Packrats (bushy-tailed woodrats) can be a real problem with the outdoor layout. They like to take small details or figures. And sometimes will dig under the track. They are a real bad problem if they get into the house…which has happened a few times over the years.
I placed a havaheart trap out by the layout baited with a peanut butter cup. If I get any packrats, I’ll relocate them with a drive to town.
Here is the first packrat of this season, cute little critter:
We’ve had them around here, Matt… Got into the van’s fan and cabin filter… $850 worth of repairs…
We now have a resident King Snake and thankfully, he LOVES them little critters… (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-cool.gif)(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-cool.gif)(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-cool.gif)
Matt, Nice to see that you do you best to get rid of the problem in a peaceful way. After all they are just trying to carve out a life too. They (the packrats ) don’t even get to relax with their trains after a hard days work. Although they seem to like stealing yours!
Stan, good that you caught that. Thats about the worst place they could have taken up residency. You and yours could have ended up with a nasty case of Hantavirus. As Matt said, they are cute, but not compatible with us…
Am I the only one that finds it funny that your capture and live release program involves drive the rat TO town. Bet the people in town love that. Wonder if it would work with nuisance black bears and cougars?
To town! hehe
I think I’d send them to kingdom come with a regular trap.
A 3 cent pellet beats an $850 repair bill. (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
A few years ago I was hiking around in a remote area of Nevada, looking for a lost rocket, and came across a packrat nest that was pretty unusual. Most of them, when they nest in the open, just build a big pile of twigs and cactus bits (the nest is hidden inside). This one was neatly covered with a layer of rocks, and looked like a little stone igloo!
Those were Alaskan packrats…
Gee, we have mice, moles, tree rats (squirrels), chipmunks, groundhogs, rabbits, deer and I have been told there are even raccoons around here, although I haven’t seen any. (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)But I don’t think we have pack-rats. It is a cute little thing. About driving it to town, where in town, and why in town?
David Maynard said:
Gee, we have mice, moles, tree rats (squirrels), chipmunks, groundhogs, rabbits, deer and I have been told there are even raccoons around here, although I haven’t seen any. (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)But I don’t think we have pack-rats. It is a cute little thing. About driving it to town, where in town, and why in town?
That’s where I am going with it. Why is it being driven to town? I got a great chuckle out of that one.
Devon Sinsley said:
David Maynard said:
Gee, we have mice, moles, tree rats (squirrels), chipmunks, groundhogs, rabbits, deer and I have been told there are even raccoons around here, although I haven’t seen any. (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)But I don’t think we have pack-rats. It is a cute little thing. About driving it to town, where in town, and why in town?
That’s where I am going with it. Why is it being driven to town? I got a great chuckle out of that one.
Maybe relocated to a local high-end reptile farm to live out their days in leisure?
FYI: Folks, Here in the Four Corners Area was the original outbreak of the Hantavirus. The good thing is that the only known carrier is the “Deer mice” of the local region, and all the other mice, squirrels chipmunks and other rodents don’t carry the virus. So no alarm to come visit the great South West.
We have to watch for these critters. They love chewing everything. And of course the black bears can do a number to a layout.
My .22 takes care of most critters.
But I live in the city, I cant go around shooting things.
In the city you have to worry about hood rats stealing everything. And you have to be careful shooting at them they shoot back.
Should have explained the town thing.
We are pretty far out (generally 45-60 min drive) so when we do drive out it is always to town for groceries/supplies. If I have a packrat to relocate it is always to town as that is where we go when driving.
And town is not exactly town. I let the critters out in the wilderness on the way to town. Not sure they would do too well in Durango. They really like wilderness.
We have lots of other wildlife (Elk, Deer, Bear, Chipmunks, Ground Squirrels, Racoons, Albert Squirrels, Porcupines, Coyotes, Mountain Lions, Fox, Snowshoe Hare, Deer Mice, Owls, Bats, etc…) But the only critters that ever cause real trouble are the pesky packrats. Elk will sometimes stomp on the train tracks and bend rails, but thankfully that is pretty rare.
As Dave mentions, the deer mice should be avoided due to hantavirus. Actually their droppings are what to avoid without respiratory protection. Have to be real careful when sweeping.
Back in 1986, I took a road trip out to Colorado with my brother and a friend. The first night we camped in the Mojave desert. The rest of the trip, we would periodically spot a small desert mouse darting about in the car. Finally caught him when he chewed his way into a bag of chips. By this time we were in Colorado, somewhere west of Ouray. We turned him loose, and always wondered what he thought of his new, Rocky Mountain surroundings, and how long he was able to survive there.
Matt
When I first saw this post… I was afraid to open it and see a mirror!
Well that explains the TO town thing.
