Best Method to Eliminate Roof Rats


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Old 01-24-12, 08:09 AM
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Best Method to Eliminate Roof Rats

It seems like I have roof rats in our two story house. I can hear several noises such as scratching and tapping at dusk and also early in the morning. What is the best method to eliminate. Snap traps, Rat zapper , repellant? I don't want to use poison in case they die in the house.

There is a tree with berries (food source) right next to the house where I believe they are entering. Should the tree be cut back before or after I trap them?
 
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Old 01-24-12, 09:37 AM
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Sorry...every time I see a question like this...just one thing springs to mind....Roof CATS...lol.

Seriously if you can get access near the area you suspect I'd try traps first. I'd cut the tree immediately after you eliminate the problem. You also need to address how they are getting in.
 
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Old 01-24-12, 10:04 AM
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I have almost no experience with roof rats; geographically we have Norway rats but I’ll throw out some ideas.

First of all: Let’s make sure of the identification. Are they rats or another kind of rodent? Could it be nesting birds making noise against the siding?

You need to look in attics, crawls, places you haven’t seen in a long time if ever for fecal droppings, chewed up material, messed up insulation, etc.

Forget the electronic zappers. Repellents won’t work. Either trapping or rodenticide baiting or combination thereof. The traps have to be placed where the rodents are living, running, eating, etc. Find some evidence to indicate more specifically what is making the noise. If it isn’t rodents, then trapping would be a waste of time, effort, and resources. Keep us posted.

Gunguy: I love the “roof cats” answer. You been waiting for this opportunity, haven’t you?!?
 
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Old 01-24-12, 02:26 PM
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Well I took a quick look by shining a flashlight in the area and saw that it is a rodent. From the quick look I got it is about 4 inches long, has bushy tail and a light gray coat. It does not look like a roof rat. When I get more time in the next day or two I'll post back more details.
 
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Old 01-24-12, 02:44 PM
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Pretty obvious its a squirrel of whatever type is prevalent in your area. Not sure regular traps would work.

Let's see what Bugman has to say.
 
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Old 01-24-12, 03:30 PM
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Sounds like a squirrel. Roof rats have some hair on their tail, Norway rats have naked tails. I used to trap squirrels and they made a fool out of me many times. Rather trap rats. Definitely trim that tree and any others nearby. Rat snap traps will work eventually. It may need to get used to the traps before it will approach. Secure the trap with a wire or screw the trap down in case you get a less than lethal catch and be ready to euthanize it yourself.
 
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Old 01-28-12, 11:12 AM
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I checked out the attic and saw the intruder again, but it is not a squirrel. It is about the size of a chipmunk with a round shaped body about 4 inches long, a bushy tail about 3 inches long, gray fur on its back with a white belly. I have never seen a chipmunk that looks like this, though. It has a rat or mouse like snout and ears. Droppings are about 1/4" long by a just more than a 1/16". It runs along the wall and nested by the soffit near the gutter where it got entry and also by the attic vent along the wall.

It looks like it could be a type of woodrat similar to this Neotoma cinerea « Talented Animals Blog. I am in NJ. A quick search came up with some type of wood rate in my area.
 

Last edited by edge10; 01-28-12 at 11:40 AM.
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Old 01-29-12, 08:03 AM
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Wood rats are not typically described as having bushy tails. They have minimal if any hair on tail but I’m open minded enough to accept that it may be wood rats. We have them here, but they are rare. I’ve never seen one, but local biologists have trapped, tracked and studied them in our mountain.

In any event, set some rat snap traps. whatever it is can’t live in your house.
 
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Old 01-29-12, 09:09 AM
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Trimming back the tree as well as collecting the berries from the ground will make the area less attractive to them. Repellent is a good idea too. Basically you want to make the area undesirable for these critters because unless there is something to discourage them, they love to co-habitate with humans. We're approaching one of the breeding season for these rodents, which starts in February, so its a good idea to get the situation under control before then so you don't end up with a major infestation.
 
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Old 02-23-12, 06:19 AM
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Turns out I have flying squirrels and not roof rats. I think these are somewhat rare in my area. They don't look like gray squirrels we have, so it threw me off. PAbugman and Gunguy45 looks like your were right. They are nesting by the eves and entered at a hole in the gutter facia board. They also have two nests toward the center of the attic that look unused right now. Maybe these are there "backup nests"
 
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Old 02-23-12, 07:43 AM
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Flying squirrels are very difficult to live trap as they can get out of any live trap not designed specifically for flying squirrels. I have had success with rat snap traps. The traps must have an “expanded trigger”, meaning a larger flat surface will be the trigger as opposed to the smaller metal trigger that is traditional. I’ve even made expanded triggers by taking a coffee can lid (plastic) making a slit in the center just big enough to slide over the smaller metal trigger. Flying squirrels are able to get on the traditional trap, trigger it and have the trap snap over and behind them, making a clean miss. I imagine they are startled and lose some hearing after this near-death experience. The expanded trigger means they will be trapped at the edge of the trap. One time I caught nothing but a tail in the trap-the next day I caught a tailess flying squirrel-not making this up, it happened that way. Use peanut butter on trigger; maybe sprinkle bird seed, nuts, etc on peanut butter for visual appeal as well as the odor. You can catch mice in expanded trigger rat traps.

It is written that they can be harassed into leaving; in other words, catch a few, interrupt them in the attic enough times, make them feel unsafe and they will leave. I don’t think they will do damage as larger squirrels or rodents will, but they will make nests, mess up insulation, urine and fecal material in attic, some will die naturally, etc. Keep us posted on your progress. Be persistent.
 
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Old 03-12-12, 09:33 AM
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I got 8 of them using a live trap made for flying/small squirrels and peanut butter as bait. Each one had a different activity level and demeanor. So far 5 days and no more catches, although I thought I heard one in early morning a couple of days ago. I would think I should keep the trap set for another week unless you recommend more or less.

Any advice on clean up? It does not look real bad, but there are nests, feces and messed up insulation as you said. I use respirator and gloves when I trap them. What about the use of a disinfectant like Lysol, but I would have to be careful not to damage the sheet rock with the moisture.
 
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Old 03-12-12, 11:12 AM
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Well...nests, pellets, and bad insulation will have to be removed and replaced (not the nests and feces....lol). A spray bottle with about a 10 to 1 (maybe 5 to 1?) water/bleach solution in a hand held trigger sprayer bottle would probably be fine. As long as you spray lightly and keep good airflow it shouldn't go through the sheetrock.

Bugman may have a better product to recommend.

btw...I'm glad you used a live trap. First time I saw those big eyed little buggers was when they were clinging to a tree right off my deck as there was a full blown going away party going on. Had never seen any evidence of them in the 4 yrs living there until the party a week before we moved.
 
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Old 03-12-12, 04:18 PM
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Nice job onthe trapping! They are cute things aren’t they? Another week of trapping, keep the bait fresh, and that should be long enough. Keep the trap handy though. AS far as disinfecting-I don’t know much about it but the bleach idea in a spray bottle is good. I would do that in my own house. Replace the bad insulation. You aren’t going to spray heavily; just wet it down. The water will evaporate and the chlorine residual will stay for a while doing its job. A job well done.
 
 

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