Stop that RAT

摘要

Most people recoil at the sight of a rat. And, as a carrier of potentially fatal diseases such good reason. Baiting the problem won't cure it. The first thing to do is to identify where the rats are coming from. On the farm used here it's been tracedto rat holes behind the gamekeeper's sheds; pheasant feed is an easily accessible source of food throughout the winter. The holes can be gassed with phosphine tablets (aluminium phosphide). More often than not, however, they'll come in from the fields,and they're especially fond of game cover. Half an oil drum with an access hole cut in it makes a good cover for a baiting point in a game patch. The source of the problem is just your first line of defence. The second is the ingress point into the farmyard itself -- often a ditch or drain. This is where bait boxes can be placed. Make sure that they are weather and pet proof.