What's the best gun for use on rats?

[patman75]

I have a gamo big cat pellet gun that would do the trick and it would not take much to get good with it.

I would put out a bucket trap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jezQKOl5q-w

I would use a bigger bucket for rats.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Did I mention that we had the worst flea problem this past fall? Never had a problem before. I bet I know where they came from!!!

Rat fleas can carry Bubonic Plague​

 

[darkmatter]

Quote:
Ditto.

 

[jason_mazzy]

use the poison inside a large pvc pipe trick. a lil large screen on both ends so the other animals can not get to it, and the rats will eat it and die off. very rare chance it will die in your pen, as they usually retreat back to their den.

 

[rcn11thacr]

No one mentioned this and i was kinda surprized. Being a person with little or no exerience with firearms does not mean you have to rule out their use. Just buy rat shot instead of regular ammo for the 22. Rat shot is designed to work like a shotgun shell would by fanning out a pattern instead of only having one lead projectile. Sure makes a moving target alot easier to hit when you have them. Do not waste money on a nice rifle for this. This ammo will ruin the accuracy of a good barrel. Buy the cheapest, most beat up looking p.o.s. rifle you can get. Remember your range to the target will be very limited compaired to regular ammo. Buy a box and test it at 5-10-15 yds on cardboard to see how "tight" the pattern is at those ranges. If you have very little holes in a circle the size of a rat you know you need to be closer to get an effective/quick kill shot. As with all things that go bang...NEVER shoot anything until you know what is BEHIND the intended target. Secondly, safe gun ownership includes ensuring the ammo and firearm are locked securely and never used by children without constant 100% adult supervision. Better yet, make sure the kids get to shoot it. It takes the curiousity factor out of it and promotes education which is better than isolation. Best wishes

 

[greekbioguy]

i used the gun method in the past for rats and it does not bring their numbers down (makes you feel good though, revenge is sweet). if you coop is not rat and mouse proof then there is nothing you can do. if you can pass your finger from the outside to the inside of the coop then any rat can get in.any hole larger than 1-2 cm (2/3 of an inch) is a door for rats. if you insist on the air gun method then i would suggest a large air gun . i have a 22 cal weirauh x theoben, 32 foot-pounds of force fitted with a night scope ,it works miracles with rats at night, but i think cats are far better than any air gun they work all night and they enjoy it .i have 4 cats, 2 of them are excellent rat killers (they are large 6+ kilos). rats live in my yard (they feed from the compost pile) but they never managed to enter the aviaries (they tried their best ). in a yard with 2 dogs and 4 cats rats live very short and scared lives and they do not go around allot , baby rats are almost all taken by the cats (i can tell when baby rats leave their nests ,they end up at my frond door as presents ).

 

[greekbioguy]

Quote:
chocolate ,butter candy, peanut butter rats love sweets and butter . cheese is a myth. you know the sweet sneakers? (the chocolate bar with peanuts inside ) that's the best bait ever rats go mad for it ,it has chocolate that they love ,its sweet and has peanuts that they love .they will smell it a mile away and go for it . salty bait does not work as well as sweet bait

 

[magicpigeon]

I use a trap set in a different place every week. A more economic way of killing them (if you don't have a gun) which I use is to boil some hot water in a kettle, and while it is still bubbling pour it over the rat's head and lungs. Death is almost instant (you keep the rat in a small wire trap to do so

). Another technique from my father is to burn the rat, but I've never tried that...

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
chocolate ,butter candy, peanut butter rats love sweets and butter . cheese is a myth. you know the sweet sneakers? (the chocolate bar with peanuts inside ) that's the best bait ever rats go mad for it ,it has chocolate that they love ,its sweet and has peanuts that they love .they will smell it a mile away and go for it . salty bait does not work as well as sweet bait

X2 on the bait choices I use more then a few snap type traps and conibear 110 size traps here they work ell and the critter is dispatched by the trap most of the farmers that I trap for use red devil lye sprinkled in the runs and holes the rats travel through it is not poison but the rats lick it off their feet and it kills them when birds dust bathe in wood ashes it is the main ingredient that cleans them.

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
In NYS all you need to buy a long gun of any type is a valid driver's license--a handgun is another thing, you need a permit for that. Although I haven't purchase a air type pellet rifle in a long time, you may even be able to pick one up without any ID. Wal-Mart sells them as does Gander Mt, Cabella's and ProBass. BTW, you need to take a gun safety course to purchase your first hunting license but you don't need one to purchase a gun. Probably a good, high muzzle velocity air gun with scatter shot would work well for rats if you can spot them and they sit long enough for you to take aim. Just know what is in the background when you miss--because you will. Fortunately the range of pellets isn't that long.

Rats are tough because they are smart. Once they learn a trap is deadly, they will avoid it and teach their offspring to do it as well. I dislike poison since it is not specific enough but sometimes that's the only choice but it has to be of a kind that doesn't immediately kill or the rats will dope that out as well. On the other hand, I got rid of my rat problem very quickly--a weasel moved in and dispatched the whole colony in a month. The only problem was, once the rats were gone he started on my birds.