rat behavior --- two observations

[JohnnyPDX]

1) They seem to have adapted to MY waking schedule and are not coming around to a peanut butter bait station after I wake up. The doorbell cam shows them up until 30 minutes before I wake up. The house is blacked out and I walk quietly and only use a red-screened flashlight when absolutely necessary. DON'T MOVE THE FURNITURE!

2) They eat in a very tidy / organized way. I make a patch, circular outlined layer, of peanut butter in the middle of a paper plate and they remove the PB with their paws leaving an EXACTLY straight line at the edge of where they ate.

[Back_Roads]

 One trick with PB is to make it runny by mixing it with vegetable oil, keeps them there longer and bait last longer.

[JohnnyPDX]

One trick with PB is to make it runny by mixing it with vegetable oil, keeps them there longer and bait last longer.

I Like it, and will start doing that, and also microwave chocolate chips into it. I am waiting on rats right now. Still have 1.5+ hours of dark.

[wolverine]

start checking around your house.  sounds like they installed a motion sensor to indicate your whereabouts.   

[JohnnyPDX]

start checking around your house.  sounds like they installed a motion sensor to indicate your whereabouts.   

That's perfect. I needed a laugh, Thanks.

[Rick67]

They are vulpine creatures, these rats.

Been hunting them I was in the 5th-6th grade, so I am familiar with their tactics.

Yes, avoid rearranging their surroundings, as they would notice it.

My favorite bait is rice mixed with sardines or fish (they have an overpowering smell, yes, which is Nirvana for their nostrils 

I put the amalgam in a plastic bag, perforate it, then tie/peg it.

Plastic will create a very audible rustle, and rice, being numerous, takes time to be consumed grain by grain.

They will be busy tearing apart that plastic bag, I tell you 

It's New Year, so give them something special in lieu of the boring peanut butter, sir, lol!

[JohnnyPDX]

They are vulpine creatures, these rats.

Been hunting them I was in the 5th-6th grade, so I am familiar with their tactics.

Yes, avoid rearranging their surroundings, as they would notice it.

My favorite bait is rice mixed with sardines or fish (they have an overpowering smell, yes, which is Nirvana for their nostrils 

I put the amalgam in a plastic bag, perforate it, then tie/peg it.

Plastic will create a very audible rustle, and rice, being numerous, takes time to be consumed grain by grain.

They will be busy tearing apart that plastic bag, I tell you 

It's New Year, so give them something special in lieu of the boring peanut butter, sir, lol!

Dang Dude. I am so glad I posted or I wouldn't have known about your recipe.

Can I use can packed sardines like at Dollar Tree? what is the approx. volume ratio of rice to fishy things?

Thank You! This ratting has become quite an obsession.

[JohnnyPDX]

Seems there good reason to make a buffet plate using your 'formula' and peanut butter, arranged nicely of course. They have rights too

[Rick67]

Well, there is no magic to the mixture, Mr. Johnny.

You can innovate by using shredded bread instead of rice.

I go for sardines in tomato sauce, the one sans spice.

Shredded fish works equally as well.

I used this method when I used to sleep in the office in the Philippines; my quarters being on the 2nd floor overlooking the work area.

I would tie it up, the plastic containing goodies, around one of the chair’s pegs and wait for the alarm bell, aka the rustle.

It’s fun watching watching a rat with its nape imbedded with a blowgun dart 😝

Oftentimes I would be in deep slumber, only to wake up with the plastic bag empty, lol!

[JohnnyPDX]

I'll try the Dollar Tree sardines with some uncooked rice.

Thanks and hopefully this buffet will yield another video.

[ranchibi]

Astute observations on those rats Johnny as they do adjust to what happens around them! Richard has been hunting rats longer than most of us and has great intel on how to lure them in! He used to use a blowgun to get them! Amazing!

[JohnnyPDX]

Astute observations on those rats Johnny as they do adjust to what happens around them! Richard has been hunting rats longer than most of us and has great intel on how to lure them in! He used to use a blowgun to get them! Amazing!

I substituted smoked oysters to the rice (too lazy to deal with Dollar Tree yesterday) then bagged, poked, and staked the bag in front of the doorbell cam, like usual. Upset their normal eating area with the bag as they are neophobic. i will refine this!

Really need rotten herring, sardine... fishy stuff... that smells like under the refrigerator in a seafood store that doesn't meet health codes. STENCH

[JohnnyPDX]

Think I'll go catch a carp at the pond and let it get ripe then freeze the ripeness in portioned bags. Keeping stink intentionally goes against my grain but gotta do what is necessary for rat kill videos!

I want to get one of those trophies some of you guys post pics of.

[ranchibi]

You’ll get them Johnny, just a matter of time! Rat activity slows in the colder months...get a couple warm days and out they come!

[JohnnyPDX]

You’ll get them Johnny, just a matter of time! Rat activity slows in the colder months...get a couple warm days and out they come!

Yes I am believer. The rats eat the PB 4 nights per week but I am conked out, usually, at midnight etc... This morning got a cat on the camera and I think the fireworks ruined this hunt.

Are you ratting much?

[Pellet Fun]

I hate rats so much I will hardly even open a rat thread. I had a problem with them years ago and learned to respect them even though I don't like to think about them. They are like any other creature and have personalities and strengths and weaknesses along with favorite foods. I had one that would turn up its nose on PB and cheese. I tried other things (forgot) and eventually got it since it couldn't resist fresh fruit. Many of them would just curl up and expire once dispatched and a few super rats would fight to their last dying breath. Made me feel bad but they had to go.

[JohnnyPDX]

I hate rats so much I will hardly even open a rat thread. o.

I get it because I feel the same about snakes. Shoot 'em all and let God sort it out.

[GumpIsrael]

I’ve had similar experiences in the past with our rats. They quickly learn patterns of when their comrades die and what noises were heard when said deaths occurred.
I ended up learning a bunch about the little guys.

What I remember:
Their vision is poor at best, blurry after ~4-6’ depending on genetics and mostly they see black and white with subtle hues of color. This is why they prefer to have runs (straight lines they can travel down quickly) on fence lines or buildings.
Their other senses make up for such poor vision, hearing and smell especially. Hearing is the main way they detect threats and smell is a big form of communication for them. Their urine is used for communication, kinda like how we pass information about food, safety, and mating.
When they feel seriously threatened, they may wait as long as an hr to even move from a hiding spot to run away.

I’ve used cheap cornmeal for years to entice the Norway Rats in our area, corn being a staple of their diet for a couple of centuries now, it works pretty well. I feed them regularly at dusk at a bait station setup on our fence, it has one very small entrance  at the top and the food is down low on the other side, making a truly fast escape hard for them. They have to sit for a while to get full because the meal is so small, but they will only do so if they feel comfortable.

I try and wait until I see lots of drippings and urine at the bait station before I start killing, since this means they are comfortable in the space and won’t spook as easily.

Y’all’s experiences may differ, but in my neighborhood these guys are very cautious and pretty darn smart.

[Luis Leon]

At the dairy I will bait certain areas with the feed on the premises. Oftentimes I don’t hunt those areas right away. I let them get comfortable with the bounty. I’ve done it both ways... and it doesn’t matter. They are sneaky, wary, ever moving rats. Which makes the kills that much more satisfying. I also bait the nooks and crannies where they feel concealed. Have shot many that way. I love shooting rats because they are so wary, you earn those kills.

[Pellet Fun]

Austin you're absolutely right on the urine, they will follow the yellow brick road and prefer straight lines. Seems like we've all learned a bunch about these nasty little creatures. Good shooting...