creature in my bedroom!

john the one

OP I think you beed to watch this video immediately if not sooner so you know what your dealing with.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=06X9qXTvKNQ

Also, please be vigilant

goz83

You can keep birds and cats. I have 3 cats, 2 of which are bird killers. I recently got 2 budgies and as an eye is kept on the cage, the cats don't stress the birds out. No mice here.

toadfly

How can you sleep in a room that you think has a rat hiding out?!

Red_Dwarf

Archeron

I'd be worried it might be a Chupacabra.

OP Have any of your goats gone missing lately?

It's probably a rat. Is poison the way to go? Me and the birds are moving downstairs until we poison the sh!t out of that thing.

Vision of Disorder

You people are all ridiculous.

It's clearly a velociraptor we're dealing with here. Possibly some (very) aggressive marketing ahead of the new Jurassic Park movie in the works.

I keep my raptor well contained!

(There genuinely is a large size toy velociraptor in my room. I've had it since I was 12!)

However, the rodent is very real. I previously thought I had imagined it, but no. I had not.

anniehoo

Deleted User wrote: »

It's probably a rat. Is poison the way to go? Me and the birds are moving downstairs until we poison the sh!t out of that thing.

Sorry to put an end to the fun folks. But, if you're serious this is not the forum to discuss rat poison. Humane methods of pest control only please.

Sorry, was unaware that killing it wasn't an option.

What would you suggest?

ShaShaBear

Setting a humane trap for it, letting it out a good distance away from your home, and giving your room a good clean and checking for how it got in, and blocking off the entry point. I imagine a rat would have attempted to kill the birds at this stage, they're very agile climbers and gnawers. I've seen my two girls open their cage and climb down from a height of 6 feet before, and they're pets - I can only imagine what a wild rat would be capable of if hungry!

How it got in, that's pretty simple, really old house, holes everywhere, cracks between floorboards, etc. I don't think this is a problem that will go away. Get rid of one, there will be another along. I have a horrible feeling moving house is the only genuine solution - a terrible pity since I loved it here and my housemates are dead cool.

ShaShaBear

Deleted User wrote: »

How it got in, that's pretty simple, really old house, holes everywhere, cracks between floorboards, etc. I don't think this is a problem that will go away. Get rid of one, there will be another along. I have a horrible feeling moving house is the only genuine solution - a terrible pity since I loved it here and my housemates are dead cool.

It probably is. Exterminators, poison and trapping (live or dead) are only good for what's already in the house. Obviously in the winter when its cold and they are hungry (mice and rats), they are going to make their way into a nice toasty house. Spiders do the same thing.

Rock Lesnar

Deleted User wrote: »

Sorry, was unaware that killing it wasn't an option.

What would you suggest?

Just politely ask it to leave, im sure it will understand

ShaShaBear

ShaShaBear wrote: »

It probably is. Exterminators, poison and trapping (live or dead) are only good for what's already in the house. Obviously in the winter when its cold and they are hungry (mice and rats), they are going to make their way into a nice toasty house. Spiders do the same thing.

Not to be nit picking, but spiders actually don't. They're in the house all year round.

Moving house is not currently an option... getting my birds out somewhere safe and dealing with my current buddy is top on the agenda. Stopping it from happening again is my biggest problem.

Pretzill

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Not to be nit picking, but spiders actually don't. They're in the house all year round.

Moving house is not currently an option... getting my birds out somewhere safe and dealing with my current buddy is top on the agenda. Stopping it from happening again is my biggest problem.

Most of us are never more than 10 feet from a rat so moving house is a bit extreme. It's easier to find where rats are getting in they leave bigger holes. Check the fascia board between roof and wall - make sure all pipes going into the house have no holes around where they meet the wall. Expandable foam is your friend - a cheap way of blocking access points and using some metal gauze underneath bigger holes will stop the rat chewing through.

Inside check where the rat is running probably along by the walls - look for droppings - put your humane trap along the run with a tasty treat enclosed. Humane rat traps are huge cagey things - but rats are smart and often avoid traps actually the humane ones are often better for catching them.

After mr rat has been remved double check all areas - keep runways clear don't allow any hiding places and install the humane trap again.

You may have a rat in your attic or in your dry lining - or underneath the floorboards - you don't want one on your bed - but they can chew electric wires and cause damage and can carry disease so if all else fails call in the professionals!

shamrock55

If i was you id throw a cat into your room for a few hours to see would that sort it, no harm in trying anyway

ShaShaBear

Deleted User wrote: »

Not to be nit picking, but spiders actually don't. They're in the house all year round.

Moving house is not currently an option... getting my birds out somewhere safe and dealing with my current buddy is top on the agenda. Stopping it from happening again is my biggest problem.

Well, yes, but they come out and duck your ship up when the heating comes on

The critter has been downgraded to a mouse, now. Still haven't seen it. But there are mice under our floorboards and my housemate in the room next to me has seen them running across his floor.

It was the completely missing Dorito and no crumb evidence this morning that leads me to believe it's bigger.

But I want to believe it's only a mouse.

Pretzill

(snip. touch phone)

ShaShaBear

I know its technically a myth about the mouse-rat ratio, but it's very unlikely you would have mice hanging around if there were rats.
We actually had mice in our last house (it was very big) and as soon as they got whiff of the bag of rat bedding we took downstairs, house was emptied pretty quick.

Pretzill

[Deleted User] wrote: »

The critter has been downgraded to a mouse, now. Still haven't seen it. But there are mice under our floorboards and my housemate in the room next to me has seen them running across his floor.

It was the completely missing Dorito and no crumb evidence this morning that leads me to believe it's bigger.

But I want to believe it's only a mouse.

Dorito carried back to nest the mice children will eat tonight! Just be careful they don't go looking for a cool beer after.

You could have both but it's likely to be mice they can make a helluva racket at night - chewing and shredding. I've had mice too and have caught and released 5 already this winter. Or maybe released one five times! I too live with country mice.

TooManyDogs

Pretzill wrote: »

Dorito carried back to nest the mice children will eat tonight! Just be careful they don't go looking for a cool beer after.

That's true actually, mice eat as the find it but rats bring food back to the nest for the babas.

TooManyDogs

TooManyDogs wrote: »

That's true actually, mice eat as the find it but rats bring food back to the nest for the babas.

I thought mice also carry food back to nest.

That was why I automatically assumed "rat"; but apparently mice can steal pieces of food as big as themselves and take it back to the nest.

Pretzill

[Deleted User] wrote: »

I thought mice also carry food back to nest.

That was why I automatically assumed "rat"; but apparently mice can steal pieces of food as big as themselves and take it back to the nest.

Or the mouse could have snaffled it crumbs and all. Believe me you will see large droppings if there's a rat - quite noticable like rabbit droppings but longer - it's a mouse, set the little humane traps with some peanut butter on the closed end - you'll catch him quite quickly and then a short drive and set him free in the fields.

Pretzill

Pretzill wrote: »

Or the mouse could have snaffled it crumbs and all. Believe me you will see large droppings if there's a rat - quite noticable like rabbit droppings but longer - it's a mouse, set the little humane traps with some peanut butter on the closed end - you'll catch him quite quickly and then a short drive and set him free in the fields.

Cheers. I have not seen droppings! Couple o' traps tomorrow.

Since I did a clean up and hoover this morning, I'm a little concerned that the creature may be hungry tonight and tempted to get into the bird cage - mad as it sounds I'm going to leave something small out where I left the crisp last night, to deter it from possibly harming the little ones.

They're coming downstairs when everyone goes to bed. They're too naughty to bring them down now, they'd annoy everyone to death.

ShaShaBear

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Setting a humane trap for it, letting it out a good distance away from your home, and giving your room a good clean and checking for how it got in, and blocking off the entry point. I imagine a rat would have attempted to kill the birds at this stage, they're very agile climbers and gnawers. I've seen my two girls open their cage and climb down from a height of 6 feet before, and they're pets - I can only imagine what a wild rat would be capable of if hungry!

This just suddenly occurred to me too. Last night in bed I heard the birds making "giving out" noises, and half asleep I just shushed them and rolled over. I assumed one of them had touched off the other, they get grumpy when they're woken. But it could well have been a mouse in the cage at their seed woke them up and peed them off.

Yes, I'm sitting awake on my couch (refuse to sleep up there tonight) picking at ANYTHING to convince myself it's just a mouse!

borderlinemeath

Mice do carry food back. We had a very brazen mouse a few years back, it ignored the humane trap for 6 weeks until we found his stash behind the fridge. It was coming out from behind the fridge and robbing nuts from the dogs bowl and bringing them back to it's hidey hole. He used to come out at night and look at us sitting on the couch, the dog sitting there too, then it would rob a nut from the bowl and run back with it.

mymo

Doritos missing? Chilli heat wave by any chance?


My dog disappeared from the end of my bed last night for a good hour our more, he'd do anything for chilli Doritos!
Problem solved, tonight I shut ny bedroom door and hide the car keys!

goz83

Did you catch Elmo yet?