Rats

[bricro]

What is the most humane way to get rid of rats which have made a home under a garden shed,please?

[scotman]

contact your local council.

[snags]

http://ths.gardenweb..../msg060945084790.html

[tamborine]

this....either release rat far away or drop in deep water; for swimming lesson ofcourse.

http://www.primrose.co.uk/cage-trap-p-767.html

[LoftyLottie]

We have lots because we live amongst fields with field drainage farm buildings only 100 yards away. The most humane way we have found is to shoot them, but we do have to resort to rat poison I'm afraid. The cage traps just didn't work for us. Rats are clever creatures.

If you live in a town contact your local council. Country rats are usually not tackled by local councils unless they are actually in your home.

We get them in our loft. They climb up the brick and flint walls!!

A Jack Russell terrier helps!!

[Graham-W]

"We get them in our loft. They climb up the brick and flint walls!!

A Jack Russell terrier helps!! "

If your Jack Russell helps the rats to get into your loft I'd be having words with him ;-))

[anneasquith]

rat poisoning,

[Answerprancer]

My Dad uses one of those humane traps because rats sometimes appear in his compost heap (which is close to the house). He catches the occasional rat, then simply releases it into the woods -no problem.

[jomifl]

humane killing

[LoftyLottie]

LOL Graham!!!

[JonnyBoy12]

Burn the shed to the ground, perhaps?

[mrs.chappie]

I see that you are asking for the most humane way ... I do hope you won't use those horrible glue traps. As someone else has said, the poor things have been known to chew off their limbs to get away.

They need to die - well okay - but surely no creature deserves to go like that. :o(

[sandyRoe]

Poison isn't very nice either. I used it once and found 3 rats sitting shivering on the floor the next morning. I had to dispatch them with the back of a shovel.
Get a humane trap and release them well away from where they were caught.

[ELVIS68]

"I had to dispatch them with the back of a shovel" nice one

[zzxxee]

"Rats!!" <<<<<shudder>>>>>>>>
I'm not good with rodents but i agree contact your local council.

[mrs.chappie]

Another downside to poisoning, I guess ..... they'll crawl away from the poison and could die in a place that might be out of sight.

[sandyRoe]

The back of the shovel was the humane way after they'd been poisoned. I had to be cruel to be kind. That's why I recommended a humane trap.

[bricro]

Thank you everyone....food (or poison) for thought.!!

[LoftyLottie]

Sandy the newer type poisons don't do what Warfarin does and leave the rats shivering away and a long drawn out death. It's much quicker and kinder.

[NazNomad]

One just ran across my garden ... couldn't catch the little sod though.

[Chaffinch]

Definatly use a Jack Russel if you can get one (you can borrow mine if you like :)