At Times Like These I Am Glad -

[Loving my Oldies]

I went downstairs to bring in the bins. Jeune and Tamar barking and sniffing so went to investigate. A dead rat. Tamar ran away, but Jeune continued to investigate. On with the gloves and I picked the rat up to take him down to the compost heap. He was still in a state of rigor mortis, so not dead for all that long. In fact, I’d been in the backyard a few times today and he certainly wasn’t there - impossible to miss .

I turned him over a few times as I was curious to see if he had any injuries which could explain his death because he looked plump, shiny fur, etc etc. I suddenly hit me: POISON!! Had he crawled into my place and finally died here?

I have never seen a rat in all the years I’ve lived here (used to see quite a few when I lived in Dulwich Hill) and even if I had, I wouldn’t be putting out the traps or poison.

Several houses have changed hands in the past few months and my fear is that new people are putting out poisons. I hope not as we are surrounded by the Lane Cove National Park.

Edited April 5, 2016 by Dame Danny's Darling

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

Poison is possible.

I caught a rat in my yard once that was like a very drunk rat. It was too unco-ordinated to run away from me... I dispatched it and put it in the bin.

I pretty much assume any rodent in my yard has been exposed to rat poison and hope it's not the really bad (fast acting super poisonous stuff). Tho they seem very healthy and energetic compared to the one I caught.

Fortunately for me, while evil hound loves hunting them, she won't eat them (or dispatch them).

[Little Gifts]

Stussy is obsessed with smaller critters and vermin but luckily struggles to ever catch anything. Over the years I have discovered quite a few dead rats in my yard which has caused me no end of panic because I also assume it has been poisoned by a neighbour. But strangely she has never tried to eat any of them. It is like she knows something is wrong, probably by their smell. And I know this because I have also found just their sunken unchewed skeletons in less obvious spots in the yard.

[tdierikx]

I'm lucky that my dogs are large breed mixes... 'cos the number of poisoned rats they have caught over the years is quite large... errr! They don't tend to eat them (that I know of), just usually bring them to me to show what efficient hunters they are... lol!

T.

[Maddy]

One of my dogs has killed a rat and if I hadn't heard the pounce and squeak, I wouldn't have known what killed it- it looked in very good condition, besides being dead.

The dog in question showed zero interest in eating it but I can't help but wonder if palatability of ratties is just not great? I've noticed similar trends with birds- the dogs will catch the odd starling or blackbird but show no interest in eating them. Spotted doves, on the other hand..

[karen15]

I came home one day to a headless rat next to the treadmill courtesy of my 5mo westie puppy.....

Years ago I taught our corgi to kill mice en masse from under bird cages. Once she got the idea to crunch and drop she'd annihilate dozens with one warren flooding. She was really fast.

Edited April 5, 2016 by karen15

[cannibalgoldfish]

The dog in question showed zero interest in eating it but I can't help but wonder if palatability of ratties is just not great? I've noticed similar trends with birds- the dogs will catch the odd starling or blackbird but show no interest in eating them. Spotted doves, on the other hand..

If it helps, they are just as introduced as the starlings and blackbirds and are building up to plague numbers down here.....

[gillybob]

Poisen takes about five days to kill them its very slow. In those five days they do things they normally wouldn't do. My house has been swamped with mice lately, its that time of year when they come inside where its warm, especially up here.

[Maddy]

The dog in question showed zero interest in eating it but I can't help but wonder if palatability of ratties is just not great? I've noticed similar trends with birds- the dogs will catch the odd starling or blackbird but show no interest in eating them. Spotted doves, on the other hand..

If it helps, they are just as introduced as the starlings and blackbirds and are building up to plague numbers down here.....

Yeah, but they're pretty and don't cause me any trouble, not voracious little feathered rats like the blackbirds and starlings.

Funny you mention about plague numbers, I've been noticing huge flocks of starlings/blackbirds and thought it was just my imagination that there seemed to be about eleventybillion of them around at the moment.

[Alempa]

Mice seem tone more prolific around here as the weather cools too. My kelpies love catching them but know not to eat anything.

[cannibalgoldfish]

Funny you mention about plague numbers, I've been noticing huge flocks of starlings/blackbirds and thought it was just my imagination that there seemed to be about eleventybillion of them around at the moment.

Probably their numbers are recovering. A few years back there was a huge die off because of a virus.

[gillybob]

Funny yesterday there were no currawongs here, today there are thousands, they come with winter and come spring they go. I love their calls it means winter is coming.