Outdoor Rats - best way to safely address?

I did some research and understand that we do have an outdoor rat population in Maplewood, however, we are seeing them now in our yard and around our garage.  Besides making sure there are no items attracting the rats ( i.e. trash, food, etc.) are there measures we can take to minimize their presence?  We're concerned about rat bait that might also be taken in by the squirrels.  Any advice/feedback would be appreciated.


Are you anywhere near commercial property? We had Richard Roe come and inspect the state of dumpsters that were near our house. He cited them for creating the food and trash situation that lets a colony thrive. They had to get another dumpster and be careful in filling them. Eventually the commercial business had to hire a company to place bait hotel boxes to kill them off. I still see lots of squirrels running around.


des said:
Are you anywhere near commercial property? We had Richard Roe come and inspect the state of dumpsters that were near our house. He cited them for creating the food and trash situation that lets a colony thrive. They had to get another dumpster and be careful in filling them. Eventually the commercial business had to hire a company to place bait hotel boxes to kill them off. I still see lots of squirrels running around.

 I think you mean Robert Roe who is the Maplewood Health Officer.


LuvThisTown said:
I did some research and understand that we do have an outdoor rat population in Maplewood, however, we are seeing them now in our yard and around our garage.  Besides making sure there are no items attracting the rats ( i.e. trash, food, etc.) are there measures we can take to minimize their presence?  We're concerned about rat bait that might also be taken in by the squirrels.  Any advice/feedback would be appreciated.

 We had them when we used to live in Newark.  Feeding the cats less solved the problem.



We aren't really near a commercial area.  I know they exist, but first time we've seen them around our yard, and now we've seen them more than once which is a bit concerning.  Can anyone recommend a bait that is effective but won't harm other wildlife?


if I had rats in/near my garage and living in close proximity to my house, I wouldn’t be giving a seconds thought to the safety of squirrels.


joan_crystal said:


des said:
Are you anywhere near commercial property? We had Richard Roe come and inspect the state of dumpsters that were near our house. He cited them for creating the food and trash situation that lets a colony thrive. They had to get another dumpster and be careful in filling them. Eventually the commercial business had to hire a company to place bait hotel boxes to kill them off. I still see lots of squirrels running around.
 I think you mean Robert Roe who is the Maplewood Health Officer.

 Thank you Joan!


We started seeing rats around outside this house a while back, and found a hole by the edge of the patio.  Viking Pest Control put some kind of powder into the hole, the tech said the rats get it on their feet and fur when they go in and out, then lick it off themselves and it poisons them.  No squirrels harmed that I could tell, but the rats vanished.  


The safest way to address outdoor rats in my experience is using prefixes such as Mr. and Ms., however I think first names are often equally if not more appropriate. 


WxNut2.0 said:
The safest way to address outdoor rats in my experience is using prefixes such as Mr. and Ms., however I think first names are often equally if not more appropriate. 

 I think that is how Jerry Buckingham addresses rats.  I would hire him if I had a rodent problem.



It is also often safe to address them as "Mr. President", "Justice Kavanaugh", Donald or Brett. Really depends on personal preference IMO.


In many years of pest control I have more than once had rats crawl across my feet as I was on my belly moving through crawl spaces.  I was never afraid as I carried a combination flashlight/ flame thrower.   Truth be told they are only dangerous when startled.

That old business about rats biting has some validity.  Should a child go to sleep with a few drops pf milk on his face.......the rat can sense and lick at the milk.  The child than flinches setting off a panic

response on the part of the rat and he will bite.

Cats either feral or domestic are no match for a full grown Norway rat.   Your best pet to keep around the house as a pet and defender of the hearth and home is a dog in the terrier breed.



I saw this video about this guy who uses dogs and trained mink to get rats. The mink go into the holes and flush them out, the dogs do the rest.  It was kind brutal, but at the same time, they seemed very effective at quickly bringing down the numbers, and there isn’t any residual poison


Not that I think anyone in Maplewood is going to hire a guy with mink and dogs


My mom’s cat catches rats. She didn’t even realize they were in the neighborhood until Button started catching and killing them


When a cat is successful vs a rat it is because the rat is among the youngest or weakest or going the other way among the infirm.  That is known as culling the population.  There might be some sense of satisfaction but the truth is the healthy and mature ones are out there breeding away and now there is more food available to them.


I never said anything about a sense of satisfaction about her killing rats.  I said we didn’t even realize there were rats until Button started catching them, i.e. it is very possible to have an issue and never be aware of it.


author said:
When a cat is successful vs a rat it is because the rat is among the youngest or weakest or going the other way among the infirm.  That is known as culling the population.  There might be some sense of satisfaction but the truth is the healthy and mature ones are out there breeding away and now there is more food available to them.

I don't quite believe that.  A hungry feral cat can kill a rat.  Well-fed domestic cats like to play with their prey.  A hungry feral cat experienced in killing is not going to **** around and the rat will be killed quickly.

Small dogs can also be effective against rats, especially if trained to hunt as a team.


https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/09/feral-cat-washington-dogs-rat-control/?user.testname=lazyloading:1


This thread gives me hives, yet I keep checking.   I see rats fairly regularly while on the subway platform.   I can't...


Rats have incisors that in time can gnaw through concrete.  Some breeds such as roof rats can climb and leap far beyond the ability of any cat.   Feral cats much prefer to feed on birds and easy prey that does not fight back well.  Yes occasionally a feral cat will come out on top but they are no consistent

method of rat control.

Rat terriers are the king of the hill.  I once had a silky terrier that was a combo of an Australian and Yorkshire.  The little guy was small but defended the house against the mail person con mucho

gusto.



I witnessed weasel rat control in my fraternity house.  Unbeknownst to me, some rats had taken up residence in the kitchen area.  Then, one day, while working in the kitchen, I saw a weasel running across the floor with half of a rat in its mouth.  After a while, no more rats.  I assume weasels make rats **** their pants because they are efficient killers that can follow a rat into any hole or hiding place.


tjohn said:
I witnessed weasel rat control in my fraternity house.  Unbeknownst to me, some rats had taken up residence in the kitchen area.  Then, one day, while working in the kitchen, I saw a weasel running across the floor with half of a rat in its mouth.  After a while, no more rats.  I assume weasels make rats **** their pants because they are efficient killers that can follow a rat into any hole or hiding place.

 And they work for tips.



In order to add a comment – you must Join this community – Click here to do so.