Guys - thanks for all the advice - I have to say that I don't have the stomach for killing things ( especially not with a gun- what?? ) so I think pest control is the way to go. I haven't seen him since so I'm hoping that the overgrown garden next door will lure him back when he finds no sustenance in my garden!
I agree that things need to be taken in perspective and I'm trying to be sensible - its a garden after all and I do want wildlife to be welcome - but just not rats, especially as it means I can't feed the birds like I used to!!! Am I a bad person?
That is one of the (many) reasons I became a vegetarian. I reckoned that if I couldn't kill the lamb, pig or cow myself it was unreasonable of me to expect someone else to do it for me just so that I could enjoy eating the thing.
I understand that rats are part of the everyday diet in several parts of the world. Ratburger, anyone?
Posts
I don't think I'd particularly like wild ones, Welshonion, but I have a friend with pet ones and they are surprisingly cute.
Guys - thanks for all the advice - I have to say that I don't have the stomach for killing things ( especially not with a gun- what?? ) so I think pest control is the way to go. I haven't seen him since so I'm hoping that the overgrown garden next door will lure him back when he finds no sustenance in my garden!
I agree that things need to be taken in perspective and I'm trying to be sensible - its a garden after all and I do want wildlife to be welcome - but just not rats, especially as it means I can't feed the birds like I used to!!! Am I a bad person?
My suggestion of shooting was only to make the point that trapping is fine so long as you know what you are going to do next.
I appreciate that use of a gun - quite normal in a rural setting - is not suitable for other places.
But when you say you have no stomach for killing things, what exactly do you think pest control are going to do?
That is one of the (many) reasons I became a vegetarian. I reckoned that if I couldn't kill the lamb, pig or cow myself it was unreasonable of me to expect someone else to do it for me just so that I could enjoy eating the thing.
I understand that rats are part of the everyday diet in several parts of the world. Ratburger, anyone?