Rats in Loft?

[pers5579]

Hi All,

Fro the last 6 months or so, every so often (maybe once a fortnight) during the night (usually between 1 and 3 am) we here scurrying around in the loft.

Whenever I have been up there to check I have found nothing. Last night when I went up in the loft I found a collection of droppings. They are shaped like pellets black and larger than mice droppings (we have a mice problem in the shed a couple of years ago).

I am slightly confused though - how would rats get in the loft and how do I get rid of them in a humane way?

Thanks

[Venger]

They can access through the crawl space, so look for holes and access points around ground level, I had the same thing last year (I'm sure mine were wearing hob nail boots!) - found an access point on the ground floor that I filled in with bits of broken brick - haven't had any problems since.
If the dropping's are around 5mm in length then you are probably dealing with rats.
Not sure about removing them humanely - clear plastic traps or something that you would need to collect.
Sadly pest control officers still use poison.

[hannahpanda]

You can buy humane rat traps, if you google it you can find them!

[zan]

the alternative to rats might be squirrels? My boyfriend got squirrels above his flat a couple of years ago and they pulled all his insulation up into a giant heap, presumably for a cosy wee nest! I think they found quite an obvious access hole though, and got it closed up while the squirrel was out. You could try a baited animal trap to catch whatever it is - if it's as large as a rat or squirrel it shouldn't be too hard to find an appropriate one.

[Rob T]

This is the time of year that rats try to find somewere warm to spend their nights they can access the roof space by crawling up the brick cavity or they can easily crawl up your down pipe and run along the gutter and in under the roof tiles even chewing the facia and roof felt to make a gap if there isnt one.

I would suggest you buy a humane trap, but remember if you choose to relocate it once caught put the trap into a bigger cardboard box whilst transporting it and even wrap the bottom and sides of that in a bin liner and throw them both away after. Watch for any damp patches (urine).

Around 20% of rats carry weils disease , this can be passed on to humans and can be fatal. So unless your confident pers, let the council deal with it although most councils just leave poision down then after a while you have the aroma of a rotting animal in your home. . . nice.

Good luck

Rob

[shirl]

We have had rats in our loft for about 2 months now, found a couple of places where we thought they might be getting in, blocked them up and it went quiet. Hoovered the loft, replaced the insulation and one week later - they were back! Found another possible gap, blocked that up and I am putting a wild mammal cage (for live trapping) up there plus a small mammal cage in case the mice get any ideas. Not caught one yet, so I am hopeful this time. But if this doesn't work then they have to be getting in through a cavity - could take a while to sort that out. Strange though, I have not heard them for a week, lets hope they are living back in the garden!

Good luck with your ratties

Shirl

[suzted]

have to watch your electrical wiring if theres rats about as they love to chew. i have two pet rats that will chew anything, but there used to be a rat problem in this house before we moved in and most of the wires have rat chew marks in them. we also have quite a few dodgy sockets that rats have chewed the wires on. i am just waiting to see if they come back this year as winter is well on its way so they will be needing somewhere to live! the thought makes me cringe! i love pet rats but not wild ones, especially when they are roaming my house!!

[Blackbrook Eye]

Sorry but if you have one rat it is almost certain that you have more, best to seek professional help before the problem gets out of hand, d.i.y pest control is rarely effective and can lead to other problems, if they spread to neighboring properties, you may be held responsible if you have not taken reasonable measures to contain the outbreak, as far as I know it is still a statutory responsibility to report the presence of rats in domestic premises to the local authority

[m1.carson]

Hi blacbrook eye,

Our council in it's infinite wisdom has started charging £25-00 for their rat catcher, it was free until this year, [we won't start on about the fortnightly bin collections ].

Now I shan't phone about the rats I'll leave it to the neighbours to complain and pay.

Shirl and pers5579, the best bait for them is chocolate, not cheese.

Max.

P.S. the weils disease is serious, but you need to get the infected urine that only comes from a pregnant female into an open wound like a cut or scratch.

They tried to get into our house via the central heating pipes, climbing them and in under the floorboards upstairs.

[Blackbrook Eye]

Originally Posted by m1.carson

Hi blacbrook eye,

Our council in it's infinite wisdom has started charging £25-00 for their rat catcher, it was free until this year, [we won't start on about the fortnightly bin collections ].

Now I shan't phone about the rats I'll leave it to the neighbours to complain and pay.

I take your point about the council, seems to be a typically short sighted approach on their behalf, however with government cuts I suppose they have to take every opportunity to winkle a few more pounds from the rate payer, whatever the consequences