Dr Renter Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 I'm currently renting an old cottage in the country. Have been renting for best part of a decade and never had a vermin problem before. Essentially we've heard a bit of scratching in the roof recently and have seen one rat briefly scuttling across the kitchen floor. I suspect there is more than one. We got the council in who just baited the kitchen, however, I suspect we need a proper rodent erradication, and that means Rentokil...... and lots of money. We are clean tennants and I believe that this infestation is to do with a structural defect in this old cottage, that has given them a portal of entry. Thus in my opinion it should be the landlord who foots the bill, but as we all know these lovely landlords always try to dodge the bullet, especially the accidental amateur ones, and believe me he is an amateur. Thoughs and experiences would be greatly appreciated. The wife has vacated the house with our baby and I'm all alone with the rodents!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Si1 Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 when I had a much more minor infestation my landlord footed the bill thing is -there is a structural issue with filling the gaps where they get in, and this is up to the landlord, at the very least Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uro_who Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 When we had rats in the loft of our barn conversion the council baited that too and came to clean out the dead bodies (only missed one - the worst thing I've ever smelt and as a surgeon I've smelt a few bad things in my time). I'd try to get the council to sort killing them and the landlord to block up the hole that they will have made to get in (or the next thing you'll have is a fire as they eat cables - one of the commonest causes of house fires. Its all about safety and the landlord is liable and will want to protect his property. Now in a farmhouse and the rats don't seem to be a problem although the air rifle and some bacon will sort them out if they try it on! You might wish to invest or even better borrow a jack russel, pop it in the loft for 5 minutes and then buy it a pint. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porca misèria Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 You might wish to invest or even better borrow a jack russel, pop it in the loft for 5 minutes and then buy it a pint. Is that likely to be more effective than a working cat or snake? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Renter Posted November 28, 2009 Author Share Posted November 28, 2009 (edited) When we had rats in the loft of our barn conversion the council baited that too and came to clean out the dead bodies (only missed one - the worst thing I've ever smelt and as a surgeon I've smelt a few bad things in my time). I'd try to get the council to sort killing them and the landlord to block up the hole that they will have made to get in (or the next thing you'll have is a fire as they eat cables - one of the commonest causes of house fires. Its all about safety and the landlord is liable and will want to protect his property. Now in a farmhouse and the rats don't seem to be a problem although the air rifle and some bacon will sort them out if they try it on! You might wish to invest or even better borrow a jack russel, pop it in the loft for 5 minutes and then buy it a pint. Good luck Thanks for the advice. Was the smell worse than ischaemic bowel? The council have baited the kitchen but I'll get them back in on Monday to do the loft. Our best friends have a young Jack Russell and I did consider borrowing him, however, I'd feel incredibly guity if he was bitten by a rat. The problem with the entry point is that I have no idea where it is. Edited November 28, 2009 by Dr Renter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uro_who Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 Thanks for the advice. Was the smell worse than ischaemic bowel? The council have baited the kitchen but I'll get them back in on Monday to do the loft. Our best friends have a young Jack Russell and I did consider borrowing him, however, I'd feel incredibly guity if he was bitten by a rat. The problem with the entry point is that I have no idea where it is. Worse than ischaemic bowel and an ischiorectal abscess and concurrent UTI all rolled into one. Mask and tinct benzoin needed. I would suggest that you'd want a fully grown adult male jack russel that knew a thing or two about ratting. You need to make friends with a local farmer! Meanwhile the man from the council may well be able to help regarding the entry point as they've usually seen it all before and have an affinity with rats for some reason! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cartimandua51 Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 . The council have baited the kitchen but I'll get them back in on Monday to do the loft. Our best friends have a young Jack Russell and I did consider borrowing him, however, I'd feel incredibly guity if he was bitten by a rat. The problem with the entry point is that I have no idea where it is. You might have two problems - rats in the kitchen and squirrels in the loft. OK, squirrels are just tree rats with a good PR agency, but they are a bit easier to keep out as they're bigger. I have a continuing rat problem, kept at bay by my cats (less destructive when chasing rodents than Jack Russels; which are wonderful in barns; less so when going berserk in your living room!). You do have to budget for dead rodents being laid proudly on your bed, though.... Over the years I've developed a live-and-let-live attitude; just being very careful about keeping food in rat-proof containers. But I accept that some people are freaked out by rodents, and they aren't good news when you've got a baby crawling round on the floor. Getting rid of them permanently can be incredibly difficult in rural areas (or near rivers) no matter how mych money you throw at the problem. As a LL I regard it as my duty to do something about it by way of baiting; if it meant serious structural work I'd be inclined to look carefully at the economics of renting v selling up, given how difficult it is to make an old rural place rat-proof - even with a modern place they will scuttle in if you leave the doors or windows open. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Henson Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Now in a farmhouse and the rats don't seem to be a problem although the air rifle and some bacon will sort them out if they try it on! You should see the mess that left when you blast them with 32 grams of lead from a 12 bore.... tee hee much more fun than an air rifle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt Barlow Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I'm currently renting an old cottage in the country. Have been renting for best part of a decade and never had a vermin problem before. Essentially we've heard a bit of scratching in the roof recently and have seen one rat briefly scuttling across the kitchen floor. I suspect there is more than one. We got the council in who just baited the kitchen, however, I suspect we need a proper rodent erradication, and that means Rentokil...... and lots of money. We are clean tennants and I believe that this infestation is to do with a structural defect in this old cottage, that has given them a portal of entry. Thus in my opinion it should be the landlord who foots the bill, but as we all know these lovely landlords always try to dodge the bullet, especially the accidental amateur ones, and believe me he is an amateur. Thoughs and experiences would be greatly appreciated. The wife has vacated the house with our baby and I'm all alone with the rodents!!!! Legally you would be responsible for treating the infestation although reading further into this thread the Council provides a free service to deal with rats and mice. They have no legal obligation to do so and I expect with next years cut backs it will be bye bye pest control service. As for the damage - well if you can prove the access to the property by the rats was attributable to disrepair which is the Landlords responsibility you could pin it on him Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ValerieMae Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 When I had rats in my cottage, my landlord footed the bill, too. There were just 2 rats on the kitchen ceiling and they baited them. Sometimes, even if there's no entry point, rats can gnaw a hole so they can get inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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