Dealing With Rats in the Compost (warning - images of living and dead rats/animals)
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- Rats are a common problem in and around compost bins, and the usual recommendation is to restrict the types of material to prevent them being attracted. But this isn't necessarily going to solve the problem.
With the No-Rules Compost, a different approach has been taken, involving both tolerance and direct action.
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I killed them. I killed them all. They're dead, every single one of them. And not just the men, but the women and the children, too.
~Anakin Skywalker~
Lol
StormP666 Anakin is a true hero
Vader...
....and what relevance does that have with anything?......other than you are a composting Star Wars nerd?🤔
@@allandriver2066 I bet you're fun at parties 🙄
Love your balanced, thoughtful, and caring approach. It's a lot to manage and I feel you do it all very well. Especially the reflections. Thank you for all you are doing and sharing.
Hey, thanks for the very encouraging and thoughtful comment. It means a lot!
@@REDGardens howdy, if you ever need to get their numbers down more in a way that does not hurt predators you can mix oatmeal with plaster of paris in a container that rats can easily get in and out of but other animals/weather can't (for various reasons), it will kill the rats quite quickly but not anything that eats the dead ones. also, adding nuts and berries can help make it more attractive too.
@@FroggyTWrite I had tried aversion of that while ago, though at the time I wasn't so sure of the effectiveness. I was wondering if they were not really interested intthe bait in this context as there is so much other food around. I should try it again some time, placing the bait in the runs they dig into the compost piles.
Exactly, He is wonderful.
Rats?
They've got fighters guild members killing rats?
Now this is a comment worth commenting
Hmm, I guessing an anime reference, fairy tail, perhaps?
@Dongs I'll kalicrack the findoo.
Gal bursten it!
Mountain lions????!!!! By the nine!
Who puts cats in bags anyways?! Cats dont even like bags!
Im glad all of those beautiful summer fields hypnotized us into undertaking the second coolest skillset after slaying goblins.
I respect how you deal with rats effectively while still retaining some humanity and forethought towards the issue.
Thanks for that.
When you step on baby mice they make a Crunch and turn to strawberry jelly.
@@conservativemacro80 Oh dear. The video showed a large degree of humanity and sensible countryside practice. This is just gratuitous. Whilst we may prefer not to recognise it, the rats are doing nothing wrong and do not deserve our malevolence.
@@sharonstuart5262 Moreover we should find a way to use them to the mutual benefit of both of our species.
I am sure somewhere deep in the grand mind of Logos crafting this world to manifest, there exists a potential for a workable dynamic to enable this kind of mutualistic symbiotic relationship.
@@conservativemacro80hopefully someday the same thing happens to you. You're just pure a evil dirtbag.
You present your thoughts well. I watched a video once on a poor family in India whose job was trapping rats. They did it by smoking them out of their tunnel system. At the end of the day, the family would roast and eat them. I recall the Dad especially twisting off the little roasted paws like they were especially tasty. They had a school aged child who looked like she was becoming increasingly ashamed of the situation. May the Lord have mercy on us who live so comfortably and still find abundant reasons to complain!
Hope they didn't boil them alive like the sadistic and depraved Asians do. I have an extreme hatred for animal cruelty. I read how different parts of India are cruel to animals as well. I hate cruel people of any race.
hard subject thoroughly considered. subscribed
Thanks.
RED Gardens
Just wondering what you do with all the dead bodies?
Would recommend leaving them out somewhere for that buzzard!
Fair point... me too.
@@domsquaaa4323 I wonder if a predator such as a buzzard would easily adopt scavenging behaviour. Something to think about.
@@PulseCodeMusic buzzards
Well the buzzards we get in the U.K. the main part of their diet is carrion
The Problem (rat attracting compost) is the solution (compost bin as rat trap). Your take on the rats as pest is cleverly inventive. Thanks.
Interesting way of putting it - the problem is the solution!
@@REDGardens Its a sentence frequently used in Permaculture problem solving.
I 2nd that!
The problem is the solution!
I used to have rats in my compost bin but my newest cat dispatched all 6 of them within a week, they all went back in the compost bin.
Oh, believe me, you still have rats visiting.
dust to dust, compost to compost.
That must be a big, tough cat. Most rats are too big for most cats to handle.
@@calamityjean1525 that's why you get a feral cat
@@solemasta2036 I don't think feral cats are any bigger or toughter than any other cats.
It's amazing how many uses the humble compost can have!
Indeed!
I valued what you said and found it balanced and carefully thought out. I'm also very glad I don't have a rat issue. Mice are bad enough!
Thanks for your comment. Rats can be a real pain.
Excellent very informative I said this to my m8 got rid of chickens and other animals and they keep comming it's the compo bins
I like the way you treaded lightly on this subject, taking the way people feel about rats into consideration. Something you don’t see in other channels.
Glad you appreciated how I approached this.
@@REDGardens I appreciate it too, since I rescued rats before and they were my angels, my family. I know what empathetic and wonderful individuals they are. and they really are all individuals. Wild or domestic.
As always your pragmatic and intelligent approach is refreshing.
Thanks!!
Over the past nine months, I have watched this video no less than three times. Each time, I notice something that I missed. In any case, your method for dealing with the rat population reflects your analytical approach to your gardening.
Wow. Glad you are getting a lot out of my video(s).
I have an opossum that comes every now and then at night, to forage through our pile and aerate it! I think he does most of the work. I still get great compost.
Sometimes I think the rats do a more of the turning and aeration work than I do.
Miniature Schnauzers and/or Jack Russels. Then, you get the added benefit of them deterring other invaders, such as postal workers, neighbor kids, and people who ride bicycles. Also, they're adorable.
They are only good for getting into the nooks where big dogs can't get to and have a poor acceleration rate in the animals that I have seen but sight hounds/sight crosses are faster, have more stamina, stronger bite force (kill the rodents quickly) and wade through deeper puddles. Look up Jimmy Carter the Mink man. He hunts with both sight hounds, Belgian Malinois and a couple terrier.
I handled malinois' in the military. FIERCE dogs, but their cuteness can't match that of a little schnauzer boy, excited to see you home. I really was looking for a reason to say that schnauzers are cute.
Incidentally, one of my schnauzers' name was Jimmy. He and his little brother, Andy, were great prairie-dog and muskrat killers.
You're funny.
As far as dogs go, I find something to love in every breed I am exposed to.
I used to hunt with my neighbour's mongrel dog, and he was amazing to watch.
My Grand father used to grow peppermint herbs. He said rodents hate the smell. In the Fall, he sickled the mint and sprinkled it in the basement and root cellar. He never had a major problem with rodents including rabbits. Great VIDEO
I have heard that some herbs will deter rodents, I will have to start growing some peppermint.
I always look forward to your videos - informational, educational, well thought out and entertaining. The subtle humor and the brilliant scientific approach make these videos the top of my list for favorites.
Best wishes from Australia.
Thanks Frank. Glad you enjoy them even though you are in a different season and likely in a radically different climate. Also glad a bit of the humour comes through - I struggle with being too serious in front of the camera!
.
Second that reply! Margaret Karr, also from 'Down Under'
Expressed my thoughts exactly. Great videos, love the considerate but honest approach, plus science, plus the Irish humor. Regards from Greece.
The other day I fell down a youtube hole of watching 'ratting with terriers' videos. It was kind of gruesome to watch, but also really fascinating to watch dogs bred for a job doing that job efficiently and thoroughly. If you can find a couple of local terrier owners who would like to exercise that aspect of their dogs' breeding, it might be worthwhile to invite them by on compost turning day. The dogs really seem to enjoy it, and the rats seem to be dispatched rapidly and without much suffering.
I think using dogs, especially terriers, is the best way to get rid of a nest of rats. They can be so quick and efficient, it is quite amazing to watch - but as you say, gruesome. I have one dog in mind that I might need to train up, but could definitely be worth it.
I've a pug/rat terrier mix that routinely catches jackrabbits in our backyard and even once cornered an opossum. Rats would be far to slow and as such don't risk making appearances. At the same time he's never harmed one of our free-range chickens. It's amazing how quickly dogs learn to modify behaviors to please their owners.
@@jlcon99 Dogs don't generally (almost never) operate with the goal of pleasing people. They respond as their genetics or training dictate and when the results happen to fall inline with the wishes of a person, people mistake that to be a sign of the dog actually trying to please them. Far more likely, the dog has become accustomed to the ongoing presence of the chickens. They have become background noise. Technically, it's habituation. The dog may have initially tried to chase them but was either discouraged by a person or the chickens didn't run and therefore didn't encourage the chasing behaviour. The predatory behaviour towards chickens didn't yield any reward for the dog, there was no reason for the dog to continue it. On the other hand, wild prey animals when chased, run, encouraging the dog's desire to chase them. They sneak and hide and mysteriously appear out of no where only to disappear again. This only works to entice the dog's predatory instincts and the behaviours of stalking and chasing these animals become highly self rewarding even if the dog never catches one. If the dog actually succeeds once at catching that animal, that's the ultimate gambler's jackpot ensuring the dog will keep trying to engage in this behaviour with those animals. Dogs are highly contextual learners which for good and bad means they can behave differently based on context and not necessarily the provocation itself.
I must say your channel is so full of great tips, thoughts and advice, thank you! We need less showmen and more people with balanced opinion and scientific approach not just here on YT, but in general.
I had thousands of rats underground that were eating my chicken's feed. I switched from 24 hour chicken feed available to 5 minutes a day, and all the rats left for the neighbor's chicken coops. My hens still laid.
i do not understand. could you please explain further?
@@fikuni5260 rats were eating my chicken feed at night. I cut off the food supply and the rats left. The rats went to the neighbor's chicken coops where they shot at them every night in the coop.
We had the same issue with our hens. With the last batch I had I only fed them by hand once a day, and no more than they would gobble up while I was standing there. It defiantly helped with the rat issues.
That's animal cruelty, hens need to be able to peck food all day long. Encase your chicken coop with chicken wire, that's what it's for.
I have had the cats...with rat abundance, cat didn't really touch the eggs, even of they love them.
Well, we are going to throw this coat over it and... smack it with a hammer! *crosses eyes and passes out*
Mix well 1 part FRESH baking SODA with 1 part flour or cornmeal, add a bit of sugar if you want, place pans with generous portions of this mix around your farm, it is harmless to pets and other animals, but it is LETHAL for rats and mice. Rats and mice can't burp or fart, so the baking soda expands in their stomach and intestines and ruptures them, killing them. The baking soda should be fresh, not a box that has been opened and sitting in a cabinet for months.
Thanks for making these videos. I don't have a garden, but I find your work refreshing, interesting, helpful, informative. I especially appreciate your approach of respect for different points of view, personal experiments trying new ideas and your search for balanced yet simple solutions. You show more than gardening in the strict sense. Thank you.
Wow, thanks for the comment. It means a lot , especially coming from someone who doesn’t have a garden.
I absolutely HATE rats I can’t even see them I get so creeped out anyone else?
How do you feel about using the compost that has been "contaminated" by the rats' urine and faeces? Is there any risk? Great video and very informative.
I don’t have a problem with the rats in the compost. I’d be more worried about their urine and faeces within the garden itself (though still not worried - just aware). In the compost there is such intensive biological activity, and I think that any pathogen that wasn’t killed by biology would die off over the 8-10 months that the compost matures. But I take precautions in the garden in general (i.e wash hands after working with compost or soil.).
But I can only speak for myself, as I don’t know what risks there are in other parts of the world,
Yahshua - you know Him as Jesus - was born to a virgin, turned water to wine, taught, healed the sick, raised the dead, casted out demons, walked on water, and calmed the storm, among many other things. He was killed on the cross as payment for the sins of all mankind, three days later He rose from the dead. Forty days later He ascended into heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father. He is returning very soon, but before He does, Satan, the devil, is coming to pretend to be Jesus/God. Satan is an angel, and he will have certain supernatural powers with which to try to fool everyone. He will, for example, be able to make fire come down from heaven in the sight of men. He will only be on earth a short time before the real King of Kings, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, returns. When the real Jesus comes we will all be transformed into our spiritual bodies at the same moment. Jesus came in the flesh to offer forgiveness of sins and eternal life to anyone who believes and calls on His precious name!
Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always. For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial. Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her. - Matthew 26:6-13
Gets some cats my guy
Why are you worried about people's opinions? You are giving free, helpful advice and knowledge. Those who want it can watch. Those who dont like it can go somewhere else and miss out on your experiences. Thanks for all that you have shared. I know it takes a lot of time and am very grateful that you have shared it. Keep up the good work
Good question. I think part of it is my response to understanding that on this issue there is a huge split of strong opinions, from rats are cute (so don't kill them), to rats are disgusting (why are you attracting them in the first place), and a lot in-between. I was hoping with this video to find a way where people who disagree with my approach would still be able to understand its merits - to introduce new ideas to those who may not want to know.
Buy a cat, they are the natural enemy of rats
Cats are not as effective as people seem to think..
@@dfbess only the fat cats ha
But like using a poison, cats can be so destructive to native animals.
Rodents carry a large variety of zoonoses; the plague, and hantavirus come to mind immediately.
Do you compost the rats after? do the rats help decompose materials (as bones) in the bin?
Yes, the dead rats go back into the compost, no doubt adding to the quality of the compost!
I think the rats also help the compost when alive, by burrowing in and scratching around they aerate it - a bit - and probably help decompose some of the material.
@@REDGardens and the soil they dig out is perfectly sifted and moist, only if we had a giant rat to sift all the compost pile. 😂😂
@@raa6504 Yes, the soil they dig out is really fine.
@@REDGardens I too think rats areate the compost heap.
Why waste good blood and none fertiliser.
Excellent video and advice. I raise chickens and lately some small rats have been boldly munching away at the chicken feed in broad daylight acting like they're part of the family.
It can be hard to get rid of those rats among the chickens - can't set the typical traps without possibly hurting the chickens, and poison would be an issue.
A wild rat is not a pet rat. I love pet rats. They're super sweet little critters. Curious and smart. You need to control their population or they 10000000000% will explode. You're fine dude.
Wild rats are super empathetic, curious and smart too. Basically the same animal. Needing to control their population doesn't change this.
@@aryastark3148 all rats are rats they need to be controlled
Gotta deal with real problems. Health, production, value, these creatures detract when outside of nature. A garden is outside of nature.
Also... Keep a few Cats around, to go after the rats that eat the vegetables, that are growing in your garden.
: ) : ) : )
I am trying to encourage a wandering neighbourhood cat to stick around a bit more.
@@REDGardens you would have the same problems as with traps though. Cats kill EVERYTHING they can put their claws on...
Once you get a small dog to understand he can trade a rat for bacon, you no longer have a problem.
A rat is a rat - John Gotti
I'm so glad I stumbled over this clip. Instead of placing toxins everywhere and risking them leaching into my precious soil which also makes me feel like I'm fighting a losing battle against the rats, I will now embrace them and follow some of the things you have done.
I hope you have success with this approach, but remindful of the fact that their numbers can get quite high quite quickly!
When a person hates or is disgusted by a certain species of animal, it shows ignorance on their part.
Nature is a broad interconnected web where each node is important and all animals should be considered to have intrinsic value.
The other fallacy with many humans is the thinking that they must get 100% return for their labour and need not be any benefit to the broader ecosystem. I usually lose some of my produce to bugs and small mammals. My thinking is that mother nature did most of the work so if she feels fit to take a share, who am I to complain?
That being said, I do need to net a certain benefit from my labours, so when populations are high enough that damage becomes significant, I either find a way to draw them away from my garden, discourage/prevent them from entering my garden, or cull their numbers.
Very well put. Thanks for commenting.
I disagree. I think it’s epigenetic. I have a huge huge irrational fear of spiders that I did not learn as none of my family are afraid of them.
You make valid points, but that fist statement is simply not true in all cases. It's not always ignorance. Sometimes ppl know plenty about the species and it's role in the ecosystem, but still don't like them. They aren't ignorant, it's a personal preference. Also, a lot of species waste is harmful to humans, especially rodents, so to be disgusted by the potential of being exposed to something nasty is not ignorance, it's just human nature. Lol. Idc how much ppl love animals, I'll bet most of them would be very unhappy if mice or rats infested their homes. Doesn't make them ignorant, it's just not fun or sanitary to live with a bunch of rodents chewing up the place and leaving their disgusting urine and feces behind.
Considering some people lived all their lives in an urban jungle far away from any natural cycle or influence it's no wonder some people have fear of natural things... like killing pest animals or irrational fear of certain animals. Those rats would eat you alive in your sleep if they had no other choice. Same as chickens would.
EcoCentric Homestead I mean it’s not really the, being ignorant. There can be many reasons to why people hate them. I have a phobia of spiders so I hate spiders.
Chickens might help. Fewer rats, free eggs, meat, and they'll help turn the compost.
I have rats cheerfully walking through my kitchen. I wish they'd go to the compost bin.
We had many, now so far none. First we were catching them in the killing traps, put treat in there and they went to get it and most of time they got hit behind the neck. But once it was a masaker lots of blood splashing, I was sorry for the poor rat, all she wanted was to eat! Once we got one in trap alive with leg trapped and damaged, she screamed with pain, needed to be helped to end suffering in bucket of water. Then my online friend told me not to kill them, they are needed in nature and she said they sell Catch and release traps on Amazon ! So we got those and it was a pleasure to keep catching them alive and release them one by one in same area with no homes around, seeing them running happily away when we opened door of the trap. Much better catch them that way, so happy my friend told me about it. After all, they all want to live just like we do!
@@libuseleman3049 That's really sad.. thanks for having compassion for the rats. I used to rescue domestic rats and they were the best friends I ever had. I miss them every day.
Sometimes now there are wild rats around my apartment. I just keep my space very clean and that works.
When I make my own place someday it will be an aircrete or hempcrete dome home and it will be impermeable to rats and other little animals.
Northern Irish/Canadian or cali? I've watched a few of your videos now. Thank you for the the tips and presentation of your videos, keep up the good work my friend, you've given me a good few tips now for a beginner, thanks🙏🏼❤️
Canadian, Living in Ireland for a few decades. Glad you found the videos useful.
Hii ,
you are good in what it should be done. rat are not pet.. some civilize ppl are so silly they think killing rat and baby rat are cruel.. so stupid.
yes, rat are everywhere.. even if the community didn't see them, because they are munching way in the park with the oak nuts..
when some rat went into compost bin, they complain and make a big deal out of it.. accusing you bring the mouse here.. should not do compost.. ban composting.. only can compost leaves.. but they are stupid. because rat do make leaves compost pile as their nest.. some ppl are really naive and ignorant.
as long as you control the rat number you are good. those hinder you will be idiots. it is better that you lure the rat to your compost and eliminated by you then let the rat roaming around into ppl's house and nobody control their number..
right ? !
andrew
germany
It seems that many people have a very extreme attitudes towards rats - for a range of different reasons. The fear based one is hard to engage with, I find, as anything that could even remotely encourage or enable rats is seen as bad. On the other side is the view that they are wonderful creatures and killing them is seriously problematic. I'm stuck in the middle of this extremes.
here in germany there is even yellow jacket protection law.. how stupid is that ?
those ppl who made up such laws are usually those ppl who don't do farming.. they just sit around and too much free time and made up laws stupid laws as they like.
Haven't heard of that kind of law before.
Wenn Sie eine Wespe grundlos töten, kostet das 5000 Euro Strafe ...www.focus.de/.../bundesnaturschutzgesetz-greift-kein-witz-w... - Translate this pageWenn die Tage wärmer werden, sind wieder Wespen auf dem Vormarsch. Ein Stich der lästigen ... Bundesnaturschutzgesetz greift: Kein Witz! Wenn Sie eine ...
rp-online.de/nrw/panorama/wespen-toeten-verboten-in-nrw-bis-zu-50000-euro-strafe-moeglich_aid-20160135
the title says for killing a wespe (yellow jacket ) for no reason can be fine up to 50,000 euro..
how stupid are those eat and poo law makers ? !
There's certainly a lot of people that do not want to deal with pests. And that is a big problem for those that still want to compost, or raise small livestock. You HAVE TO be willing to manage pests if you are to have small livestock like chickens or compost or you should not do it. By not dealing with problems like rats, you are putting yourself and the people around at risk especially in condensed areas. And even in rural areas.
We have to eradicate rats every year from our little barn because the farm down the road does not deal with their rat problem, so we get rats every year from that place(Not that we wouldn't get some anyway, but it is far worse). They also feed racoons. So we also have to eradicate racoons if we want to keep our livestock alive and healthy(no matter how pest proof, racoons, skunks and weasels will often find a way)They also have a coyote pack in their fields that kill their sheep and sometimes calves, yet they've never dealt with them.
Managing disease and parasite carrying varmint is a very important part of life in urban and rural areas. It is not pretty, some people cannot deal with it. Those people have no business having livestock or composting . It is 100% necessary for a safer and more hygienic environment.
Yes, I agree that you have to be willing to deal with whatever pest comes along. it took me a while, but I have figured out very effective ways to control the rats.
Hey! Thank you for very useful video! I also watched your previous one, no-rules composting :) which was super cool. Regarding with rat issue, how about setting up composting bins on the mesh net? I am working on composting project in university campus (in Cambodia) and need some advice!
how did it go? did you start the composting project?
Mix well 1 part FRESH baking SODA with 1 part flour or cornmeal, add a bit of sugar if you want, place pans with generous portions of this mix around your farm, it is harmless to pets and other animals, but it is LETHAL for rats and mice (and roaches). Rats and mice can't burp or fart, so the baking soda expands in their stomach and intestines and ruptures them, killing them. The baking soda should be fresh, not a box that has been opened and sitting in a cabinet for months.
Great advice and well put together. Just doing what nature does and not glorying in it. It beats poison. I dispatched about 10 last year with traps and poison, not my preferred method. I think walling them in and going in for the kill with hounds is a good option as others have suggested. Don’t take any flak from fairy types who don’t see the value in controlling a nuisance pest. It’s got to be done, but you’ve shown a great humane way of doing it, great videos from a garden newbie 👍🏻
Thanks!
My compost pile often has too much carbon to heat up and its hard to get greens to add during the winter to heat it up. Maybe you can do a video on adding urine as a nitrogen source? Whats your opinion on that?
I often have the opposite problem of too much nitrogen, but on rough compost piles I occasionally have added urine as a nitrogen source. I can't say how much of an effect this has had, but I should do some more exploration on it all and make a video about it.
My basic opinion is that it couldn't hurt to add using, except perhaps when the compost is already too wet/rich.
RED Gardens thanks. Love your videos keep it up
Urine works well as an activator. I don't have an issue with greens throu out winter as we have all of our veg peelings etc and also fresh horse manure.
darrenbetts2987 I love horse manure. It's normally "free" here to pick up from horse farms but the guy I know charges $20 to load your trailer with his tractor. So if you can pick up at least 2-3 yards it's well worth it. If I could pick up 5-10 yards in a big trailer then I would definitely think that's a good deal and worth the time saving to use a machine then breaking your back.
StreetMachine18 we have 2 horses do a constant supply. I compost it in a windrow.
Logical and reasonable.
You are not being vicious.
That implies unwarranted action.
I myself have the compost too close to the house to tolerate any rats.
Meat and bones go to the dog or city composting.
There is more than enough types of compostable
material given away for free to make up for any losses to my garden.
Hi Doug Stamper.
It's nice that you no longer work for the Underwoods . A Better career choice indeed sir
Lol
You bring a refreshing unification of scientific and philosophical perspectives to gardening. I appreciate you taking the time to record your inquiries, experiments, and all the work you do to find answers and solutions.
Thanks for the supportive comment. It made my morning!
Yes they're cute. But they need to be controlled. When I notice voles or moles in my front yard, I open the gate and my 3 dogs "help" me out in just a few minutes. Great informative,yet necessary video.
Thanks! Dogs can be great at the task. i think I need to train in the dog that my other neighbour has.
Storie Colopy what kind of dogs? I plan to get a couple of dogs.
_Moles_ are great animals that air your underground, eat worms and insects, NOT the roots or plants they are not the vegetarians that go after your harvest ;). Moles might by mistake _sometimes_ upend some seedlings, but nobody is perfect and that is a small price to pay for their valuable services. And if you have damage to roots or produce (being chewed or partially eaten !) it is _voles_ they are vegetarians and the bane of gardeners - and most definitely not _moles_
If a mole upends a seedling it is an accident, side effect of their diligent activities, they never aim to eat your plants, bulbs of flowers, or roots.
Moles also provide finely sifted soil (great for your nursery for growing seedlings) and they eat worms, insects in general, larvae, insect eggs, probably also of slugs.
Now plenty of useful earthworms too but you should have plenty of earthworms so that a mole can make a living, and by chasing them the moles dig even larger tunnels thus improving conditions for soil life, more air and losening the soil.
Being chased by moles (especially when it gets colder) might encourage worms to go deeper and work your soil at the deeper levels. Temperature in the soil is fairly stable but there are some differences. The moles must eat a LOT and even a few degrees more down there help them to save energy. So once there are some path they will try to stay in the warmer area. So they have a reason to dig around there.
The tunnels the mole dig are larger, they are more like a highway, the worms make the many small paths.
Voles on the other hand are damaging, period.
(O.K. they also dig tunnels and provide air but the cost for that is just too high, they attack your crops, which moles never do).
So if your dogs are good in getting them by all means. However, I suspect it is easier to catch a mole than a vole they might be slow, so your dogs might eliminate an extremely useful animal.
With voles a multilayered strategy seems to work. Noise, smells, disturbance, cages and nets can help, and traps.
The mounds and tunnels they dig look different and voles can be caught with traps - whereas moles avoid going in there. So that would be a way to get rid of the voles w/o harming the moles.
If you have a lawn - harvesting the mounds of finely sifted growing soil before you mow the lawn is a very small effort compared to what they perform all day, every day. They also work in winter, likely they and worms go deeper to have it warmer and therefore they dig up some minerals and mix the layers.
I just discovered your channel and I'm glad that I did. Informative and comprehensive.. not an easy subject.. to have to kill a 4 legged, smart pest.. but necessary, non the less. Us or them, unfortunately.
Thanks! Glad you found my channel.
Look for "Bucket Rat Trap" on youtube
I’ve been trying out a type of bucket trap for the past few weeks. Not great success so far, but also not a lot of rat activity.
RED Gardens I think you'll need a bigger bucket LOL
No seriously though, a good strong steel drum without a lid dug into the ground should do it. Added bonus would be to invite the moaners round & give em a small fishing rod for the fresh catch. haha.
I used an empty sealant gun tube for the spinning thing on my bucket, I'm fed up with the mice getting up into the loft (3rd floor) and playing above my bed.
Pesky varmits!
That would be cool!!
Pesky varmints indeed!
Ok, is it just me or is this guy just cool? Well I'm subscribing to his channel. Good content
Cool? Don't know about that, but thanks for subscribing!
Brilliant! Your attitudes on rats, and your seeing the necessity of culling their numbers despite your reluctance mirrors my own feelings..
Glad to hear that there are others out there with similar feelings about this issue.
I would suggest maby keeping a cat near the bin chances are it will travel into the outside land scape and get nests and if it's fixed you won't have any baby cats
Cats are great and i am trying to encourage a local cat to hang out there some more. Given the location I can't have my own cat unfortunately.
hmmm, like your approach...
Them rats make for great eating 😋 with a few tomatoes and peas.
I love how these avid compost users keep denying that they attract mice and rats, not to mention skunks and raccoons. If you are living in the city STOP composting. Cities have yard waste collectors that include compost matter much of the time. If you live a decent way away from your neighbors than go ahead, but stop doing this in the city people. Rats and mice should be exterminated from the city altogether, but until that happens stop making it worse.
Edit: not saying anything about this guy, this guy has his compost far away from his neighbors houses which is great. Just ranting about my idiot neighbors who put their BS right on our property line far away from their house and right by our house. It's causing us a lot of problems and they wont do anything because it's on their property. Currently involving the city in this matter because the rats are using their compost for food and then chewing into the nearest building (ours) to establish their homes. It's cost us a ton of money and time dealing with this. They are going into the walls and driving us absolutely mental. They wont go into our houses just in the walls so we can't trap them, we can't poison or trap them outside because they are cats that roam the neighborhood and I would never want one, or another animal to end up affected. I'm going crazy from this problem.
Ah, that is a tough situation to be in, to have no control over what is a key attractant for the rodents. It is a factor that I don't really mention enough in my videos. It is a big issue, even around me, where people don't want to take responsibility for dealing with eh rodents that they do provide habitat for. Thanks for sharing your experience, it is important for people to know the issues involved in different contexts.
@@REDGardens If anyone has any suggestions please I'm all ears. The city is refusing to do anything because it's on their property and composting is legal.
I don't believe I've ever had a rat issue in my suburban Michigan garden. I have seen a few mice over the years, but I've never had evidence of crop damage from them. I have more problems with chipmunks, squirrels, and moles. There are deer and turkeys in the area, but I've never had deer jump the 5' fence surrounding the veggie patch, nor do they trample or eat the flower beds. Last year I did notice that the turkeys took a dust bath in my compost pile. The finished compost was dry at the time. I just had to laugh. Like your philosophy on rats. Maybe you could import some large, non-venomous snakes to the area.
in a way I am lucky that there ore only a few larger pests to deal with in Ireland. I know if I gardened in my home town of Canada, there are a lot of other pesky critters!
Importing a big snake into Ireland would be a neat trick!
so you start off by saying that this is a sensitive subject and we must move carefully and you finish by saying that the best method is to kill the rats when they're babys :D:D:D
Install a Barn Owl nest box. These only need to be mounted nine feet or three meters to attract Barn Owls. A horizontal oval 5"x4.5" or to 4.5"x 4" works for barn owls. A nesting pair of Barn Owls and their growing chicks eat a lot of mice, voles, rats and rabbits in late Winter and Spring.
Consider getting a Ratter Dog like Dachshund, Pinscher, Schnauzer or Terrier. Smooth miniature dachshunds are just the proper size and aggressive anti-Rat attitude to eliminate them. They have the paws and claws to dig up rat dens.
Not all Cats are good Ratters. Saw a video today of a cat eating greens in a compost pile in a garden two feet from a rat. The cat and rat each ignored one another. Cats are better for mice, small snakes and birds.
You don't sound like an Irish man lol :) Yes I had a rather tame rat in my compostbin. He made holes in the compost. He came and went again :)
Ha, nope, a Canadian living in Ireland!
@@REDGardens Lol.... yet I was confused. No wonder a Canadian in Ireland. Good mix anyhow. I have lots of family living in Ontario and Vancouver. Rick from Holland*
Lol the occasional cut away to the rat creeping around just kills me 🤣😂
Yep!
Pardon me for being a 'Chatty Cathy' ~ Tonight before sunset ~ I went outside to put some used cat litter where I've seen big rats coming into my backyard ...I threw a rock at a small pile of weeds & pine cones I'd raked up the day before. At least 10 rats ran from under that pile and straight under the shed!!! Sheds are a major attraction for rats. They will find a way underneath a shed no matter how you build it. It's just crazy making stuff. People say use heavy gage metal/chicken wire etc. Underneath the foundation etc. Please share your advice ...💌
What a wonderful compost for the environment👍. A suggestion for your rat population. Get an A24 rat trap. There are video examples of the device working on UA-cam. It works beyond excellent and it has a rat counter of how many rats it takes out. My dad was sold on it after. A rat ate his oxygen sensor on his pick up truck cost him $500. After buying one it killed 3 to 4 rats Immediately.After that he bought at least a dozen of them for his properties. The only negative thing about the rat traps they are expensive. After each kill other predators cats,birds or other rats will take the dead rat away. Must watch the UA-cam video on the A24 rack trap you will be sold on it😁👍. Note this is far better than those plastic bait trap that only has the rat die off in humanely including all other predator cats,birds,coyotes bobcats very bad for the wildlife community😫😢😫🙁.
Have you tried just a large bowl with oil? If you go on UA-cam (how ironic) there are many creative ways to stop them...
You don't have to get a dog yourself for the job, unless you want a dog for other reasons. Find a local terrier club, some one involved in earth dog trials, some one raising hunting dogs, they would be more than happy to meet you once a month for the opportunity for their dogs to do this job. Maybe a ferreter would also be interested? This could be an opportunity to test the effectivness of different hunting animals/breeds.
saw my first rat this evening...how timely your video. I am going to try the compost in a covered ditch method....you do videos well my braniac Irish friend!
I think you're doing a GREAT job. Sort of like The Pied Piper, getting rid of all the rats in the village. I see no useful purpose for rats, except used in science research. They give me the creeps, and like you I'm a predator of them, finding preventive ways to keep them away, from my property, in the first place. Those that love them for pets, more power to you. I applaud your strength and courage, but for me they are as much an enemy to me as, roaches, flies, and mosquitoes are.✌
I don’t mind rats BUT they do damage to gardens and fruit trees and diseases! I have 3 small dogs and I don’t want them to get sick.
Thank you for a very informative post!👍🌼❤️
My grandpa, was a epic garden, no job and 5 children , only live for the day, he had trapp-buckets with water in , with a camouflaged top, so when the ratt run over it the ratt fall down and drown , his garden was realy big 10 by 60meter, the catch was realy good. Easy kill the day after..
Bravo. Too sad too bad for the ratsters, but may I ask HOW you kill theM? My neighborhood has a group of men who actively hunt rats here along the canals and kill them with guns. Noone is thrilled about them shooting but it does help keep down the rat population. Personally, I can't kill anything, with the exception of some of our cockroaches you find in the sand here. I know, lovely thought on your fruits and veggies, but you never see them on anything but in the dirt when digging around.
Chap I used to chat with in the dog park had a - now retired - 'ratting' Jack Russell. He used to send him down the council ( municipal ) drains gutters and pipes in Brighton UK & he'd despatch the vermin he'd find malingering there in short order. He'd killed countless rats in his 'career'. Dog was a small little thing but had the thousand yard stare of a born assassin...
I love your mentality and share your opinion on predators. Sadly I am no longer in the country. I garden in a small village that has recently become overrun with rats. I avoid putting food scraps into the compost . Anything remotely edible goes into a tumbler first. We have many gardeners who are at their wits end. I just caught my first one. My garden is strictly organic and I don’t want to be part of a municipal compost system that might be full of poisons!
Theres so many conflicting opinions about making Compost on youtube 2to 1 3 to 1 1-1 hot composting .cold composting etc its mind boggling
Do you get rats in your compost if you don't put meat on it ???
Yes. That is the experience of several of my neighbours who don't add anything but vegetable scraps and garden waste to their compost. They still go rats in the compost pile. I have similar experience in other compost areas.
Well you never said how you killed them. I'm a first year gardener and dealing with this same issue. I found baby mice in my compost today. What is the quickest humane way to kill them and are they at risk for contaminating my compost? Thank You
This is soo gross. I have a tiny container of compost made from a filing bin with a lid, which I will put a brick atop of it to keep out varmints. I must rethink starting a wood chip pile as a ground covering or for mulch. Haven't seen a mouse in years and I'd like to keep it that way. Yikess!
I remember watching Shawn Woods's video Where he showed us a rubber band trap that's illegal in Ireland
Also...I don't have any want for rat poop in my compost. No thanks. Make sure that your compost 'creation' ~ Has zero entry for rats.
When hunting with a dog, how did you get him to surrender the dead rat after he had killed it, or wasn't that a problem? Mine would want to keep the rat, and I'd be hard-pressed to find something of higher value to convince him to release the carcass. Also, is the dog at risk of infection from exposure to rat blood?
good on ya. Reminds me of the line about economists, "It works in practice, lets see if it works in theory!"
The main attractant is the smell.
Eliminate the smell from the compost bin and rats will other place to move over.
Also make the compost rat proof by making the bin out of welded wire mesh/cloth, they won't be able to chew it.
Rats have growing teeth and need to chew in stuff to keep it under control.
Hope this will also help.
A hand full of chickens will DESTROY rats and mice nests
We're experimenting with composting dog hair from the local dog hairdresser, apparently it's a thing and we're trying it out, it's a lot of unexplored material too!
Anyway, I remembered this video and thought that maybe you can try using dog hair as rodent repellant, I know people who use human hair as boar repellant so it may actually work
Dog hair ... interesting.
...this video just had a commercial......for RatEx......coincidence?
Well if St. Patrick hadn't kidnapped all the SNAKES...
There's a rat in my garden, he's just eaten a custard cream, tomorrow I will give him some apple and cheese. He's one of god's little souls. Why would I harm him?
I really appreciate your heart, but cheese actually isn't good for rats. :) Apples are pretty healthy for them.
I wouldn't encourage wildlife to become dependent on you though. They can find their own food okay.
Me and me dad played cat. Got a shovel, dug up the compost to find a nest. Took the babies and when the mom came to find them we hit it with the shovel
How about building an Owl Box? Or 5? Interesting methods though!
We have a Barn Owl family in the neighbourhood, though I don't know if they visit the site. Lately a few wandering cats seem to be keeping the rat population down.
I made it to the end! Thank you for all of your information. I hope this isn't too morbid, but how do you kill them once you trap them? I'm not sure I could do it.
Perhaps a bit morbid for some people, but I either stomp on them with my boot or hit them with a shovel. Whatever is quickest and most effective.
Rats and mice are wonderful creatures but yes and they were a pest. It's our job as stewards of the Earth you know what's going on and how to control our environment
Man I would so much rather keep some kittens around and save money on cat food than spend my time personally culling rodents.
I’m getting into composting and doing research before I start and here in the desert I’ve seen and had my cats bring rats around. Rats are my FAVORITE animal, I ADORE them. However, I am deathly allergic to the bugs that follow them around (which is what I’m worried about, as well as them ruining my future compost efforts).
So hopefully i can actually find *some* kind of alternative to killing them, though i understand what needs to be done if it is *absolutely* the only option
Good luck with it all. Rats can definitely be an issue, and each location and grower has different set of issues to consider.
There were 999 comments so I made it 1000
Yay!
What do you do with the dead Rats? Do you compost them? Does the live rats try to carry the dead rats away? Thanks for sharing.
We use a bukashi compost system which we then tip into our normal compost and the Rats don’t seem to like it and stay away.
This is so fascinating! I wonder how I can incorporate these strategies into my tiny home garden for free/dirt cheap!
Thank you for those insights. I had a problem in the summer with rats nesting in the walls of my building. I had thought how can I make something more interesting to them I now know what I will do. A closed in compost heap with a pipe entrance. Thnkt you for sharing these videos
Glad it helped!