Rats are in Peachland too

[skytech2]

I live on Westside Road. We do have some packrats but pretty rare and they have been around for a long time.
But for the first time ever after many years of driving tonight a rat ran across the road in front of me - never seen that before. Pretty big guy. Maybe there is something going on. And this is nowhere near the dump.

[Bsuds]

No doubt there seems to be a problem and glad I don't have it where I am. Lots of mice thought.
My traps get 4 or 5 a week. Peanut Butter works great!

[Ali Gator]

I cant believe the RDOS is still saying there is not a rat problem! Obviously something is going on!

Update: According to the Regional District of the Central Okanagan, there was never an issue with rats at the former Westside Landfill property.

Communications officer Bruce Smith says the RDCO has never received a single complaint regarding rats on properties of adjacent neighbours when the landfill was in operation.

"Even today, there is no problem with rats or any other wildlife from this property."

Well maybe there was never a problem in the area beside the dump because there was a full buffet of choices for the rats but now that the dump has closed down......

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09/26 ... 17218.html

[artifact cat]

There definitely are black rats in Peachland that should be controlled and it wouldn't hurt if the authorities made it public in spite of perceived bad PR for tourism. They should be exterminated and suggestions to the public about their presence is worthwhile.

We also have always had rats in the area surrounding the Okanagan but these are the smelly pack rats or 'Bushy Tailed Wood Rat' that prefer the forest environment . They look like a chinchilla with a long bushy tail, not the bare tail of the black rat.

[WeatherWoman]

How do you want them to control the rat problem?

[Metdet]

hey folks, our dog killed a rat also, it was a rat..not a bush rat,,they are bushy, have seen them up at peachland lake. Not a mouse,,they are a normal visitor in the fall. It is a rat..our daughter had some as pets. We know its a RAT.
Please read the article that i posted on first page..pertaining to closing down a landfill. If it is not 'capped' properly upon closing, you can have a vermin/rat problem. All the info and history/rules about closing a landfill is in this article.
The RDCO need to acknowledge responsibility. And do something about it.

http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/was ... ay01.pdfIt
"It is also possible that there will be a problem with vermin, notably rats, especially if these have
become established during the operation of the landfill. A continuing problem with rats (or
birds or flies) suggests that the final cover is insufficient. However, before undertaking an
upgrade of the final cover, a comprehensive programme of poisoning (with appropriate
precautions to protect other species) should be undertaken.

[Ken7]

That photo is indeed a packrat...which is not, in fact, a rat. Nor is it a roof rat.

There are two species of true rats here ( genus rattus )
Brown Rat (Norwegian Rat) and the Black Rat ( Roof Rat )

Packrats are not related, and they do not look like brown or black rats. They are rounder with large round ears and have hair on their tails.
look at the photos in the link posted by weatherwoman above....you can clearly see the huge difference in appearance between true rats and packrats. Rats have longer, narrow faces, small ears and long, leathery tails without fur cover.

I've been catching packrats and as you describe them. Kinda cute but not inside the roof of a home!! To me they are all RATS and not something one needs. I've not caught any other rats but one white weisel.

[grammafreddy]

Packrat ...

[Bpeep]

No doubt there seems to be a problem and glad I don't have it where I am. Lots of mice thought.
My traps get 4 or 5 a week. Peanut Butter works great!

Cats work good too.

hint hint

[Bsuds]

Do they catch Rats too, you could take em to West Kelowna.

[ginga dawg]

Lived in the Mission Hill area for 9 years, this is the first summer that I've had Rats in my yard.

[zookeeper]

This is just a thought that has crossed my mind before enough to have conversation about it, can't help but wonder if recycling has something to do about attracting rats? We have ours in a sealed container in the garden shed, it's a little more work and time, but we do not have a problem with rats, mice, or insects. I have seen people have open containers on their back stairs for weeks at a time overflowing with pizza boxes (some cheese and crumbs always stick), unrinsed cans, pet food bags etc. Veritable smorgasbord, imo.

[workerman]

We live on Shannon Lake Road and had a rat infestation last year. Many rats in our shop and under the house too. We trapped some and poisoned some in a confined space. Our semi-outdoor cat broke one of his teeth while devouring one. He's a great hunter, but normally just gets mice. They chewed a hole in the floor above the crawl space and almost had free access to the interior of our residence. It was irritating, smelly and disgusting. We called pest control but their traps were not effective enough, so we struggled with our own solutions and it took about six months to get rid of all traces. We thought it was just our isolated problem.

[Raven1]

We live on Shannon Lake Road and had a rat infestation last year. Many rats in our shop and under the house too. We trapped some and poisoned some in a confined space. Our semi-outdoor cat broke one of his teeth while devouring one. He's a great hunter, but normally just gets mice. They chewed a hole in the floor above the crawl space and almost had free access to the interior of our residence. It was irritating, smelly and disgusting. We called pest control but their traps were not effective enough, so we struggled with our own solutions and it took about six months to get rid of all traces. We thought it was just our isolated problem.

Rats are seldom if ever an isolated problem.

If you've caught 1 there are always more, if you've caught MANY that's an indication of potential nest and authorities should be notified. I urge anyone who has had a problem to contact the district and make sure the pest control company you use is doing a thorough job and keeping track of numbers.

There are rat control programs and I think the district should be looking into adopting one, but before they even consider such a program they would want to have an idea of the numbers. Pest control is great but they are not always as diligent in their pursuit.

[jbbrooks]

Found 7 dead black rats in our shed today. A neighbour must have set out poison and they all came home to die. Glad I found them before spring. We are on Harding Road by Gellatly Bay.