Should I get rid of Brown Rats in Garden? How?

Posted by Revolutionary-Ad2355@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 39 comments

Does anyone have any experience with Brown Rats in their garden and can share how they got rid of them? I recently just moved to the Scottish countryside and after 10 days here I noticed one of these little shits poking its head through my fence eyeing up my bird feeder. I started feeding the wild birds when I moved in by using feeders hanging off of branches and I’m guessing that’s why they’re attracted to here. It was fairly close to my Ferret hutch which surprised me as I thought they’d avoid ferrets completely. I’ve read once you spot them you have to take action or else they’ll become a problem eventually so seems like they’ve got to go. Is it as simple as just stopping feeding the wildbirds and removing feeders? I obviously don’t have any garbage or open bins anywhere.

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39 Comments

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AbSoluTemaddlad@reddit

Shoot them. Repeat process.

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ExArdEllyOh@reddit

Air-rifle, terrier or proper farm cat if you can find one. Feeders make using an air-rifle easier as you'll have somewhere you'll know they'll be and can practice for it.

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blaireau69@reddit

OP is in Scotland, air rifle will be problematic.

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ExArdEllyOh@reddit

Oh yes, I forgot that bit of stupidity.

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blaireau69@reddit

Nothing stupid about it.

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ExArdEllyOh@reddit

Oh god I really hate the "ban everything I don't like" mentality.

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pestyisbesty@reddit

Good God, I have a FAC for centre-fire, rim-fire and an air rifle in England. I did not realise that the rules were this tight in Scotland where you can't even own a 12 ft lb air rifle without the equivalent of an English FAC. I can only assume the tenement blocks in Glasgow we're using it for sniping at the police...... Bit harsh you can't slot the rat that spreads disease. Good Nature traps are wonderful but expensive and poison is problematic with a existing rat population as well as the risk of secondary poisoning. Considering the massive financial contribution field sports make to the National economy as especially in rural areas it does make me wonder if the Lunatics are running the asylum!!

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ExArdEllyOh@reddit

> I can only assume the tenement blocks in Glasgow we're using it for sniping at the police...... IIRC a baby was killed by a stray pellet fired by some little cretin and so the SNats went to full "ban it" mode. Of course people had been complaining to the police that some little shit was abusing an airgun (a full-on firearms offence) for some time and nothing had been done.

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One_Loquat_3737@reddit

If you live in the countryside you can't get rid of rats, it's impossible but you can stop attracting them. If you don't want to stop attracting them you can, if it suits your style, liven matters up a lot by getting a Jack Russell or similar good ratter.

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blaireau69@reddit

I've a JR/BT cross. Loves rats.

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One_Loquat_3737@reddit

Bloke I knew had a little black thing called 'Fly', looked like a cross between a bog brush and Dennis The Menace's Gnasher. It was a demon with rats, you would be out walking, it would disappear in a flash, there'd be the sound of murder in a ditch and it would come back with a smile and a body.

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blaireau69@reddit

Haha excellent. Satisfied dog, fulfilling it's purpose, doing good work. Dill the Dog is nearly 11, has a congenital bad right hip, gets tired on long walks these days, like anything over 5 miles or so... Unless he senses a rat, at which point he becomes about 4 years old again.

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tmstms@reddit

CAT.

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Fukthisite@reddit

Would have to be a bad ass cat, most cats won't go near rats. Too big. Better off with a patterdale terrier.

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ExArdEllyOh@reddit

> Better off with a patterdale terrier. The problem is that they're evil little bastards themselves.

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Fukthisite@reddit

Haha, I have a patterdale x mini poodle puppy. Probably gonna grow up to be a nutter. 🤣

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robster9090@reddit

I already have and shoot a few air rifles so just shot them when I bought my house when I saw them in the garden

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blaireau69@reddit

> OP is in Scotland, air rifle will be problematic.

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robster9090@reddit

Not if they know any one with one or ask for some pest controller with insurance, there’s plenty that would do it for free

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KeyApricot27@reddit

Air rifle or a jack Russel Or both

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blaireau69@reddit

OP is in Scotland, air rifle will be problematic.

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SH3RB5@reddit

We had rats next door garden due to excess food left for the birds. 7 were humanely dispatched in about an hour with an air rifle as they visited the table. Since then we haven’t seen them (3 years)

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blaireau69@reddit

OP is in Scotland, air rifle will be problematic.

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SubstantialFly3316@reddit

I used to shoot them at my old farm house (piecemeal, effective but time consuming and inefficient long term), laid poison traps (these weren't that effective) but the number one deterrent that not only culled them but kept them away was keeping three feral farm kittens and the mother around. Once the kits grew up they absolutely massacred the rats. The regular presence of predators keeps their heads down, rats aren't stupid. You can't be squeamish about them, filling entry points is just whack-a-mole - they will find another way in. They are attracted to easy food sources like bird feeders and seed. They're always around in the country, too, especially if you've got ditches and farm buildings nearby.

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Theratchetnclank@reddit

If you really want rid of them get one of these [https://goodnaturetraps.co.uk/humane-rat-traps/](https://goodnaturetraps.co.uk/humane-rat-traps/) But having feeders out will always attract more anyway.

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Alarmed_Crazy_6620@reddit

You should leave some cheese around. They hate it. Tasty-tasty cheese

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Revolutionary-Ad2355@reddit (OP)

I need a bit more info here - I mean, are we talking cathedral city? Or just a whole Babybel?

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Theratchetnclank@reddit

Has to be Casu Martzu

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Alarmed_Crazy_6620@reddit

Both. We... Sorry, they, hate both

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Clever_Username_467@reddit

There's a rat in mi garden what am I gonna do

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Sea-Still5427@reddit

As others have said, remove any food sources that might bring them in. Flush any obvious nests with a hose then fill holes with concrete, broken pots or glass (something sharp) and finish off with a plug of something strong-smelling, like white vinegar, ammonia or pepper. If that doesn't move them on, you might need to get a specialist in.

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Questjon@reddit

Remove sources of food, get a Jack Russell, broken glass under sheds or anywhere else they might nest. That's about all you can do if you're in the countryside.

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Revolutionary-Ad2355@reddit (OP)

I’ve removed all sources of food earlier. I do have a Jack Russel funnily enough but he’s a complete couch potato!

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Crittsy@reddit

Ha, Ha I spotted a rat around the rubbish bin, picked up our terrorist, she spotted it, took her outside, no interest whatsoever, FFS dog you had one job!

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Kat8844@reddit

Boa Constrictor!.

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terahurts@reddit

We have a similar problem (sports field rather than a farmer's) plus both our neighbour's gardens are waist to head high with grass and brambles. The only (temporary) solution I found that seemed to work was emptying used (without the cat shit) cat litter along the bottom of the fences wherever we found a spot where they'd tunneled under. We have indoor cats and I built a catio for them a couple of years ago on the back of the house. It has a litter box inside and since then, we've not seen any evidence of rats tunneling under the fence in that area.

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benjymous@reddit

We had the same problem - first mice, then rats coming to our bird feeders. Regretfully took down the feeders, and haven't seen them since.

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Puzzleheaded-Ad-2982@reddit

Other than removing the feeders, there's not a lot you can do. They're likely coming in from elsewhere using rat runs. If you're able to, trace the rat runs and block up any access points to your property. You could always trap them, but don't use poison.

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