Rats in Backyard?

I noticed a bunch of holes in the ground in our backyard and in our neighbor’s backyard. They seem like they could be rat holes. We do have construction a few lots up that has been halted since March but could still be the cause. My neighbor has 3 cats that were strays that she did the Trap-Neuter-Return program so they are outside most of the time and are probably decent hunters. We also had an opossum around last summer but no one has seen it lately. I’m not sure what to do if the holes are from rats. I’m really afraid of them getting into the house. I don’t feel like we can use bait stations because if one of the cats or the opossum gets one that has poison in their system they would get ill or die. I’ve heard that owls can help but also heard that it’s very unlikely that we would be able to attract owls in our location. Is there anything else we can do? Our backyard and the other yards are clean and well kept so there isn’t anything out of the ordinary attracting them. Thank you!

jtula

in General Discussion 5 years ago

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restorationcontractor | 5 years ago

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Leave some wet cat food in the yard to attract your neighbors cats (with their permission). Strays and feral cats love rats.
Your standard housecat just doesn’t have that kind of motivation!

Guest User | 5 years ago

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that is definitely a best-case scenario arkady! if a squirrel digs a hole it’s deep enough to pull out a nut or hide a nut. if a rat digs a hole it’s deep enough to create a tunnel.

Guest User | 5 years ago

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that is definitely a best-case scenario arkady! if a squirrel digs a hole it’s deep enough to pull out a nut or hide a nut. if a rat digs a hole it’s deep enough to create a tunnel.

Arkady | 5 years ago

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Holes dug in my garden & that of my neighbor were done by squirrels.

Chas373 | 5 years ago

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If it were me I’d throw all weather Contrac blox, smeared with some peanut butterand I’d throw plenty of them in, near and not so near the holes and against the walls/perimeter of where the rats will run. The priority is getting rid of the rats and quickly. Saftey of a possum is not high on the list compared to the disease that a rat infestation can cause.

Guest User | 5 years ago

string(1) "3"
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I don’t really know from voles but a rat colony will definitely produce a number of noticeable holes in a backyard. depending on the size of the rats, cats might not want to get anywhere near them. check the whole perimeter of your house for any potential entries and fill fill fill. while you’re doing the perimeter check, look for rat poop (about as long as a pencil eraser is wide but oblong, not circular). as for total elimination of the population i don’t know… concrete your yard?

Guest User | 5 years ago

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cate | 5 years ago

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A bunch of noticeable holes sounds more like voles than rats.

Guest User | 5 years ago

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string(6) "201901"

Opossums prey on rats. So good news is if your opossum is still around, it probably works on your rat problem.
My repeated experience with nearby construction projects is they frenzy rat activity at nearby buildings

Guest User | 5 years ago

string(1) "3"
string(6) "201901"

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