Rodent Problem - Traps Are Not Working. Ready to Burn Down the House

We live in an old farm house, on some land in the country, and we've had mouse issues before.  Usually we set out some traps, catch a few mice, and the problem goes away.  

This time...I think we are dealing with something larger.  Possibly a rat.  We've cleaned and put away all food into the refrigerator or secure containers.  We've cleaned up piles of clothes, papers, etc.  Trying to get rid of any nesting material or food.  

But...the little berkeleyers are now CHEWING on our stuff.  The other day Mrs. VCH found the vacuum cleaner hose was chewed through, and the handle was chewed on.  Just now she found the rubber sole on her good boots had been knawed.  What the actual berkeley.  ????

I have multiple snap traps set throughout the house.  Some are rat traps, some are mouse traps.  All have fresh Peanut Butter in them, with a few pieces of seeds sprinkled on for good measure.  I even have a small have-a-heart trap in the basement near the cellar door to the outside.  They haven't gone for any of it.  

I'm mad, wife is pissed, told me she's going to burn down the berkeleying house.  What else can we do to get these little berkeleyers dead and out of our house???  Completely sealing up the house isn't feasible- as I said, its an old farm house, I've been working on fixing holes and stuff as I find them but it'll never be 100%.  Getting a cat is also not an option, as I'm allergic and we already have a (useless) dog.  

Bucket trap. I used one when I was living in a converted scale house in a field. Work really well with a couple inches of water at the bottom.

There's also some sort of gel bait for mice and rats which is supposedly the hot ticket now days. Also remember they like to run along walls so plan accordingly with the traps. Glue works pretty well in spots where they run but they have their own issues.

I like glue traps myself.  Some people consider them bad but they do work.

I had a mouse problem when there was a small hole in my brick wall that they used to enter the house.

I kept killing them but they never went away until I found and sealed that hole.

Name it and celebrate having a pet you don't need to take care of.

In reply to The0retical :

Cool idea.  And they can't climb the walls of the bucket I take it?  

No problem with drowning the little berkeleyers.  I already off my share of groundhogs every year.  

In reply to volvoclearinghouse :

The bucket is typically too tall and slick to climb up. I used to put maybe 2 or 3 inches of water in there so they'll just drown. Put the ramps next to the wall to encourage them to climb it.

Serious note, sealing holes is tough as they can slide through astonishingly small spaces and can gnaw through most building materials.  Steel wool is easy to stuff in cracks and about the only thing they can't eat.  Sounds like you're already on path with getting rid of food and nesting spots, it's a marathon though, it'll take time to get rid of them.

In reply to jimbbski :

I've tried glue traps in the past.  Problem was they'd get half caught on it, and then run around dragging the trap behind them until they died somewhere, and then I'd have to find them.  Playing "where's that smell coming from?" was not my happiest game.  

Poison.

I'm also in the sticks, have chickens, and therefore also rats.   I've tried traps of different kinds, but poison is the only thing that works and it has to be the good stuff. The regular hardware store/consumer stuff does nothing.

In reply to KyAllroad (Jeremy) :

Yeah- the other issue is we took out all of the old radiators, so there's a bunch of ~1" diameter holes in the floors where the pipes used to go.  I really need to seal all of those up, that might at least reduce their ability to get upstairs from the basement.  

Suprf1y said:

Poison.

I'm also in the sticks, have chickens, and therefore also rats.   I've tried traps of different kinds, but poison is the only thing that works and it has to be the good stuff. The regular hardware store/consumer stuff does nothing.

What's "the good stuff"?  I have the same problem with poison as I do with glue traps- don't they go somewhere secluded to die, rot, and smell?  

Fortunately, our chickens are well away from the house- like 100 feet or so to the coop.  I figured chicken E36 M3 would attract critters, which is why we put it out there.  

In reply to volvoclearinghouse :

Try all the brands of poison. I've noticed they're almost cyclical in effectiveness.

Also try antifreeze. And my personal favorite, concrete powders in corn meal. 

Although if you have some stuff laying around fasted58 built a petty damn effective trap in the build thread section, project mouser

I have had them go for antifreeze left outside in drain pans.  Not a bad idea.  Problem is, I have a dog and two small children I need to keep out of the stuff.  Maybe I'll try a pan in the basement.  

Need to find that build thread....

Have fasted58 hook you up with one of his killing machines.

KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:

Serious note, sealing holes is tough as they can slide through astonishingly small spaces and can gnaw through most building materials.  Steel wool is easy to stuff in cracks and about the only thing they can't eat.  Sounds like you're already on path with getting rid of food and nesting spots, it's a marathon though, it'll take time to get rid of them.

Their ribs are hinged at the spine.  Basically if the height of their skull fits, they can go through.  My kids have had pet rats and mice.. seen some amazing feats getting out of cages.  Also I've left tins of cat food for them and came back to find the metal chewed up.  Domestic rats actually make great pets, they are very smart. 

Bait the snap traps with vacuum cleaner hose and boot heels.

Seriously, sealing the radiator connections is likely to help. Maybe nailing the glue traps in place.

+1 on the steel wool. They absolutely hate that stuff. Get a bunch and stuff it into those radiator holes or anywhere else until you can permanently seal them. 

We usually get a few mice in our garage or basement.  This year we had more, for unknown reasons.  Glue traps were catching some, but I kept finding droppings.  I finally loaded up on poison baits and finally stopped seeing droppings.  I was concerned about them hiding and dying but have not yet smelled evidence of that occurring.  We'll see as time passes, but the poison baits was the key to get rid of them.

Know anyone with a terrier? Rent, borrow, steal, buy one. Might want to look for a Rat Terrier in specific. 

http://www.terrierman.com/ratdog.htm

Our Patron Saint:
The "Patron Saint" of all rat dogs is Teddy Roosevelt who created the American Rat Terrier and worked rats in the basement of the White House.

MadScientistMatt said:

Bait the snap traps with vacuum cleaner hose and boot heels.

I have a text message from Mrs. VCH suggesting exactly the same thing.  

I fought the fight and lost. Exterminator made it look easy. Poison pods and steel wool. Little berkeleyers never have come back.

Im a big fan of the steel wool, the bucket trap and a cat..... 

They can be cyclical. We had RATS at our last house. Every 3-5 years they would over run us. I'd set the traps 3 and 4 times every night. My record was 28 in one evening with 5 traps set around my shop. Several times I would hear the trap snap as I was walking back to the house. 

The only way I kept them out of the house was with hardware cloth and great stuff. Even the smallest openings got hardware cloth and great stuff stuffed in them. Read that as hours under the house laying on my back with a roll of hardware cloth and a couple of cans of spray foam. Don't forget the eves, chimney, sewer vents, pretty much every penetration in the house got treated. 

Borrow a healthy, hungry outdoor cat. Set out a litter box and a water dish. It'll only take a few casualties before the rest get the hint.