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Rat repellent

Posted by calidavid <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=calidavid' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 9:02 am

Anybody got any tips on rat repellents?
We have a Rambo rat who loves poison, digs under live traps to try and get the bait and has given me hours of work concreting under the corner of our house.
Short of activating my black powder pistol we can find no solution, apart from the gin trap, ahem, hanging in the roof.
I read that they hate mothballs, essential oils and cayenne pepper but any IKBA experience of a successful deterrent very welcome.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Leon Novello <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Leon+Novello' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 9:29 am, in reply to "Rat repellent "

Having a cat usually works.

Leon Novello

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by calidavid <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=calidavid' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 9:43 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Sadly our neighbours beautiful Bengal killer cats have moved, Leon.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Tonupdave <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Tonupdave' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 9:45 am, in reply to "Rat repellent "

The poison I have used from my local hardware store has worked but found the buggers were comming for the food on the bird table so stopped feeding the birds but sounds like you need drastic measures....

Tonupdave..T.U.D.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Bikershark <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Bikershark' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 10:12 am, in reply to "Rat repellent "

Have you contacted you local authority’s pest control dept?

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Greeves Rider <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Greeves+Rider' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 10:20 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Most councils dont have pest control dept anymore, & have contacted it out to commercial firms who charge extortionate fees for it. The best poison is that sold through agricultural suppliers in 4 kg tubs BUT you need a licence to buy this stuff so only available to farmers and other licenced users. To get a licence you have to attend a day course on how to use it.The stuff they sell in small packs in garden centres etc is less potent stuff. Might kill a few mice but little or no effect on large rats.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by wittsend <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=wittsend' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 10:30 am, in reply to "Rat repellent "

Got poison blocks from screwfix and it worked a treat.

Re: Rat repellent

Screwfix blocks sound hopeful. We do have a pest control bod who refills the poison box occasionally. This certainly seems to have dealt with some rats but Rambo seems impervious. Our recently departed neighbour was a farmer and supplied us with some of the agricultural poison but super rat survives.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by JERRY <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=JERRY' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 11:06 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Sounds the right time to invest in a 2.2 air rifle.

The oldest rocker in town!

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Nigel B <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Nigel+B' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 11:55 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Beat me to it, Jerry - I was going to suggest a Weihrauch HW77K (in either calibre) with a 3-9x40 scope & H & N pellets.

Mine in 0.177 flavour likes Field Target Trophy - pellet-on-pellet at 35 metres if I do my bit, so quite capable of eliminating such pests.

Added bonus over poisons is that they don't crawl off & die in your roof space or cavity walls, so less chance of nasty niffs & blue bottle infestations due to inaccessible rotting carcass.

Nigel B.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Al Urquhar <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Al+Urquhar' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 12:39 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

An emphatic agreement from me, Nigel - I have the .22 version (purchased a while ago from Brickboy of this parish) and it provided an instant solution to the problem of a too-bold rat that had decided that the peanuts in our tree-hung bird feeder made perfect daily breakfast fare.

Re: Rat repellent

Was going to suggest a 455 Webley..I had two until Dunblane.. not saying what I have now..

Tonupdave..T.U.D.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by 6TDen <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=6TDen' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 3:11 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

AK47 works well, I believe.
Den

Re: Rat repellent

An old piece of gas pipe plus hammer and nail is all that’s needed now. (20mm)

Re: Rat repellent

Might be a bit of an overkill there !

Reminds me of a tale my late father told of his brief time in National Service in the '50s - he had very poor feet & could not wear Army boots, so did "square bashing" in plimsols until he was medically discharged after 6 weeks.

Before he left, he went out with an officer rabbiting - with a Bren gun. During scrambling through undergrowth to get into an ambush position on the bunnies, the fire select lever got moved from single shot to auto un-noticed - when a bunny was sighted and targetted there was not much left to retrieve after a burst of full auto !

Nigel B.

Re: Rat repellent

I ordered a copy of the Uzii 9mm machine gun for appraisal buy the MET ..took a 35 mtr range at Bizley and tried against an Uzii no comparison Uzi put most of the rounds on a PL8 target the copy only seven shots my S&W 357 Magnum six shots through the centre ..Horses for Courses.. I say

Tonupdave..T.U.D.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Lannis <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Lannis' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 1:58 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Having shot quite a few machine guns (still gettable here although viciously expensive), I can guarantee you that only the first round hit the rabbit. The muzzle climb on a fully-automatic Bren gun is something that no human can control. Even a 9mm submachine gun will climb to where you can't keep the rounds on target. Area-suppression weapons only; pretty useless for anything else ....

Lannis

At no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.

Re: Rat repellent

I fired a Bren gun when doing National Service, our instructor said it was considered too accurate and didn`t `spray` the bullets and if it was held tightly enough the bullets could roughly go through the same hole.

Leon Novello

Re: Rat repellent

When I was a 19 year old cadet the smartest turned out at our annual parade was allowed to fire the Bren gun on our exercise with the Corby TA(I learnt a lot of new swear words from them). Thankfully our instructors disliked the smarmy kid who won as much as we did and made him carry the ruddy thing all day. Happy Daze.

Re: Rat repellent

But a Bren gun was designed to be a crew-served light squad automatic, fired from a bipod or tripod or a vehicle or anti-aircraft mount.

A budding Rambo or Terminator might pick one up and fire it from the hip or shoulder, but they're not going to hit anything with it outside of a movie.

Now if you set up your rat-killing Bren gun in a dug-in hidden offensive position near the rat run, and you and your loader are very quiet and wait until you can see his beady eyes, then unload half a magazine of .303 at him, you might get some positive results.

There might be some "Lucy, you got some 'splainin' to do" with the local gendarmerie after, but the rat won't be involved!

Lannis

At no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.

Re: Rat repellent

I also supplied the MET with the all plastic L1A1 automatic rifle was extremely accurate but the police wouldn't have it as it looked too military ..

now the Police firearms squads look bloody ridiculous as my Maz say give back my S&W 357 and I'll take that guy out with one clean shot..

Tonupdave..T.U.D.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by jimmy <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=jimmy' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 11:06 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

My Daughter recently qualified as an AFO. A good shot apparently getting christened Annie Oakley. They use C8 Carbines and Glocks

Re: Rat repellent

Back in the 70s I had my own shooting team and used to shoot against the MET at their Croydon Ranges this was handgun .. they never beat us as they are taught in a different way we were taught accuracy first the speed later so if it was revolver I always used my S&W 38/357 as dead accurate if Auto my 9mm CZ 75 also accurate ..each week the Met would set the course of fire and me the next.. Great fun and good blokes used to get fairly Pissed afterwards difficult getting home

Tonupdave..T.U.D.

Re: Rat repellent

There used to be available for general ownership a 9mm shot "garden gun" for pest control. I learnt how to adapt the cartridges to make a hole the size of your fist when existing a tin can. Shotgun licence needed nowadays.
I am going to try recommended Cayenne pepper repellent as a last resort.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by 6TDen <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=6TDen' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 12:27 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

I doubt if you modified the weapon, or cartridges, nowadays it would meet the conditions of your fire arms licence and would, therefore, become an illegally held weapon.
Den

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Brickboy <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Brickboy' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 14, 2023, 9:30 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Al, I sorely miss that rifle: it was superb. Let me know when you upgrade and I'll buy it back. It's almost as bad as the bikes I've regretted selling!!

We too have super rats that enjoy next door's chicken coop and excess bird table food. In the absence of the Weihrauch I found their nest and discovered that my lawnmower has a 22mm exhaust pipe. I happen to have some 22mm copper pipe lying around and there's a nice bend in the end...

They have reappeared though. I think living in student land with the many unkempt rear gardens means it's an everlasting battle for us.

Simon

Re: Rat repellent

Sorry Simon but I think a buyback is an unlikely scenario as I can't readily imagine what I would regard as an upgrade, it's that good.

Re: Rat repellent

No worries, Al.

Re: Rat repellent

Cats and projectile weapons are the only thing that work against rats for me.

There are poisons like warfarin that they will eat and will kill them via internal bleeding, but they will crawl into the most inaccessible part of where you live to die, and make you wish you'd never poisoned him.

They're too smart to step into a baited rat-trap, and there's no way to "repel" them. Anything that will "repel" a rat will repel you even worse.

If they're out in the open, a .22 CB-cap or Short will take care of them without distressing the neighbors, or one of these magnum airguns you guys mention. If they only come out at night, your only solution is a cat. We've had quite a few cats and they're great varmint killers, not asking for much in return.

All in all, we've taken care of our rat problem where I live ... !

Lannis

At no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by dommie90 <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=dommie90' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 6:47 am, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Most of our rats are parliamentarians we can neither shoot or poison them, pity my SKS is hidden away

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Nigel B <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Nigel+B' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 12:27 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

If they're out in the open, a .22 CB-cap or Short will take care of them without distressing the neighbors, or one of these magnum airguns you guys mention

12 ft-lb air rifles are the only non-Firearms Certificate (FAC) option available to us in England & Wales, Lannis. Scotland has licencing of air rifles as well as firearms. Even then there are some pretty draconian restrictions on where and how they can used - technically having a pellet leave the boundaries on your property is a mandatory 5 year jail term + fines + confiscation of rifle + criminal record.

To get a FAC for a .22 target or sporting rimfire rifle would require membership of an approved club (which classes as a valid reason for wanting a FAC for a rifle), which in turn requires a 6 month probationary period + a Police inspection of home for a security check and check of compliant steel rifle cabinet + medical background checks. Use would be restricted to the club unless a case could be made to shoot over open land (which farmers might get for larger pest control) , which would have to be inspected prior to permission being given. Discharging a .22 rimfire in my back garden would guarantee a visit from an armed response squad & a free holiday at His Majesty's Pleasure.

I have a couple of clubs locally (2 small bore only 25 yard indoors, the other 25 yard small bore indoors & 100 yard full bore outdoors) & did get through the probationary period at one many years ago, but my working patterns changed which made visiting when they were open difficult so I didn't go any further down the FAC route & just stick to sub-12 ft-lb air rifles - cheaper (nearest FAC club is £190 a year + range fees) & far less hassle.

Plenty of videos on YT of UK night time ratting with sub-12 air rifles fitted with night vision scopes - usually with magazine fed pre-charged rifles from hides.

Nigel B.

Re: Rat repellent

Also several UK videos of folks taking rabbits in the fields and hedgerows with a modern slingshot.

Takes a bit of practice, though. But a steel or even clay shot will put paid to the toughest rat ever.

I have one of those slingshots and thousands of shot, just haven't practiced enough. I'd rather let the cat do it ....

Lannis

At no time in history have the people forcing other people into compliance been the good guys.

Re: Rat repellent

Posted by Hants Ian <iframe src='https://members5.boardhost.com/classicbikemart/info/user=Hants+Ian' width='330' height='300' border=0 style='border:none;'> on March 15, 2023, 2:17 pm, in reply to "Re: Rat repellent "

Yes and the cat gets a meal if it wants.

The light at the end of the tunnel maybe an oncoming train

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