We have to wave the owl off of her when we let her out at dusk to go to the bathroom. The coyotes also love to eat cats and small dogs and are not very afraid of humans.
Contact some of the local pest control companies. They may come out to investigate either without any charge or for a comparatively small charge. Worth bearing in mind that the professionals will have access to substances that the general public don't, which could be far more effective than a DIY option.
On two occasions many years ago I've seen rat holes. On one of them there were multiple entrances below an insect log pile. My approach was to make a little fire somewhere safe, until I got a sufficient amount of hot coals and ashes. I then spread them around/in front of those holes and put terracotta flower pots over them. They stayed hot for a good few hours. The reasoning is that it will suck oxygen out of and send monoxide into the burrow. Even if only a single rat succumbs I think it will be a good deterrent and it should be a relatively humane way of going about it. It seemed to work, as the entrances were not remade whereas they previously used to be when disturbed.
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