Green lifestyle blamed for England’s rodent woes 6

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1. 

   human power Posted 4:14 pm
   11 Feb 2009

   I'm not buying itI suppose if the rubbish containers are left open to vermin and the composting is done improperly it is somewhat possible that the rats are finding some chow there. It is just hard to believe the Brits are so utterly incompetent at handling their waste. I'm more inclined to believe the vermin are doing whet the raccoons and possums do in my neighborhood: they eat cat food and dog food (they'll eat the cats and dogs too, but not very often)
   
   On a personal note: I just hauled 10 months of rubbish to my county dump station by bike. Considering it was only three small cans, it wasn't much effort. My family's goal is to get an entire year into one can. Maybe next year.

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2. 

   Pangolin Posted 6:05 pm
   11 Feb 2009

   Shrubbish!! Or rather, shruberry, the ownership of by absentee or inattentive property owners and it's proximity to buildings.
   What keeps a rat happy is a poorly pruned property with mounds of leaf and shrub litter ideally snug against the foundation. Above ground, tree branches that closely overhang or touch the roof encourage rats to attempt entry into attics and crawl spaces.
   A well kept compost pile OTOH, encourages the keeper of the pile to seek out such litter as feedstock to balance the wet waste from the kitchen. Food properly mixed into active compost (instead of dumped on top) is occupied by composting biota in minutes and will be left as "spoiled" by rats and mice.
   Anybody who neglects to understand the relationship between the nature outside the walls and his/her personal role in maintaining a healthy balance is going to suffer repeated infestations of rats, mice, ants, roaches, fleas and other opportunists as niches for these creatures require nothing more than simple neglect.
   Observe your habitat with an eye to it's place in a food web for other critters and you should be able to keep ahead of the game.
   
   Put the Carbon Back

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3. 

   amazingdrx Posted 7:03 pm
   11 Feb 2009

   Rat on!These ladies in Pacific Palisades fed their rat herd dog food.  In their home. Was it organic?  I doubt it.
   The rats even burrowed into the furniture.
   
   http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog John Schneider, Northern Wisconsin

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4. 

   nancyhammond Posted 4:00 am
   12 Feb 2009

   RatsThe pest control company likely uses some nasty, non-organic poisons, which would give them an incentive to impugn the "green lifestyle."

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5. 

   Terrigail Posted 4:36 pm
   12 Feb 2009

   RatsHi Gristmill,
   
      I am an avid gardener and "do" try to do everything I "can" to recycle, reduce and reuse.
   
      I am a Master Gardener for the state in which I live. Our purpose is to educate and support all other gardeners and to encourage them to, in turn, pass the knowledge on to others in our community. We all share what knowledge we have.
   
      I have composted for several years. Due to an unfortunate series of "accidents", I find myself disabled for the past 2 years and not able to currently garden. (It was my passion!)
   
      Make sure you do not add any meat or dairy products to your compost pile and turn frequently. The leftovers and scraps I have are cut into small pieces or run through my blender,when possible, then poured over the pile to decompose quicker. Then turn,turn,turn! Following this should not cause any additional attraction to vermin by composting.
   
      My pets, 2dogs and 1 cat, are fed inside. When we grill outside or picnic in the back yard,
   
   I am careful to remove all foods and trash and dispose of it immediately. My refuse container is "never" left uncovered.
   
      However, you can not control your neighbors. I always let my neighbors see me working and when they ask about my activities, I tell them how I am doing things and why it is so important.Most all are like me anyway and others have followed when I explained to them.
   
      I do have an 8ft. by 16ft. raised garden in my yard. I am certain it does attract neighborhood mice, birds,squirel and an occasional opossum or rabbit running through. These will always be attracted to gardens.
   
      I rather think instead of blaming the rat population on the change to fortnightly trash collection, perhaps it is due to the lack of care in keeping the refuge covered and unaccesabile to said rodents till it can be picked up. Then address the expansion by eliminating most all you can.
   
      I do not understand how a person could think "Living Green" would cause rats!
   
                            Terrigail
   
   

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6. 

   VCF Posted 9:10 pm
   12 Feb 2009

   @ human powernever underestimate us Brit's capacity for incompetence....

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