When & Where to Go
Rats love the night.


Into the Lair

So into the night you must follow . . .

What Rats Like:
Rats prefer to live as close as possible to their food and 


water sources.  Most of their movement is within 150 


feet of their home and almost all activity outside of the 


burrow will occur in the twilight, dark of the night, or 


very early morning.  In choosing a neighborhood to settle 


into, rats look for the following amenities:
  • Overflowing or uncovered dumpsters
  • Trash in plastic bags or unsealed cans
  • Abandoned cars, furniture or appliances
  • Piles of debris or lumber on the ground

 

Signs of Infestation
  • Burrows / rat holes in the ground.  Rats usually construct 
    
    
    nests in below-ground burrows or at ground level, 
    
    
    sometimes chewing directly through walls to find 
    
    
    a good spot.
  • Rats leave behind easily detectable traces. Gnaw 
    
    
    marks on doorways, garages, or on the bottom of 
    
    
    a trash can, are obvious clues.
  • Rub marks or grease marks can show where rats have 
    
    
    rubbed against the wall when entering a building.

 

 

Likely Locations to hunt:

  • Alleys behind restaurants and near trash and
    food dumpsters
  • Vegetable and fish markets
  • City trash collection points
  • Poultry sheds
  • Cow and horse barns

Hunting at Night

If you are hunting at night, be prepared to explain your actions (bring an article or book), and to meet the police under tense circumstances. If at all possible, try to get the permission of a nearby land owner or property owner.

 

Where there's smoke, there's a rat dog!

To Hunt During the Day

. . . you will need to drive the rats from their holes. While some advocate the use of ferrets for this task, you will achieve easier results with smoke bombs, gasoline bombs, or or an oil-smoke spewing gasoline engine with a hose attached to the exhaust manifold. Look for "gopher smoke bombs" in the pest control section of your local hardware store, or purchase smoke bombs prior to July 4th. Make sure such bombs only produce smoke and do not release poison, and be sure to keep your dog back from the smoke which contains carbon monoxide as well as sulphur.


 

Home / Intro / Table of Contents / About Rattus Norvegicus / Types of Rat Dogs / Training Your Dog / Where and When To Go / Working With Your Dog / Precautions Against Disease & Injury /
Equipment / Books / Rats in Specific Cities & Countries / Discretion and Humor / Net Links