Help me catch this rat!

[JeffP_Or]

Strong work and way to keep at it - let's just hope that was not the Trojan Horserat that got volunteered as sacrificial.... I had a similar recent experience with rabbits in the garden; there is always a 'second' one [even if it ends up being the 4th or 5th...]!

 

[Blind Squirrel]

This is the inspiration I needed heading into Elk season.

 

[RCL]

Congratulations
It was an entertaining hunt with a fine ending.

 

[3forks]

Sorry for bringing this up again, but as I feared, my rat odyssey isn’t over.

You guys knew as well as I did, that it was probably not just one rat I was hunting.

Turns out, I believe what I thought was a male rat I caught, was probably a female and she had a litter. I’m assuming there‘s more rat pups, and probably the elusive male that I like to believe I was matching whits with still under the deck.

I believe this because I left a few traps out, and this morning my retired bird dog was showing some interest in the flower bed. I knew what this meant as he has given up on finding the upland birds he was bred to find, and has many hundreds of points over. Now, my last remaining dog that I used to hunt over when we lived in Montana (and were living the life we were meant to) and I have been reduced to hunting rats in a Denver suburb.

What I did find was a new record of 4 rats on one glue board. They’re young and immature, so I take no pride in this catch.

Anyway, I won’t update this thread again unless I catch what I imagine to be the Boone and Crocket male that I had originally been after. Hopefully, I will catch him before either he or I dies of old age.

 

[Tod osier]

Sorry for bringing this up again, but as I feared, my rat odyssey isn’t over.

You guys knew as well as I did, that it was probably not just one rat I was hunting.

Turns out, I believe what I thought was a male rat I caught, was probably a female and she had a litter. I’m assuming there‘s more rat pups, and probably the elusive male that I like to believe I was matching whits with still under the deck.

I believe this because I left a few traps out, and this morning my retired bird dog was showing some interest in the flower bed. I knew what this meant as he has given up on finding the upland birds he was bred to find, and has many hundreds of points over. Now, my last remaining dog that I used to hunt over when we lived in Montana (and were living the life we were meant to) and I have been reduced to hunting rats in a Denver suburb.

What I did find was a new record of 4 rats on one glue board. They’re young and immature, so I take no pride in this catch.

Anyway, I won’t update this thread again unless I catch what I imagine to be the Boone and Crocket male that I had originally been after. Hopefully, I will catch him before either he or I dies of old age.

Any rat is a trophy! Hold your head high. .

 

[Drenalin]

Sorry for bringing this up again, but as I feared, my rat odyssey isn’t over.

You guys knew as well as I did, that it was probably not just one rat I was hunting.

Turns out, I believe what I thought was a male rat I caught, was probably a female and she had a litter. I’m assuming there‘s more rat pups, and probably the elusive male that I like to believe I was matching whits with still under the deck.

I believe this because I left a few traps out, and this morning my retired bird dog was showing some interest in the flower bed. I knew what this meant as he has given up on finding the upland birds he was bred to find, and has many hundreds of points over. Now, my last remaining dog that I used to hunt over when we lived in Montana (and were living the life we were meant to) and I have been reduced to hunting rats in a Denver suburb.

What I did find was a new record of 4 rats on one glue board. They’re young and immature, so I take no pride in this catch.

Anyway, I won’t update this thread again unless I catch what I imagine to be the Boone and Crocket male that I had originally been after. Hopefully, I will catch him before either he or I dies of old age.

Praise be! I for one am glad the end of this thread is not in sight. With respect and condolences to you and your family, of course.

 

[Fatcamp]

Sorry for bringing this up again, but as I feared, my rat odyssey isn’t over.

You guys knew as well as I did, that it was probably not just one rat I was hunting.

Turns out, I believe what I thought was a male rat I caught, was probably a female and she had a litter. I’m assuming there‘s more rat pups, and probably the elusive male that I like to believe I was matching whits with still under the deck.

I believe this because I left a few traps out, and this morning my retired bird dog was showing some interest in the flower bed. I knew what this meant as he has given up on finding the upland birds he was bred to find, and has many hundreds of points over. Now, my last remaining dog that I used to hunt over when we lived in Montana (and were living the life we were meant to) and I have been reduced to hunting rats in a Denver suburb.

What I did find was a new record of 4 rats on one glue board. They’re young and immature, so I take no pride in this catch.

Anyway, I won’t update this thread again unless I catch what I imagine to be the Boone and Crocket male that I had originally been after. Hopefully, I will catch him before either he or I dies of old age.

It had to be done, OP. Our duty is often unpleasant, harsh, and lacks joy, but it is our destiny nonetheless.

 

[Dos Perros]

You know it's an ugly business doing one's duty, but just occasionally. It's a real pleasure.

 

[Drenalin]

I know a guy, let's call him Jim, who had an issue with a stray, feral cat living in his crawlspace.

Efforts to catch this feline went unrewarded. The crawlspace was too shallow and the cat too fast to be brought in by hand. I was witness to Jim chasing the cat in the crawlspace, propelling his full 240 pounds around on his hands and knees at surprising (and frankly unsafe) speeds. But lack of success, exhaustion, and a minor head injury forced him to abandon this effort.

To Jim's surprise, this cat was apparently trap shy, or at least wise to his shenanigans, because the live traps he set in the crawlspace remained forever empty. Traps on the outside were not an option, at least not after he caught a neighbor's cat in one (Jim too, is a suburbanite). Jim was frustrated, to put it mildly.

To circle back to the beginning a little, the way this cat got into Jim's crawlspace was, well, by the door. Time and weather had worked their magic on the crawlspace door so that it didn't fully close. It wasn't until this cat began squatting on Jim's property that he decided to repair it.

So one Saturday, he heads around the house to fix the door in hopes of preventing reentry by the cat. But as Jim began the necessary mental gymnastics required before taking on any Saturday home improvement project, he peered into the crawlspace and saw a pair of feline eyes staring back out at him. Without hesitation, he slammed the door (as much as it could be slammed), reached for a hammer, and proceeded to beat the door until it closed enough to offer no chance of escape for the vile animal.

Now I'm not saying I condone it (or that I don't), but Jim's next move was to abandon the repair and spend the rest of his Saturday nursing various craft beers. I assisted in this part of the tale. It wasn't until the smell of the cat's decomposing flesh reached Jim's nostrils days later that he even approached that crawlspace again. He pried the door open with a crowbar and retrieved his foe with a shovel before unceremoniously dumping the foul corpse in the trash. Jim spent the next Saturday after his victory repairing duct insulation in addition to the crawlspace door. He was quite satisfied with his work on all fronts.

I offer this story as a distraction for the OP, and perhaps as inspiration to consider any non-traditional, outside the box solution that may present itself.

 

[Ktm500]

I kind of look at catching it in a long spring like a trad kill.

 

[MarlinMark]

Thank you all for this thread. I'm ordering some of those traps. Another tool in the tool belt.

 

[buschlight]

Gotta get the mink

 

[HUNT.HARD.82]

Well, I would like to congratulate you on your killing of the king rats wife and children. I would assume you are taking extreme cation as the GRAND POOBAH of all rats will be seeking vengeance for the loss of his family, RIP TO THEM.
Good luck to you sir, stay safe. A bit of advise if I may, have your wife stay with the in-law's until this is resolved.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Sorry for bringing this up again, but as I feared, my rat odyssey isn’t over.

You guys knew as well as I did, that it was probably not just one rat I was hunting.

Turns out, I believe what I thought was a male rat I caught, was probably a female and she had a litter. I’m assuming there‘s more rat pups, and probably the elusive male that I like to believe I was matching whits with still under the deck.

I believe this because I left a few traps out, and this morning my retired bird dog was showing some interest in the flower bed. I knew what this meant as he has given up on finding the upland birds he was bred to find, and has many hundreds of points over. Now, my last remaining dog that I used to hunt over when we lived in Montana (and were living the life we were meant to) and I have been reduced to hunting rats in a Denver suburb.

What I did find was a new record of 4 rats on one glue board. They’re young and immature, so I take no pride in this catch.

Anyway, I won’t update this thread again unless I catch what I imagine to be the Boone and Crocket male that I had originally been after. Hopefully, I will catch him before either he or I dies of old age.

The young ones might not be as meaty, but they make the best table fare.

 

[MattB]

Post of pics of the bull rat once you catch him.

Drenalin, tell Jim he needs a .22 cal pellet gun.

 

[woods89]

I know a guy, let's call him Jim, who had an issue with a stray, feral cat living in his crawlspace.

Efforts to catch this feline went unrewarded. The crawlspace was too shallow and the cat too fast to be brought in by hand. I was witness to Jim chasing the cat in the crawlspace, propelling his full 240 pounds around on his hands and knees at surprising (and frankly unsafe) speeds. But lack of success, exhaustion, and a minor head injury forced him to abandon this effort.

To Jim's surprise, this cat was apparently trap shy, or at least wise to his shenanigans, because the live traps he set in the crawlspace remained forever empty. Traps on the outside were not an option, at least not after he caught a neighbor's cat in one (Jim too, is a suburbanite). Jim was frustrated, to put it mildly.

To circle back to the beginning a little, the way this cat got into Jim's crawlspace was, well, by the door. Time and weather had worked their magic on the crawlspace door so that it didn't fully close. It wasn't until this cat began squatting on Jim's property that he decided to repair it.

So one Saturday, he heads around the house to fix the door in hopes of preventing reentry by the cat. But as Jim began the necessary mental gymnastics required before taking on any Saturday home improvement project, he peered into the crawlspace and saw a pair of feline eyes staring back out at him. Without hesitation, he slammed the door (as much as it could be slammed), reached for a hammer, and proceeded to beat the door until it closed enough to offer no chance of escape for the vile animal.

Now I'm not saying I condone it (or that I don't), but Jim's next move was to abandon the repair and spend the rest of his Saturday nursing various craft beers. I assisted in this part of the tale. It wasn't until the smell of the cat's decomposing flesh reached Jim's nostrils days later that he even approached that crawlspace again. He pried the door open with a crowbar and retrieved his foe with a shovel before unceremoniously dumping the foul corpse in the trash. Jim spent the next Saturday after his victory repairing duct insulation in addition to the crawlspace door. He was quite satisfied with his work on all fronts.

I offer this story as a distraction for the OP, and perhaps as inspiration to consider any non-traditional, outside the box solution that may present itself.

Well told.

 

[aOWENc]

Please take a trophy picture of you kneeling down with your B&C rat!

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Please take a trophy picture of you kneeling down with your B&C rat!

With sponsor logos.

 

[MattKyle]

this guy’s minks slaughtering rats. So, I’m down to putting out a poison

Tracking Powder?