Well, this is the Big Game forum, probably the most appropriate place for this...

Sometimes the kill is more important than the hunt. Some of you may know what I mean- it's open season on pack rats and I'm going to kill them using bait, spotlighting, and ilegal and immoral traps. I don't care about ethics- IT MUST DIE!!!

About a week ago, a pack rat moved into my shed/reloading/storage area. This thing has shit all over by work bench, gun cabinet, airolite mattress, and everything else.

It has started chewing up my fuzzy rifle pad, that I put down when dissasmbling a gun. It's making a nest out of the material. It's gotten into the walls behind the drywall, in the insulation.

It's smart, too...much smarter than mice. It's managed to avoid dying in my elaborate beer can/ string/ bucket of water trap. But no more. I've just been to the hardware store and got some of those glue boards, and placed it on his only route to the peanut butter bait.

If this fails, I will stay up all night sitting in the dark, with a flashlight, a .22 loaded with shotshells, and a bottle of cheap whiskey that will make me meaner than I already am!

If you've ever been down this road, you know my frustration- IT MUST DIE!!!

go gettem Gatehouse!
I've got a mouse out in my studio that's been chewin up all kind of stuf.
Don't get me started on the squirrels(tree rats)

I agree with you........

AD

A tree rat got in my friends parent's cottage. I needed to get the 10/22 out with the 25 round clip to make sure he knew I was serious!

Blast his furry ass Gatehouse!

Gatehouse-don't depend on .22 shot shell or even a .357 shotshell ,put a good muskrat trap in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket and put a CLEAN WHITE cloth over it you got him they cannot not try to violate the clean cloth if you get a shot I found a round ball load in straight wall case of your choice with a couple of grs of fast powder check point of aim-you have no choice you must kill- Rawhider
p.s. if he is rut maddened breal the shoulders down

I used a .22 subsonic through a little Squirrel rifle to kill a large rat making his home in a nearby park after it started shitting all over the playstructures and parents got all up in arms about it and the health and saftey of their children and the city wouldn't do a damn thing about it. I got a few signatures from the concerned and said I'd kill him if they had no problem with it. Easiest hunt ever! Threw an open bag of potato chips into the field and stood on a park bench to have a downward shot (to be safe of my backdrop) and I capped that f!@#er right in the head without so much as a "poof!" about 5 minutes later. Dumped him in a garbage bag after putting on some garden gloves and chucked him in a BFI bin. He was about double the size of a full grown cottontail. Then some of the local Mom's got together and wiped everything down with bleach and a guy with pressure sprayer did a rince. Kids are happy again. Leave it to the hunters!

The little bastard is smarter/bigger than I thought...

I just checked the trap. The bait has been hit, but he managed to get off the gllue board, leaving behind only some hairs....

I might have to get one of my magnums for this tough old boy. It's times like these you really wish you had a fine double rifle, or maybe even full auto!

when i was a kid we got a mouse in our house that was doing the usual destructive mouse stuff. i was assigned the job of getting rid of him. we lived in iran at the time and the iranians had no idea what a mouse trap was so i had to break out the pellet rifle. i found a hole at floor level under the sink where he was getting in the wall. i laid the gun on the floor and sighted it on the hole. then i put a piece of blue cheese(very fragrant!!) in the hole and waited. about 90 seconds later he showed up sniffing the cheese. one shot and no more mouse. not a "big" game like a rat but it made a welcome change from doing homework. good luck in your quest. the vermin must die!! cheers...bud

Good luck Gatehouse, git 'em.

I know how you feel. I had the pleasure of drilling a large hole through a woodchuck on Friday with an arrow. One less rodent in the world now.

Gatehouse,
You're in luck! If there's one thing I know it's pack rats! I've killed a couple bushels of them, sometimes with very little damage to the house, truck, Jeep, boat, etc. I've killed them with traps, rifles, pistols, shotguns, airguns, blackpowder guns, sticks, brooms, slingshots and shoes. I've been aided by a golden lab, a cocker spaniel, a pit bull and a beagle. The bulldog was best but was a little destructive. On one occasion he nearly ripped the fender off the Mazda and did take the seat out of the Thunderfrog (my green '62 Dodge truck).
One of the more memorable rat killings though came not at my hands nor the teeth of my dogs but through the unbridled fury displayed by my fellow guide, Black Cloud.
It all started early that morning when we were awakened by an unearthly scream from within our cabin.
"What the blank was that!" Black Cloud was sitting up on his upper bunk rubbing his eyes.
"There's a blanking rat in my blanking boot!", shrieked another one of the guides, "get him out!"
I looked over and, sure enough a pack rat was peering out of Cal Mcgillam's (not his real name. His behaviour through the whole thing was somewhat shameful so I'll give him anonimity)
"I'll get the blanker!" hollered Black Cloud as he swung out of his bunk. He grabbed a piece of firewood and threw it at the rat. The rat ducked then jumped out of the boot and ran under Cal's bed.
"It's under the bed!" he shrieked. He grabbed his clothes and ran out the door. We heard him holler from outside," The blanker crapped in my boot!"
"Shit in my buddie's boot will ya!" Black Cloud roared. Grabbing the broom he threw himself on the floor and started stabbing at the rat.
Now, I have to admit, by now I was laughing so hard I was having trouble getting my breath. Cal was yelling encouragement from the safety of the porch.
Pack rats are quick and for a minute it seemed like this one might escape. Black Cloud handled that broom like a warriors lance though and finally he killed the cornered rat with a mighty thrust. He then flung the door open and flipped the rat carcass out the door. This elicited another squeal from McGillam as the rat went by. By the way, his version of events was quite a bit different than ours.
Another time I was cleaning out the same cabin prior to the season. I had hauled my generator and shop vac up to do the job. I was vacuuming around the base of the wall when, right at eye level, there was a rat! Without thinking I lifted up the nozzle of the shop vac and ended up with the rat stuck on the end of the nozzle. I didn't know what to do then so I figured to turn off the vac then stomp the rat when he hit the floor. I hit the switch and that rat left so fast I stomped nothing but air!
Hope you have better luck with your rat! Regards, Bill.

Bill, I just about fell of my chair. You oughta write this stuff down and sell it!

Canuck

Dad's old trick always works for me.Take three small trapping traps and put them in a almost touching type circle then drape over with cheese cloth,old tee shirt etc. sprinkle top with broken cornbread crumbs.Go back next day and clean up the mess.(oh yha,keep any WANTED pets away)

Bill, That was FUNNY!

Here's my amusing pack rat tale (not this new bastard)

Back when we were building the house, we were camping on the property. One weekend the roof rafters were going on, so I enlisted the help of my Dad (the foreman/engineer), and two friends. One of ny buddies was from Vancouver, a very laid back non-gun urban guy, Darryll.

By Saunday afternoon the rafters are all on, and my Dad heads home as does the other buddy. Daryll doesn't have to be back until tuesday, so we decide to have dinner and sit by the campfire and have a beer.

There has been a pack rat terrorizing the campsite for awhile, and no luck killing him. Just after dark, it runs by us and under a pile of log slabs. I grab the only gun handy, a 12 guage pump gun, and jack a couple of shells into it. Gun in my right hand,flashlight in the left, we approach the wood pile. I instruct Darryl to lift up the slab I saw him go under.

He lifts it,a nd it scurries under another. I'm frantic now- Lift the other one! Quickly! He does, and I catch the rats face in the flashlights beam, poking out form under the slab. BOOM!

Dust flies everywhere, including into my face. there is a huge gouge in the wood...as the dust settles I can just make out what is left of the rat- a ham and a tail! I'm ecstatic!

Darryll is just staring at me with a funny look on his face, maybe a bit scared, even.

"My God! That thing is @#$%^&* LOUD!

Use HAVOC, it works great on barn rats. It has worked on rats the size of small coons! You can probably get it at your local feed store. The marts and grocery stores don't carry this kind of stuff.

Bill said:

"I've killed a couple bushels of them, sometimes with very little damage to the house, truck, Jeep, boat, etc. "

They are way smarter than your average mouse. We had one in our Kenworth one time. Figured the thing logged about 45,000 miles before he finally bit it after several months. Talk about your P.O.'d driver! LOL! Dutch.

Bill, you tell great stories. You should write them down, as mentioned. - Dan

Gatehouse,
I have heard some unsubstantiated rumors that packrats were genetically altered normal sewer rats trained at MIT by CIA operatives in the ways of stealth tactics. I happen to be one of those who do not believe that and think they are far smarter. I just hope they never make the endangered species or is it fecies list.

Years ago my friend Elmer and I were hunting deer up behind Mission, BC. We were camped in an abandoned one room, shake cutter's shack that had a pretty healthy mouse population.

In the middle of the night, I was woke up by a mouse running over my sleeping bag. I got up, got my .270 Win and a flashlight with a magnetic thing on the side and attached the light to the rifle and went back to bed.

A while later, the mouse woke me again. I scanned the room with the light and sure enough, there he was, sitting in front of the door. I took careful aim and let fly.

I missed the mouse but I woke up Elmer. He wasn't amused.

Put out a saucer or lid of 7UP in the middle of the floor...He will drink it and die within 3 feet of the saucer...Mice and Rats cannot handle carbonated water of any kind..

we will need pics of the trap and the trophy, for further amusement--will you do a european, shoulder or full body mount is what I'd like to know-or maybe just the rug-or is the scally wag destined to make the trash can of fame?.....chris

Skin him and salt the hide! Then tack it to the wall after it is dried!

Well did you get him last night?

Hey man you better watch out packratticusnongratticus may come after you for killin the little bugger. p.s. have you done him in yet keep us informed.

This is a timley post as Ive got one of the bastards as well. Hes robbed several mouse traps and they dont phase him, I only hear the damn thing inside the walls. Running inside the ceiling, scratching inside the walls. Its got me ready to tear the walls apart myself just to get a shot at him.

7 up ay! Im off to the fridge. This friggin Rat has gotta go!

AAARRGGGHHHH!

I almost got him! He sliped away like the vermin that he is!

I set out two newly purchased rat traps this evening, baited wiht peanut butter. I go back an hour later, and the traps are sprung, peanut butter gone, no rat.

I reset the traps, this time placing them more strategically so he will risk snapping both off at the same time. I wait the appointed time...

This time, I'm armed with a .22. A shotgun might be more appropriate, but this isn't an old barn, it's my very nice storage/shop with lots of nice stuff in it I don't want to get perforated. It's not terribly big- stray pellets could cut some holes.

Armed such, and wihta flashlight, I whip open the door. The bastard LEAPS off the bench, and in behind my fishing gear, including the wife's float tube- No shot there. I look at the traps.

Not sprung...but the peanut butter is gone. I"m FEEDING this thinkg like a pet!!!

The traps are reoriented. He CANNOT get to the baitedone without going over the other. If this fails, I'll go to WMD (weapons of mass destruction) It's Chemical warfare time, Mr. Smartypants Rat...

Here's a mouse trap we use at our moose camp. Works all year, even in an un heated shed. Last year it had thirty two of the little buggers.

Take a two gallon smooth sided bucket, put four inches of antifreeze in the bottom. next stretch a wire across the top, on the center of the wire, put a pop can with a hole in each end for the wire. It must spin freely. put peanut butter on the can near the middle all the way around. When the mouse tries to get on the can he falls in the antifreeze. Very effective.

Gatehouse here's what you do!

Get yourself a box (shoebox will do)put a ramp up to the top of the box. Put your bait (peanut butter) in the bottom of the box. Keep replacing the bait for about 3 days (let him get use to it). NOW on the fourth day, don't put any bait in the box and place a razor blade at the top of the ramp. When the rat walks up the ramp he'll put his neck over the razor and not seeing the bait he'll turn his head side to side saying to himself "where's the peanut butter, where's the peanut butter" and cut his own head off.
EASY.

Bakes

Hey Bakes
That was GOOD!
LOL
Regards
Deafdog

The bastards dead, at last...

Now I have to go hose out my shed

Wishing all of you zero rodent problems in the future!

OK Gatehouse........ How did you do it?
We want the gory? details

When can we se some photos?

http://www.countrywhispers.com/rattrap/

This probably fits "politics" better than this thread, but I couldn't resist.

Bill Leeper, that was an excellent post!

Bill

We just returned from a Moose Hunt up near Dease Lake. We had a continual problem with deer mice in the wall tent the whole two weeks. My buddy and I finally devised a water trap to catch them, and began to taste success. Didn't count on the Pack Rat reinforcements though.... After catching 2 mice one night a Pack Rat stole the teeter-todder device and hid it under a sheet of plywood we were using as a floor!!!! Didn't find it until we broke down camp to leave!

Woodrow

Peanut butter is good bait but the best I've found by far is a fresh raisin. Just jam it real good onto and into the trigger on a standard trap, little beggars get their teeth into it and give it a tug and that's it. They can't like it off like peanut butter. I've caught 20+ mice on one raisin. Thank goodness we don't have pack rats up here in god's country. They sound like the ultimate vermin.

I took a couple of pictures because I knew there'd be some bloodthirsty savages around here...

I'll post them and the story lter, if you guys want them...They're a bit gruesome, though. Mr. Packrat was a tough customer, and I needed a heavy caliber rifle to bring him down- a .223

Enjoy!