Rat in the Yard
Anyone seeing a rat scurry through their yard or garden has reason to take some quick defensive measures to get rid of these rodents before they do any damage. It’s important to act as quickly as possible because rats can bring disease into your yard that can affect your children and pets, as well as cause damage to the fruits and vegetables growing in your garden. There are a number of effective ways how to get rid of rats in the yard safely and permanently.
(1) Give rats an eviction notice by removing the places where they like to build their homes. These include piles of wood planks and lumber that are stacked permanently and not often disturbed. Another favorite place where rats congregate include bushes, vines and shubbery that are overgrown and never trimmed back. Piles of rocks in a yard or garden provide another cozy living space for rats in a yard and should be removed. Holes in the foundation of a house that allow rats to scurry back and forth between the yard and under the house should be repaired to prevent access. Old furniture, appliances or other box-like discards laying around a yard are just asking for a family of rats to move in, so remove them to the junk yard.
(2) Stop feeding rats by enabling them to feast on a garbage buffet. Many homeowners whose yards are plagued by rats simply fail to secure their garbage cans with lids, rope or cords. Open garbage containers and containers whose lids are not secured allow the food contents to spill out into the yard, sending an aromatic signal to neighborhood rats that there’s free chow for the asking in and around the garbage bins in your yard. Make sure that you seal your food garbage in plastic bags prior to putting it into the trash bin, and always keep your trash bins covered and adequately sealed so that there is no food, drippings or other enticing litter that will attract rats to your yard. If you must store foods like pet chow in the garage, make sure it is in sealed metal containers that can’t easily spill open.
(3) Bring on the heavy artillery if steps one and two haven’t worked and visit your local gardening or hardware store to invest in some organic rodent repellent which can be shaken in pellets over the ground. This type of repellent carries the scent of a predator animal that rats fear, so they’ll steer clear of anywhere in your yard where this repellent has been distributed. Although stronger poisons and traps can be very effective, they are not recommended if children or pets use the yard because they present an added danger. It’s often best to stick with more humane solutions for ridding your yard of rats.
(4) Adopt a dog, preferably from your local animal shelter. Rats will never congregate in any yard where Fido rules the roost.
Related Video:
First Aid & Safety Tips : How to Get Rid of Rodents Naturally
