I should explain that I know there are rats all around us ... we live on the edge of a city surrounded by marshes, rivers and broads ... when I actually see them in my garden it's then that I know there are too many and it's time to take action.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Any advice on how to feed the birds without attracting the rats? I'm quite rural so I doubt I'll ever be rid of them, but I'd rather not have them living in my garden if they're going to make people ill.
We use the 'No mess' birdseed and sunflower hearts ... it's a bit more expensive but the birds tend not to discard any of it so there's less on the ground to attract vermin.
If we put out ground food for blackbirds etc we put it in mesh dishes and get them in at night.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I hang a saucer in a hanging basket under my feeders so that the ground isn't covered with bits. The birds then eat the bits in the saucer. It does need to have a few drainage holes, or everything will rot. Birds like goldfinches still throw bits around, even with 'no mess' bird food. Keep a close eye on what's going on in and around the feeders.
Second floor is not much defence. Cavity walls and pipe entrances/exits are all they need. I ignored one that was in the bedroom, until I found it chewing on a coconut in the kitchen at 3 a.m. He used to jolly about the house, through a void under the boiler. And the darn 'rat' used to steal my socks.
At the risk of being controversial, the A24 trap that has recently been introduced actually looks like the best solution to many rat problems. Absolutely essential to make sure it is set up to avoid targeting hedgehogs but if you're going to use traps and don't have access to a gun then it sure beats poison.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
I would certainly prefer to use an efficient trap rather than poison, particularly in more rural areas where rats who've ingested poison are more likely to be picked up by owls, kestrels etc.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I'd rather not harm them if that's at all possible, just evict them, I'm sure they'll be very happy on the marshes the other side of the river. I've found a few traps that will hold several of them at a time, but I'm somewhat concerned that they'll trap other things like rabbits and hedgehogs too? Are there any anyone knows of that won't?
Just restrict the access to the trap using bricks or a pipe that's smaller than a hedgehog can squeeze through. I had to extract a hedgehog from a humane rat trap once and it's not an easy task as their spines don't let them reverse out of the cage. The traps also catch birds so don't use bait that birds are attracted to like peanut butter.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
Yes, I’m afraid my ‘live and let live’ attitude to wildlife stops at rats. I have 6 bird feeders and get them every year. I bought some super strong German rat poison (not warfarin which is hopeless) and it does the trick. My whole garden is a rat’s haven with a pond, log pile, feeders and hedgehog houses, so I have to remain alert.
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Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
If we put out ground food for blackbirds etc we put it in mesh dishes and get them in at night.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.