Hey everyone!
After moving to Florida, I faced a rodent trifecta: Norway rats in my shed, roof rats in the attic, and marsh rice rats in my garden pond. Each species required wildly different tactics:
- Norway rats: Ignored traps but fled from ammonia-soaked rags
- Roof rats: Outsmarted my $200 AI camera but fell for fig-scented snap traps
- Marsh rice rats: Survived sonic repellents but drowned in DIY bucket traps
Now I’m broke but educated. How do you tailor control methods to specific rat types without going bankrupt?
Norway rats: Blunt snout, burrowers. Roof rats: Pointed snout, climbers. Use tracking powder to ID paths. Marsh rice rats? Float sardine-oil rafts in ponds, they can’t resist!
Roof rats destroyed my mango crop! Switched to electrified netting ($300). 100% kill rate but zapped a possum. @WildlifeRehabber Legal alternatives?
Black rats jump 4ft vertically! Norway rats max at 2ft. Use suspended bait stations for roof rats. Marsh rice rats need non-toxic aquatic traps to protect frogs.
Kangaroo rats stole my seeds! Buried glue boards in sand tunnels. Caught 12 overnight. Controversial but effective. @ExterminatorDave Ethical?
1800s barn had ship rats (roof rat subspecies). Sealed beams with copper mesh + hot pepper wax. They migrated to neighbors’ homes. Oops.
Rice rats are keystone species! Used live traps + 5-mile relocation. Cost $50/rat. Now the HOA hates me. Worth it for biodiversity?
Electrified nets need USDA permits! Try solar-powered vibration plates on trees. Roof rats hate the tremors. $150 setup. No fried possums.
Glue boards = torture. Kangaroo rats chew off limbs to escape. Use dry ice burrow fumigation, humane CO2 euthanasia. Requires state permit but 100% legal.
Relocation spreads disease! 70% relocated rats die in 48hrs. Better to install nesting boxes for owls, let nature control them.
Tried owl boxes, rats ate the eggs! Now using motion-activated water jets + bitter apple spray. Rats think my yard’s cursed. 8 weeks, zero sightings!