better than dead rats?

Rats are low to the ground so smoke will also have to be low. Maybe a gas that is heavier than air is what you are looking for - like the one you can get by mixing two household chemicals

I know people who also put out some cornmeal and drano mixed together if you want to poison them

 

[MrJimi]

My last recipe is, used motor oil soaked rags, wet leaves,newspapers and some mothballs, It makes a light dark smoke and stinks to humans. I will have my wife bring some D-Con home this afternoon, I don't mind killing them, just not in my garage, YUK
I'm still looking for that secret smoking formula. How come when we burn leaves it makes a ridiculous amount of smoke and when we want smoke? it don't work?? I even threw in a small plastic fork for flavor.
Jim

 

[MrJimi]

Well, here is an update. I asked my loving wife to bring home a package of D-con and a security camera? The D-con is set and the $99.95 security camera is a joke?
next security camera is coming from Samsclub, at $ 39.95 in total darkness and in color with sound.
I hate rats/squirrels, what ever sets off my motion detector
I will find out and remove them.
Jim

 

[roxynoodle]

Use the rat bait from TSC. It works good for me. I have a neighbor who has a couple hundred sheep and he leaves his grain just laying out. Well, he got a huge rat infestation and as the population grew it had to migrate. Next thing we knew, all of us had rats. My cats killed some, more drowned in water buckets, but the bait bars took care of the rest quick. I just put more out because I found a rat turd on the dashboard of my tractor yesterday.