November 13, 20232 yr Ive got a cabin in the Ozark forest and its great. But we only go about one weekend a month and it keeps getting rats. Its clean, but is basically in the forest so every winter they invade seeking warmth. Im using poison to kill them, but with dogs I dont like the chance its going to kill one of them at some point. Still, they chew wires, leave a mess, and Im just sick of them. Its too remote for a exterminator and I dont go enough to dump a bunch of stray cats there. Got any tips to get rid of them?
November 13, 20232 yr Buy the hottest reaper sauce you can find, dilute it with tequila or water or antifreeze and spray it along the perimeter of the house. I have no idea if it would work but it might be fun to watch the results play out.
November 13, 20232 yr Sounds like you need me to watch over the place while you're not there. Not a problem. Seriously though Jif Corn Bread Mix and Baking soda. Search YouTube for it. Can put in medium tupperware container with hole cut in side (get containers at dollar tree etc). Rats go in and eat the tasty mix and then later when they drink/digest the baking soda / stomach acid mixture ends up killing them.
November 13, 20232 yr Author 2 minutes ago, MonkeyDoughnut said: Sounds like you need me to watch over the place while you're not there. Not a problem. Seriously though Jif Corn Bread Mix and Baking soda. Search YouTube for it. Can put in medium tupperware container with hole cut in side (get containers at dollar tree etc). Rats go in and eat the tasty mix and then later when they drink/digest the baking soda / stomach acid mixture ends up killing them. Perfect. Thanks
November 13, 20232 yr 3 minutes ago, MonkeyDoughnut said: Sounds like you need me to watch over the place while you're not there. Not a problem. Seriously though Jif Corn Bread Mix and Baking soda. Search YouTube for it. Can put in medium tupperware container with hole cut in side (get containers at dollar tree etc). Rats go in and eat the tasty mix and then later when they drink/digest the baking soda / stomach acid mixture ends up killing them. This is great. And it doesn't pass up the food chain the way most rat poisons do, I take it?
November 13, 20232 yr ultra sonic repellent devices around the house. people with toyotas use them to keep mice from eating up their truck cables
November 13, 20232 yr If the baking soda idea doesn't work AND mice and rats have the same dislikes, try mint spray. You can find it on Amazon. I swear it worked really well for us at the time. We have a mouser (cat) now, so I haven't seen a live mouse in over a year. Anyway, you spray it around the outside of the house and, especially, in area which you think they're getting in. It won't hurt the dogs, and it smells pretty good as well.
November 13, 20232 yr Author 55 minutes ago, BeardIP said: Wouldn't this result in the rotting dead carcass' of dead rats in your nice home, to stink and disgust the place upon your infrequent arrivals? Then you spend hours cleaning up and airing out the place? I like the one stray cat idea. Thats the weird thing, the poison is some kind toxic anticoagulant so blood trails all over the floor, but the rats somehow crawl out the way they get in (by chewing holes through wood walls) before dying. So place hasnt stunk yet. Plus its cold weather, so I suppose they just take a while to stink if dying in the walls. 25 minutes ago, Knoxtnhorn said: If the baking soda idea doesn't work AND mice and rats have the same dislikes, try mint spray. You can find it on Amazon. I swear it worked really well for us at the time. We have a mouser (cat) now, so I haven't seen a live mouse in over a year. Anyway, you spray it around the outside of the house and, especially, in area which you think they're getting in. It won't hurt the dogs, and it smells pretty good as well. Im going to try this as well. Thanks.
November 13, 20232 yr I buy a few boxes of these sumbitches and toss them all around the corners and doors and nooks and crannies of my garages each fall. They're pretty potent, so I don't know that I'd advise extensive use (any use?) in an indoor living area, but thought I'd share.
November 14, 20232 yr You need cats and an automatic feeder. Problem solved. This is what cats are for. Trust me.
November 15, 20232 yr See cat piss thread next to this one. And you only need 1 cat and the auto feeder mentioned along with a big bowl of water. But only have feeder go off once a day, you want a backup food source for cat but also want them hungry.A hungry female adult cat is an apex hunter (I don’t count coyotes but they will probably eventually eat your cat but just replace it, plenty that need adoption)
November 15, 20232 yr I feel like the cat thing is too easy. What does the guy do, a cat door or is it going to murder and shit all over the cabin? I’ve never had a cat, I don’t know how they work.
November 15, 20232 yr 43 minutes ago, Yarbr said: I feel like the cat thing is too easy. What does the guy do, a cat door or is it going to murder and shit all over the cabin? I’ve never had a cat, I don’t know how they work. A cat door is the best. But it will work without one. They shit and piss in a big box full of tiny pebbles. They will eat most if not all of the rat. There shouldn't be a huge mess. You might have a couple of dead but not eaten ones. But leaving one all alone like that is cruel. Go with two that get along and can't breed.
November 15, 20232 yr Idiots. You leave the cat outside. It will be fine. Rats won’t venture anywhere near the house.
November 15, 20232 yr 2 fixed cats. Leave them outside with an automatic feeder and a place to keep warm when needed. This is the way. Spraying orange oil worked for keeping all wildlife away from my shed. But that is a temporary solution. The cats will work for years.
November 15, 20232 yr If you are only there one weekend a month the cat will move on to greener pastures(the local old lady who will feed it). Also cats can cause significant collateral property damage left to their own devices. Screens and posts shredded. Perimeter bait boxes with poison(there are low secondary kill risk professional baits) are the only thing that will work at this point. You need ongoing bait program and a serious effort to secure any access points. Now you have a path of rat piss marking the paths into your cabin that won’t fade naturally for several years.
November 15, 20232 yr The rat piss trails will be covered by rat intestines and innards after a few months. That trail won’t smell as appealing to those rodents.That’s also true about the cat moving to the next sucker who gives it food and a cozier shelter. True mercenaries, no loyalty.
November 15, 20232 yr Author 1 hour ago, Incredulity said: If you are only there one weekend a month the cat will move on to greener pastures(the local old lady who will feed it). Also cats can cause significant collateral property damage left to their own devices. Screens and posts shredded. Perimeter bait boxes with poison(there are low secondary kill risk professional baits) are the only thing that will work at this point. You need ongoing bait program and a serious effort to secure any access points. Now you have a path of rat piss marking the paths into your cabin that won’t fade naturally for several years. The closest gravel road is 1 mile away, pavement is 7 miles away. No old ladies.
November 15, 20232 yr 2 hours ago, Matagorda said: The closest gravel road is 1 mile away, pavement is 7 miles away. No old ladies. Perhaps you could adopt one stray old lady to go with your one stray cat?
November 15, 20232 yr Do the cat thing. I would love to read the aftermath thread of having a soon to be feral cat living in your unoccupied cabin.
November 16, 20232 yr Install a three foot fence at a 45 degree angle around the entire property made of smooth metal. The real answer is that there are a lot of rat trap videos on YouTube. Figure out which one you like most: https://www.youtube.com/@nikinatyamice
November 17, 20232 yr On 11/13/2023 at 3:20 PM, Matagorda said: Ive got a cabin in the Ozark forest Cabin?
November 20, 20232 yr At our lease cabin we have ultrasonic plug in thingies and also play FM static radio at full volume when we leave on a $25 clock radio. Never a single rat or mouse.
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