[Sandtrap328]

Originally Posted by tuccillo

Irma will be drowning all the rats very soon ;-)

I don't know about that. I was at BassPro and saw a group of rats buying rat-size life jackets and an inflatable raft!

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Carl in Tampa

First, a dog in every house was a joke.
Sticky traps are good. They don't kill the animal. You can take them to the edge of the woods and release the animal from the sticky trap by pouring vegetable oil on the paper.

That's very humane to catch and release rats.
You are quite right, catch and release is much more humane than poisoning them.
I didn't think your idea about getting a dog was a joke. I thought it was a good idea.
We have two dogs and I've never seen a rat.
But then someone said rats are nocturnal, so perhaps they dance and party after we've gone to bed.

[rubicon]

Had the pest control mgr come to my home to do an inspection of the premises and the attic. He found no evidence of a problem in my attic , operative words "no evidence"

As to my property the gentleman observed potential problems because my back yard is adjacent to a long championship course hole adorned fully with high oriental grasses and a pond katty corner to my house.

He did not find fault with my landscaping nor its maintenance. He noted that I have french drains and the one downspout open on my driveway had been screened off as also being sound prevention.

He placed a second bait box on my property explaining that its a good defense against pests trying to breach a home.

He said his company is out of bait boxes. He said that since we spoke last spoke 8/29 his phone has been non stop with calls concerning about rat breaches

I was told that The Villages a few years back contracted with the pest control companies to treat palm trees as an eradication process. Why they stopped the program, or if this information is accurate is unknown by me?

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by rubicon

Had the pest control mgr come to my home to do an inspection of the premises and the attic. He found no evidence of a problem in my attic , operative words "no evidence"

As to my property the gentleman observed potential problems because my back yard is adjacent to a long championship course hole adorned fully with high oriental grasses and a pond katty corner to my house.

He did not find fault with my landscaping nor its maintenance. He noted that I have french drains and the one downspout open on my driveway had been screened off as also being sound prevention.

He placed a second bait box on my property explaining that its a good defense against pests trying to breach a home.

He said his company is out of bait boxes. He said that since we spoke last spoke 8/29 his phone has been non stop with calls concerning about rat breaches

I was told that The Villages a few years back contracted with the pest control companies to treat palm trees as an eradication process. Why they stopped the program, or if this information is accurate is unknown by me?

The little bustards are gonna have to swim or air glide.

Hope they and us are here on Tuesday.

[EPutnam1863]

According to one source on the Internet, a rat can have as many as 20,000 babies a year, depending on the size of the mommy rat. Another source says 15,000 in two years.

[Wiotte]

Originally Posted by EPutnam1863

According to one source on the Internet, a rat can have as many as 20,000 babies a year, depending on the size of the mommy rat. Another source says 15,000 in two years.

That’s a lot of rats...


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[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Wiotte

That’s a lot of rats...


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Eaten by coyotes, cats, hawks, snakes, owls, foxes, etc. Enemies and Predators of Rats

[Wiotte]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

Eaten by coyotes, cats, hawks, owls, etc.

The circle of life.



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[bbbbbb]

[QUOTE=rubicon;1442413]I hope what you say is true , and I know people will not like hearing this . However, my pest control company has stated that "The Villages" has a serious rat problem and they can't keep homeowners rat stations ( black boxes) filled fast enough.

The District needs to take a proactive approach both in education and operation to eradicate this problem. Ignoring it is only going to make it worse.

Just a comment. Not all rats have the same feast. But some of them do have fun tearing open bags at the street and getting the goodies. Because?
Due probably to the food particles people place in the bags. Nature prepared our rats with good sniffers to detect and good little sharp claws to tear open plastic bags, so they do have the tools to do the job.
Rats like to eat.
bbbbbb

[angiefox10]

I'm told that people who have cats and people who feed feral cats do not have a rat issue.

We have rats in Sanibel. I am now getting a kickplate for the bottom of my lanai to keep them out.

Disney, NY and Chicago use cats to control the rats.

i think it's time to consider TNR, Trap Neuter and Release

Google it. It works!

Yes!!!! We have a rat problem.

[Mrs. Robinson]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Please don't feed the birds. Please don't feed the birds.

Don't leave animal food on the lanai. Do not feel bad about not feeding the birds, the birds have plenty to eat provided by Mother Nature, on duty 24/7.

They are palm rats. We chose not to have palm trees.

Originally Posted by rubicon

I hope what you say is true , and I know people will not like hearing this . However, my pest control company has stated that "The Villages" has a serious rat problem and they can't keep homeowners rat stations ( black boxes) filled fast enough.

The District needs to take a proactive approach both in education and operation to eradicate this problem. Ignoring it is only going to make it worse.

Please don't shoot the messenger

Residents do not feed the birds because they feel sorry for them or because they think they need the food. They feed the birds because it gives them pleasure in watching them.

I have been feeding birds for many years and will continue to do so. I have not had any rats and only an occasional squirrel.

As far as TV being proactive in the rodent problem. Ha-ha-ha. Surely you jest. It ain't gonna happen!
The larger TV gets, the bigger the problem.

[Halibut]

Are we talking about species rattus palmarum? FWIW, the palm rat is listed as Vulnerable (VU), considered to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

[Two Bills]

Encourage feral cats into the area. They will reduce the rat population dramatically.

[Debup1]

Just bought a home south of 466A and have 3 in our traps in the garage! Have not moved in yet and hope we can figure out how to keep them out.

[8notes]

We live near Sumter Landing and see the black rat boxes everywhere. We have seen some live rats as wel