rodents

[3goodeggs]

I have cotton rats in my greenhouses. They bite the spaghetti tubes and everything gets sprayed with water except the plant that the tube was in.

I use the spring traps, but I only seem to have the clever rodents left. The Glue boards are probably the safest for the owls and hawks and my dogs, but.. I have a strange affinity for rodents, so I hate to see them suffer. But this may be my only recourse.

The area I would need cover prohibits trying the fresh cab. It would be too expensive to replace every month.
Have any of you used the Agrid 3?

 

[Mahlzeit]

I have those same smart rats. I very rarely have been able to get any with the spring loaded traps. No matter what I use as bait it's snatched off the trap without it being set off.

I have no experience with Agrid 3. I have never seen it for sale around here. I go with the conventional poisons. Hopefully there are some here who have used it.

 

[3goodeggs]

Thanks for your reply.
Agrid 3 is in the QC supply catalog.
I am getting frustrated. I have enough to do without fixing irrigation everyday. And the water puddles and algae and blaaa.

I am losing my affinity for rodents. I might try the glue boards. But I can see a dog sniffing the stuck rodent and gluing the entire thing-rodent and all- to it's nose, freaking out and destroying the rest of the green house.

 

[bugkiller]

Try putting bait on the traps with out setting them. This is very common with rats. they are very neuophobic ( shy of any thing new) I am an exterminator and I have dealt with this many times. If you place the bait on the trap and let them eat it for a few days with not getting caught also just put some of the bait on the floor around the traps. once they have cleaned the traps off a few nights in a row than set them

 

[rottnwarrior]

I attach bait to the traps. Super glue sunflower seeds or put bread and pnut butter on it and wrap it with thread so they have to pull on it. It works great and you get multiple uses out of the same bait.

 

[3goodeggs]

Thank you!
On the sister garden forum someone suggested placing the traps inside a large piece of PVC pipe. That would be great, I would not have to spring the traps during the day to prevent from getting a dog nose.
I could put the seeds in it with out the dogs cleaning up after me. That way the rats could get used to it.
Thank you everyone!

 

[sandovaljose214]

get a cat woman

 

[rottnwarrior]

Another thing you could try if you have a shelf or something elevated that they get on is to put bait in the small piece of PVC pipe and balance it on the edge of the shelf with a bucket of some sort half full of water under it. That way the rat goes in for the bait and when it tips up the rat is stuck and falls in the water and drowns. They are supposed to drown faster with soapy water for some reason. It works. I tried it with a flat board and caught a skunk haha.

 

[3goodeggs]

get a cat woman

Allergic badly, real bad. I would rather breathe.

 

[Mahlzeit]

You can also put out shallow dishes of coke or pepsi out for them to drink. They love the sweet taste of it. Rats and mice can't burp so it kills them. However they lose their fizz soon so I would recommend you put it out just before dark so they can drink it when it's fresh.