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Kittys Mom


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KITTY vs. THE RAT
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California, 6am..
The sun is not up.
KM, the great huntress has set traps on her kitchen sink and behind her stove to see if it was indeed, a rat that ran into the house when she was cleaning the shed behind the house last Monday.
KM[in her stupidity] had left the door to the house open, while she began cleaning an area, extremely rat occupied, that had not been opened in about 8 years or so.
At some point, a dark blur seemed to flit into the house at the corner of her vision, which immediately made her wonder at the wisdom of closing doors to the house, before clearing areas nearby that obviously house vermin...


The next day was my Disney trip, the house stayed shut up about 10 hours. When I opened the door, I commented with a sinking feeling that the house smelled "mousey".
I have an acute sense of smell, it comes in handy, and is one of my best defense systems[I can smell most lurkers outside, 1/2 a block away, convenient-if they want to remain unseen].
I was hoping I was wrong, but the house needed cleaning, anyway, and the discovery of a dozen rat turds on the kitchen sink sent me into a cleaning frenzy Monday
I was still in denial, but set the glue traps after all was cleaned and ordered[various appliances vying for space on that area].
I was coaching myself last night on what to do when I catch something, as the glue trap won't hold them very long at all, and once they have been stuck to one, they are real hard to catch a second time.
So, this morning Tanya let out a loud bark, followed by my usual distressed threats and admonishments. Undeterred by my return curses and threats, she continued a loud bark after another, until my sleepy brain decided that if the rat was on a trap, or god forbid, if the stupid cat had gotten on one by accident, I'd better get up and deal with it.
Sure enough, a 16 inch, healthy strong RAT was caught behind the stove...
Plan A was drowning it in the kichen sink, plan B was using a bucket filled in the tub, both went out the window as I see the critter dive under the stove, with only it's 7 inch tail and back legs still caught to the glue. Plan C went into effect, pin what I can of the critter down to the glue with the end of a broom handle, run to the front of the stove attempt to push the trap and rat[now both out of sight], back behind the stove again, pin and drag the trap out with said broom handle[that the creature remains stuck] and grab any nearby object and bash the creature to death, as quickly as possible.
That being done, I was a little too awake to go right to bed, so I thought I would share...before what I have been doing this morning hits me
Good thing I am not a breakfast eater.

Can I go back to bed now?

Picture the sheep with long bristley, wrinkled tails, and short brown fur...

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lil_exorcist


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Kitty you are a much braver & stronger woman than I.  I would be running for the nearest neighbor to take care of the rat. 


That being said, you also are a much better storyteller than I, I thought mine were good (having learned from my father) but I must admit, You have won the title of queen storyteller in my book.  If I could find an emoticon bowing before you I would share.




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Paige


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OMG!!!! I would have totally freaked out. I hate rats and mice. They give me goosebumps just thinking about them. You are much braver than me. LOL!!!

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Kittys Mom


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I am a bit freaked myself. That is why I'm writing 'till I get tired enough to sleep.
I was struggling with my conscience last night about murdering this poor creature, but in the heat of battle, I would bedamned before I would have let the blasted thing be loose in my house. You should have seen how big and healthy it was, jeez...
I can't stand the smell of rodents...it is why I stopped keeping snakes, after having Boas most of my life. I love snakes. I dislike rodents and mites...
I think mice are cute. I always felt sorry for them, so was happier feeding rats, but then, that grossed me out.

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dusty082155


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i couldnt have done it ! lol. have a hard time killing a bug. my youngest son is the same way. we had a little mouse that had gotten trapped in the bathtub once. my ex was going to drown it, so me and my son took it out into the woods and let it go. i hate being such a big softy, i blame it on my dad, he is the same way. he couldnt kill anything either. i know rats are pests and need to go, i just couldnt be the one to do it.   

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Kittys Mom


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Nobody here but me...

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ZoeandTucker


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I always call pest control.  They know me by now.  I had to do it not to long ago because there was a snake in my garage.   Snake 







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nikkispnce


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Eekkk I think skipping the glue trap and going right for the spring rat trap would have been much easier!!!!! Yucky Yucky Yucky!!!

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moencat


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I say, THREE CHEERS for you KM!!  No need for you to feel badly....I think those creepy little varmints are more than welcome to stay alive as long as they stay OUT OF MY LIVING QUARTERS!  You venture inside, and all bets are off.


I, personally, am plain and simply TERRIFIED of mice and rats, so I applaud you for hunting him down.  I've often told my husband that I'd have to move out if there were ever evidence of one visiting my happy little home.  He thinks I'm joking...NOT.


Hope you get to take a nap later ;)


 


Cathy



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Kittys Mom


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Oh, I went right to sleep after that last post.
Had a dream with guys chasing me, I jumped on a bus full of kids, just as the suits were cornering us[yeah, I watch too much science fiction] I activated a computer defense system that became an giant, sentient Dragon, to defend me. Last thing in the dream was handing the dragon[in the form of a crying human woman] a tiny infant to hold, and explaining that we humans are fragile[she would not hurt the children]...
I feel better now.

Moen, I agree, but I wish the feral cats were still outside. They would have caught that creature long ago.
I pretty much leave things alone that are outside, but if they are poisonous, or a future threat to the dogs, like a raccoon, I would eliminate them.

Zoe, I don't have enough money to buy a pizza[except on 1/2 price days] so I guess the exterminator is out. That, and the fact that within 24 hours I had the beast caught and killed, w/o inviting a 3 ring circus into my house to look for them. I have never found vermin much of a challenge. I grew up hunting and fishing [passionately] and never had prey elude me with simple traps I made myself. If they get savvy of the trap, though, you have a problem

I hope that was the only one. I'm leaving the traps down this week, just in case.

Funny, I had seen the soap bottle knocked over into the sink a few days ago, and thought either I had tied a real big one on the night before, or I thought somehow the cat had done it. Poor Kitty

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PrettyDobie


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I would have screamed and started throwing things at it till it was out of the house. LOL

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dusty082155


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and you would have just busted all of your stuff and lost your voice, but still had a rat, but one that was even more determine not to leave.

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StormyWinter


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dusty082155 wrote:

and you would have just busted all of your stuff and lost your voice, but still had a rat, but one that was even more determine not to leave.

 


LOL God that is so true! That rat would never leave at that point.



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KatzPomDogz


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I think I would have used a live trap. I don't believe in hunting or killing animals. No offense to those of you that do. I have always used live traps and always will. Snap traps are so very harsh. Sad if it kills them right away but if it doesn't, it is a horrible death that not even a rodent deserves, so those are DEFINITELY not allowed in or around my home as well as poisons such as D-con, my animals aren't going to die because of it and I don't think it is a nice way for mice and rats to either. I definitely think I would have went with a live trap and released it.


 **I pretty much leave things alone that are outside, but if they are poisonous, or a future threat to the dogs, like a raccoon, I would eliminate them.**


Never once had a problem with raccoons, I used to own one named Prince. I am furious right now at my neighbor for shooting one just the other night. I think it is wrong to kill an animal just for trying to survive. Just my opinion though. I know that as long as I live here, I will probably never see a raccoon alive again. Unless it was obviousely rabid, I don't ever see a reason to kill one. My dogs are crated at night and my garbage is kept sealed and my doors are locked. No danger here. I would love to have raccoons running around.



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Kittys Mom


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I am fairly certain that one of my brood b*tches, Megan, is terrified to go outside, for the last year, because a raccoon that was on the property, somehow interacted with her, one night.
The beast was as large as she is.
I am very worried about her getting a urinary infection from not pottying like the other dogs at night.
At first, she was too terrified to go out AT ALL....DAY OR NIGHT.
After a year of conditioning, she will refuse only to go out at night.
Raccoons are really smart, and will kill dogs, given the right conditions...the dogs are not as clever as they are.

Vermin just disconcert me.
I am not a crusader to annihilate them though, they have their place in nature...just not in my house, or tiny dog yard[I do not feed my dogs outside, no vermin have a right to nest there]....
However, be aware that I would trap and release something as large as a raccoon into a local forest.
I have guns of various calibers, but that is NOT a solution in my area...
I am extremely well versed in live traps.
I don't think I will use live traps on imported rats, sorry.
Some things breed too well, and are not as controlled as they should be.
I draw the line at roaches, and rats...they will be exterminated on sight, or on suspicion of their existance...

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Sandyboo


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Wow KM...definetly brave.  i congrat you on being able to do what you did! i have to admit i'd be with PD on this one, and would just start throwing things *with me being on top of the counter or a chair or something* until it ran away.  and then i would get someone else to deal with it for me! so congrats to you for being able to deal with it yourself! i can deal with the rats and mice that i have to deal with at work, but thats different cause they're little, and they're in a cage.  and i can deal with the gerbil i have, because she too is in a cage, and she's a pet.  but woah, you should have seen me at the bus station the other day.  i was sitting there and this huge rat ran in front of my feet, i was on the bench screaming...and then this stupid little mouse came out of nowhere, and i screamed again! haha, im such a wuss! and i honestly couldn't see myself being able to kill it....i have a hard time killing spiders! haha

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Kittys Mom


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Things like that don't bother me.
I wish it were some endangered thing that I could defend.
Rats and roaches are just something that" canna share my space."..

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twinkletoes


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Rat facts

Friday August 2, 2002

Guardian


· There are an estimated 60m - one for each person in the UK. Most of them are brown rats


Each year, rodents cause more than one billion dollars in damage in the United States alone.


· Their average lifespan is 18 months and one pair can produce a colony of 2,000 rats in a year


· Rats eat the equivalent of 10% of their body weight daily, consuming rubbish, leftover dog food, bird food and dog excrement

· Each year about 200 people contract Weil's disease, an infection carried in rat urine which can lead to kidney or liver failure

· Health officials in China are now giving wild rats food-flavoured birth control pills

· A group of rats is called a mischief


Catch that Rat!~ Footprints and tail drags can be seen in dusty locations. Use tracking dusts such as talcum or flour to determine if rodents are frequenting certain areas


If dogs or cats unexplainably get excited, rats are probably moving about in wall voids or ceilings


 


Great Story Kitty ..living in farmland we are surrounded by the little buggers ..luckily the terrier gets rid of most of them but i know how discusting they are and they can become quite viscous towards humans if you challege them.ive had one charge at me before ..lets just say i ran screaming and the rat won. I was huge though (im always worried that its gonna run up my trouser leg or something


Luckily we havent had them come in the house ..only the odd dead one the cats dropped through the window



-- Edited by twinkletoes at 04:36, 2005-09-15

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Kittys Mom


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Well, Sandy, this was no gerbil, it looked like the icky cartoon on my post above. I could see nothing cute about it. I felt like screaming, too...fortunately, my response to fear is usually violent.
Thanks Twink. We have a Henta virus hereabouts that goes with rodents, it kills people. Merely cleaning their poop, and breathing it will be how you contract it. Once in a while the news reports a death in the area from it. Also, the wildlife in this area has occasional outbreaks of Bubonic plague [sweet]. Other than that the nasty thing will pee and poop and chew it's way through my house, they are terribly destructive. Most stuff in that storage shed is destroyed, the rest is infected.
My friend last night reminded me that rodents teeth grow so fast that they MUST chew to keep their teeth the correct length, the reason little pets are given wood blocks and stuff...

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nikkispnce


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We had a problem with them in an apartment complex we lived in Virginia Beach. So if anyone lives there NEVER rent from Emerald Point West!!!! Anyways. I thought we had a mouse cause the thumb was chewed off my oven mitt. One night I was watching tv and saw it run across the kitchen and it was a rat!!! we caught and killed it with a rat trap, housing said it was someone pet loose (yeah right!!!!)hubby said it would be funny if it had babies and low and behold 2 days later I had 3 baby rats running about my house!!!! with no fear. So I had to trap them too. Then we tried to break our lease and they wouldn't let us. Don't you know about 4 months later another rat showed up, killed that one too and moved shorty after, i had friends who lived in the same building and they had rats after we moved. YUCK YUCK YUCK YUCK!!!!! I've had 3 mice here but caught them all.

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