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Godyssey

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Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Sep 7^th, 2008 at 10:42am

The other night, I saw something about the size of a rabbit or squirrel running out of my yard after I turned on the outdoor light. Last night, I left the light on for most of the night and that's when I saw a rat eating from my bird feeder! Shocked

Completely shocked and scared, I woke up my husband to ask him what to do. I was shocked because I thought rats only lived in city alleys or near dumpsters but he said they also live in wooded areas, and such an area is right behind our house.

I looked on the internet and there were some suggestions about putting cayenne pepper in the bird seed to rid myself of the rat. Does anyone know if this could actually work...or have any other suggestions? I really don't want to take down my feeders. Undecided

I guess I should state that I'm not willing to put snakes in my yard to eat the rat, nor will I introduce any other rat eating reptile or animal (a few other suggestions that I saw online).

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bikerbraid

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #1 - Sep 8^th, 2008 at 9:28am

I heard cayenne pepper works - I've never tried it myself. What kind of feeder do you have? Would a squirrel baffle possibly work? The baffle is a dome that is put on the chain or pole that holds the feeder. It prevents the animal from being able to climb up/down to the feeder. I use one to keep the squirrels and raccoons away from my feeder.

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bikerbraid
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Godyssey

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #2 - Sep 11^th, 2008 at 6:15pm

Thanks for responding, Bikerbraid! Cheesy

I ~~have~~ had two feeders, not counting the hummingbird feeder. One was a squirrel feeder attatched to my fence and the other was just a standard feeder on a shepards hook. Well, I believe that the one squirrel that we had was killed (untintentionally and indirectly, by me) but I left the feeder up anyway because the birds began eating from it.

Anyway, the rat was eating from the bird feeder. It would climb up the shepards hook and leap onto the bird feeder, the same way that the squirrel used to. So, the baffle wouldn't work for me. I put pepper on, in and on the ground around the bird feeder, only for the rat to begin eating from the squirrel feeder. The next day, I took the squirrel feeder down but then he went back to the other one inspite of all of the pepper, so I then took that one down too. Now, unless I find another feeder that will keep him out and away, then there will be no more bird feeding for me...aside from the hummers. Cry

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bikerbraid

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #3 - Sep 12^th, 2008 at 8:22am

My house is surrounded by oak trees. My house is also surrounded by squirrels. The squirrels are everywhere. If I allowed them to get to my bird feeders, I would go thru 20 pounds of seed a day. Angry

The best feeder I have found to keep the squirrels away is one that has the perch that drops down with too much weight. This will then close the feeder area, limiting the seed the animal can get to. This has kept the grey, black and red squirrels and raccoons away from my feeders. The only non-birds that can still feed are the little flying squirrels we have, but they don't eat much! Grin

Here is a picture of one similar to mine. Mine is a bit smaller but the concept is the same. I have mine mounted on a post and have a dome/baffle under the feeder, preventing anything from climbing up the post. I also have a hanging thistle feeder with a dome/baffle over it to prevent them from climbing down to the feeder or jumping from the trees. Here are some pics of feeders with the domes. This sitehas a number of "squirrel proof" feeders. In my opinion there is no such thing as squirrel proof. But you can deter them! I've also found I can keep them away from the bird food by giving them their own food. I have put out cobs of corn for them. If they have something easier to eat, they leave the feeders alone. If you want to have some fun - attach the cob of corn to the end of a chain and hang it from a tree. The squirrels will become acrobats to get at the corn. (We use an eye-hook screw to attach the cob.)

I could never take my bird feeders down - I enjoy the birds way too much to let the squirrels take them away from me.

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bikerbraid
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Godyssey

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #4 - Sep 14^th, 2008 at 3:14am

Quote:

The squirrels are everywhere. If I allowed them to get to my bird feeders, I would go thru 20 pounds of seed a day.

I never understood why they made "squirrel proof" feeders but I can see your point. I've never had that many squirrels, so feeding them wasn't a concern of mine and I liked watching them.

Quote:

I could never take my bird feeders down - I enjoy the birds way too much to let the squirrels take them away from me.

Squirrels don't bother me either but a rat is completely different. Unfortunately, I couldn't not take my feeders down after that.

I like the feeder that you linked to. My only concern would be the possibility of birds dropping seeds on the ground which may attract the rat again. I don't want to do anything that may attract it again.

I'm even thinking of changing my mind about an outdoor fireplace/grill that I wanted to put outside. I read that grills also can attract rats. Nor will I be able to grow vegetables outside like I wanted too either. Sad

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Angel Spun

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #5 - Sep 14^th, 2008 at 12:44pm

Could you try maybe setting up a trap somewhere?

When my family had a mouse invasion awhile back, my father set out really sticky paper (like fly paper, but stronger) and the mouse stuck to it. Then, he drove the critter to a field a few miles away from our house to let it go and we've not seen it since. Not sure if this would work for a rat, but you get the idea.

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bikerbraid

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #6 - Sep 15^th, 2008 at 8:49am

Birds will always drop seeds to the ground. I've never known the ground seeds to attract rats (squirrels and mice, but not rats).

I too, have heard that greasy grills can attract rats. My grill is up on a 2nd floor deck, so I've not had issues with rats, just the squirrels and raccoons. I imagine that if you kept the grill reasonably clean, it would not attract rodents. (i.e., burn/scrape any food from the grill after cooking.)

Gardens will attract all kinds of animals. I think rats go more for garbage/dead food. I've never heard of them being a significant issue with a garden. Rabbits and deer are the main animals that can destroy a garden.

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bikerbraid
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rodent Emerald Offline Greetings! Posts: 344 Missouri Gender:	Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder! Reply #7 - Sep 15^th, 2008 at 6:22pm Uh-oh... It looks like I've been spotted.
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Godyssey

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Re: Rat Eating From Bird Feeder!
Reply #8 - Sep 15^th, 2008 at 8:20pm

Quote:

Uh-oh... It looks like I've been spotted.

Quote:

Could you try maybe setting up a trap somewhere?

Yeah, we're going to try a trap. (Sorry, Rodent Roll Eyes

)We only had one squirrel, so perhaps there is only one rat. I saw a lone cardinal sitting on my fence and it made me sad, I miss the birds.

Quote:

I too, have heard that greasy grills can attract rats. My grill is up on a 2nd floor deck, so I've not had issues with rats, just the squirrels and raccoons. I imagine that if you kept the grill reasonably clean, it would not attract rodents. (i.e., burn/scrape any food from the grill after cooking.)

Gardens will attract all kinds of animals. I think rats go more for garbage/dead food. I've never heard of them being a significant issue with a garden. Rabbits and deer are the main animals that can destroy a garden.

Those things are all good to know, thanks.

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