Wildlife // Living in Harmony With Wildlife
Living in Harmony With Rats
About Rats
Many people find that domesticated rats, descended from wild Norway rats, make wonderful, intelligent, sociable companions. For example, one woman wrote PETA that her three domestic rats know their own names and come when called. They are fastidious and never bite. Marty loves to ride on her shoulder and nuzzle her ear, Muffin likes to sleep in the crook of her arm, and Dusty loves to wrestle with her hand. However, many people fear rats and don't want them in their buildings.
Rats, like mice, are found throughout North American. They are nocturnal, and they can enter a building through quarter-size holes.
Solving Conflicts Compassionately
Rat-proofing a building is the only sure way to deter rats. Killing them will only cause others to move into the newly available spaces. After rat-proofing your building, give the remaining animals a chance at life by live-trapping and releasing them.
To rat-proof a building, put all food and garbage in sturdy, well-sealed containers that rats can't gnaw through. (You may want to move some foods from the cupboards to the refrigerator.) Feed companion animals indoors, and pick up the dishes when they have finished eating. Feed wild birds only in emergencies like blizzards, when they can't forage for themselves. Stack wood in tight piles away from the house. Bushes and plants should be weed-free and at least 18 inches away from the house so that there will be a clearing between them and the building. Seal holes larger than 1/4 inch in diameter, cracks in the walls and floors, and spaces around doors, windows, and plumbing.
After rat-proofing the building, live-trap and remove any rats still inside. Be sure to check the traps several times a day! The little animals will be hungry, thirsty, and frightened, and they may die if left in the trap too long. Release them at least 100 feet from the building, preferably in a wooded area or meadow. In urban areas, rats can be euthanized by barbiturate injection by a veterinarian or a qualified animal-shelter technician.
Many hardware stores carry live traps. But you also can make your own effective, humane rat trap with a garbage can. Here's how:
Place dry oatmeal and a dab of peanut butter in a plastic 50-gallon drum. Set the drum in an area frequented by rats. Lean a flat piece of wood against the rim of the drum, or construct a ladder of books or bricks that the rats must climb in order to get to the rim. The rats will jump in for the food but will be unable to climb back up the steep, slippery surface.
Remember, check the trap often! When a rat has been caught, put on heavy gloves, take the garbage can outside, and release him or her according to the instructions above. Then clean the garbage can and/or live trap and the areas that the rats have been frequenting with a mild bleach solution (1:30).
If the rats are in a place that cannot be "rodent-proofed," such as a car engine, you can prepare a deterrent. Rats and other small animals cannot tolerate the scent or taste of pepper. Make a mixture of salad oil, horseradish, garlic, and plenty of cayenne pepper. Let this mixture sit for four days, strain it into a spray bottle, and spray it under the car's hood. This is completely safe for engine interiors, and it won't harm curious animals. Mothballs and peppermint oil-soaked cotton balls are also great rodent repellents and can be tucked into an engine to prevent rodents from chewing on electrical wires.
If your local hardware store carries poisons and sticky glue traps, which cause rodents and other animals and birds intense suffering and agonizing deaths, urge the manager to carry humane live traps instead.
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