Rat Borrows Persistently Show Up


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Old 07-25-14, 01:08 PM
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Unhappy Rat Borrows Persistently Show Up

Hi All

I have at least one active rat borrow in the front yard.

I shut it down many times mostly with cement.

The rat (or more than 1) reopen the same borrow on the side of the cement, or another burrow as far as 7 feet away from the last one. I seal all of them with cement, and in less than 1 week it's reopened again on the side of the original location, or a brand new one few feet away.

There is a main sewer line running under the front yard into the street sewer. I don't know this but could it be possible this borrow is just a passageway between the above ground world and their nest in the sewer?

I inspected the sewer line with a camera with professionals and they don't see a breakage in the sewer line that goes into the street. There is about 5 feet water filled in the sewer line that we weren't 100% sure if it was OK. Given that the water is staying there maybe the line is OK in that section. Maybe it's been so long that it's already saturated with water anyway.

I think now I have about 10 cemented borrows and another hole showed up on the side of one of them.

A neighbor three houses down leaves milk for cats outside. Did not see them leave out food but they may be. There are raccoons in the area so trash bins are sometimes tipped over. But, overall it's a clean neighborhood.

Today an inspector from the Dept. of Health & Hygiene showed up and has not found any direct source of food. They will come back to inspect that neighbor's house.

I was wondering if there are any suggestions of what I can do. Originally I thought this was a mole hole so I never bothered about it, I just closed it with some dirt. It kept reopening it, so after 5 years I decided to hire pest control companies. They told me it's a rat hole. I have been seeing this problem for the last 5 years and actively fighting it since November 2013 to absolutely no effect whatsoever.

Rat poison in the form of cubes and trac powder was used excessively, and poison traps. If anyone has any solid ideas, they would be greatly appreciated.

I want to get rid of the borrows in the front yard.
 
  #2  
Old 07-26-14, 06:13 AM
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There is no point in closing rat burrows as that is barely a minor inconvenience to them. Waste of time and energy. If you want to see if a burrow is still active simply stuff it with newspaper and monitor.

Tracking powder in the burrows is a very good control choice. Works even through wet weather, unless the rain is so heavy that it washes away the powder. When using tracking powder in the burrows do not close the burrow in any way. We want them to run through the powder; acting like business as usual.

Are they eating the rodenticide? Has anyone baited into the burrows directly?

It does sound as if a re-infestation is occurring from somewhere else. I wonder if a “cistern” or “rain barrel” or septic tank is buried in the ground from a long time ago that is no longer used.

There is a food and water source in the neighborhood or they wouldn’t be there. Outdoor pet food is a common source. Vegetable/fruit gardens are another.
 
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Old 07-26-14, 07:38 AM
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Has anyone identified droppings to confirm rats. I have a similar battle going out near the street, but my trouble makers are chipmunks. Years ago it was red squirrels, but I've seen these and definitely chippers. Out of frustration I will fill a hole and they just open another or move to another close by location. Hole size is similar to rats so without having seen them one could wonder.

PA, would tracking powder work on my critters. I don't normally like to kill squirrels unless it is for dinner, but these or others have chewed holes to get into the house. I trapped 4 this winter.

Bud

Just to add, I would expect rat holes to be well hidden. They are very shy. If these are on open ground, I doubt they are rats. PA, your thoughts?
 
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Old 07-26-14, 09:04 AM
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I placed powder in one hole once, and I planted the sesame cubes poison in the hole too. Yes I left it open for a few days. There were a couple of situations that a dead rat outside was spotted.

Eventually though hole just gets bigger so I seal it up.

We have tomatoes in the back yard but nothing I see gets eaten and I know they were here long before I started that garden.

Must be something like a passageway between the open ground and their underground world somewhere.

I'm about to redo the front yard with new grass, and someone who does pest control told me that I can use gravel (small rocks) under the ground before I put soil and grass on top. It isn't a huge area. Would that work?
 
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Old 07-28-14, 02:56 PM
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I don’t expect that the gravel will stop rodents from digging. They aren’t discouraged easily.

What brand or active ingredient is the tracking powder? In any case, use it on a regular basis. It needs to be kept fresh and present in the burrows. How are you applying it?
 
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Old 07-31-14, 05:26 PM
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A local expert said a layer of gravel in front of the house under new layer of soil and grass will stop them making burrows near the house. Do you seriously doubt this would work?

The brand of the power has something with "trac" in the title. I don't own the poison powder, the person from the pest control company brings it.

However at this moment I am not using the power. The person I hired to do pest control (I don't have the poison) put bait stations where rats can get into and eat the poison.

He says that he will visit every month for the next few months and keep applying. He says that gets rid of them for throughout summer when applied between September and March/April.

Does any of this make sense? It does cost a bit doing the monthly maintenance.
 
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Old 08-01-14, 05:26 AM
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I don’t think that a layer of gravel, covered by top soil and grass will stop any rodent from digging/burrowing. A trench, at least 8-10” deep filled with small, loose stones probably would stop them.

Sounds like the powder is “di-trac” which is an excellent choice. It works even in wet/harsh conditions. When solving a rat problem I like to treat/inspect on a regular, intensive basis. Once a week is not too much. This way the results/progress or lack of, can be assessed.

Are the rats actually eating the bait? Maybe it’s too soon to tell.

If there is a large source of rats nearby but off your property then the chance of re-infestation is always there.

Your post of 7/26/14 says tracking powder was applied in one hole one time. All burrows, holes, need to be treated regularly with quantity. Weekly with the tracking powder would be a good start for about a month while re-assessing the whole time. You should see the white powder near the edge of the hole after dusting or spooning it into the burrows.
 
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Old 08-01-14, 05:30 AM
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Bud 9051: Sorry I missed your question. Yes the tracking powder will work on squirrels if you can get it into a burrow or void space where they live/travel. Be wary of label violations. Take care as to non-target animals. Di-trac is a RUP (restricted use pesticide) and it is “hot stuff”. Don’t breathe the airborne dust; wear gloves. Doesn’t penetrate skin per se, but if cuts/wounds are present then it will. It works because rodents groom/preen themselves and ingest the dust that way.
 
 

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