Any idea on how fast they die?

[GBov]

So my rat problem is getting out of hand and I REALLY have to do my best to knock the problem on the head - so to speak - but I truly DONT want to use poison.

And reading up on all the ways to kill rats one keeps cropping up.

Plaster of Paris mixed with chocolate cake mix, placed into small baggies and shoved down into their holes.

Rats chew into and eat the dry mix, it sucks enough moisture from the stomach to activate teh plaster and the rat dies from a total blockage of the gut.

I know poison is NOT fast but it doesn't look painful but this other way just makes my skin crawl. However, without poison it doesn't mater what else eats the dead rat and that is important too.

Causing suffering to any animal is not a thing I do lightly but the rats have to go so, how long do you think it would take a plastered rat to die?

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Plaster of Paris mixed with chocolate cake mix, placed into small baggies and shoved down into their holes.

I think filling paper cupcake cups would make a nicer presentation.

how long do you think it would take a plastered rat to die?

Probably no longer than it takes for them to die from warfarin- it destroys the red blood cells, causing great thirst and ultimately dehydration. If you offered them some tasty fluid such as milk or gatorade, I bet they would die faster because when you mix plaster with liquid it creates a great deal of heat. If that doesn't kill them, the solid mass of plaster in their stomach will.<br /><br />__________ Mon Oct 15, 2012 2:24 pm __________<br /><br />By the way, when I saw the title of this post I thought "the other shoe" HAD dropped in your new colony set up! :lol:

 

[MaggieJ]

Just do it. Rats fall outside the normal range of compassion. They are vicious, unrelenting predators and they only get worse as the population climbs.

I used a plaster of Paris/icing sugar mix in our cellar (worried that my cat, Marilla, might snack on a poisoned rat. I found no carcasses, but the rats did seem to disappear. I know they took the bait.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I wonder if this would work for ants?

 

[GBov]

I wonder if this would work for ants?

Hmmmm, that's a good thought. Fire Ants are another thing right outside my mercy zone :twisted:

 

[MaggieJ]

For ants (not sure about fire ants) a 50/50 mix of icing sugar and baking soda is supposed to work very well. It apparently "blows them up", since their body fluids activate the baking soda. I take no credit or blame for this information... It was a science fair project of some unnamed student. But I did lay a jar of the mix on its side next to a particularly pesky ant hill once and it seemed to do the job. It is important to keep the mix dry so that the baking soda does not lose its effectiveness.

 

[Cindi Davis]

I have a bunch of feral cats I can send ya for the rats LOL

 

[GBov]

I have a bunch of feral cats I can send ya for the rats LOL

We have FOUR cats! And snakes and raccoons and hawks and owls...............

The rats dont seem to be much deterred or reduced by all the predators :evil:

Have decided to get teh plaster tomorrow. Having had a good doe pull hair but no kits to be seen, I think the rats got them all durring the night as they were born. We cant be having with THAT! And with all of my does due soon, the rats have to go.

I do hate to do it to them though, would MUCH rather kill them as cleanly as I kill the rabbits.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Having had a good doe pull hair but no kits to be seen,

There is still hope. One of my maiden does that just kindled pulled fur two days before, and mine usually wait until the last minute to pull fur.

Good luck with the killer cupcakes! :twisted: I think I am going to pick some plaster up to have on hand just in case!

 

[GBov]

Having had a good doe pull hair but no kits to be seen,

There is still hope. One of my maiden does that just kindled pulled fur two days before, and mine usually wait until the last minute to pull fur.

Good luck with the killer cupcakes! :twisted: I think I am going to pick some plaster up to have on hand just in case!

No hope for her, she pulled hair right on time and, two weeks later, I put her back in with the buck.

Killer cupcakes on the way tomorrow :twisted:

 

[3mina]

Humans, rats and coyotes, the three hardest mammals on this planet to eradicate.

 

[LindseysWoolies]

You want to borrow my jack Russell terrier?

 

[fishdip]

For ants (not sure about fire ants) a 50/50 mix of icing sugar and baking soda is supposed to work very well. It apparently "blows them up", since their body fluids activate the baking soda. I take no credit or blame for this information... It was a science fair project of some unnamed student. But I did lay a jar of the mix on its side next to a particularly pesky ant hill once and it seemed to do the job. It is important to keep the mix dry so that the baking soda does not lose its effectiveness.

Its like alot of animals they cant get the gas out. Side note sponge with something on it will kill rats,dog,cats,and alot of other animals. the more packed the spunge is befor they eat it the faster it will kill them as it will blow up in the intestin and they can not pass it.

__________ Mon Oct 15, 2012 9:31 pm __________

O and alka seltzer put in to a powder works best for ants.<br /><br />__________ Mon Oct 15, 2012 9:35 pm __________<br /><br />I also think rats cant pass gas you may try alka seltzer pouder mix with penut butter.

 

[Miss M]

Another thing that works well for ants is boric acid mixed with powdered sugar and peanut butter, to make a paste. If you use Borax, you need to mash it until it is very fine, or else they will eat the sweetened peanut butter and leave the Borax. You can get fine boric acid powder for roaches, and use that.

 

[mystang89]

Rats can't pass gas which is why another thing they say to use is pepsi, coke or pretty much any soda. Never worked for me, so I went with the poison.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Rats can't pass gas

I see this stated all the time about rabbits and other animals. I think there is some confusion... horses, rabbits, rats, mice, etc. cannot vomit nor belch, but I think anything with a rectum can "pass gas".

 

[mystang89]

That would probably be the reason why the pepsi didn't work for me. +1 vote for poisoning the little devils lol
EDIT: Just realized you said you didn't want to poison them....so +1 vote for killing them any way possible other than poison

 

[EnglishSpot]

How much cake/icing sugar goes in each cupcake paper?

Do you fold the cupcake paper up into a packet and shove it down the hole?

 

[Miss M]

How much cake/icing sugar goes in each cupcake paper?

Do you fold the cupcake paper up into a packet and shove it down the hole?

The cupcake paper bit was a joke about presentation. To keep it dry, it's best to put it into plastic baggies instead. I'm sure the rats would be able to smell through the plastic just fine, and they're certainly not going to have any trouble chewing into it.

I don't know how much to put into a baggie, but I'd probably put maybe half a ping pong ball's worth in. I'd keep supplying it as long as it kept being eaten.

Hopefully, someone who's done it will chime in. We haven't had a rat problem here yet.

 

[akane]

I can attest that horses and guinea pigs (a rodent) can pass gas. Stuff doesn't go forward but it does go backward. The plaster works by coating the intestines so they can't work properly and for rodents in particular causes problems absorbing water. Once they eat enough they should die within a day or 2 but how many other feed items they have and how much they like your bait mix will impact how long it takes to get enough in them. I have not placed it in wet conditions. I use an open, shallow dish. Actually 5 of them throughout the house.