How To Keep Rats From Eating My Cables? 1032
An anonymous reader writes "I am curious to know what vermin prevention/eradication methods are used in other locations. I am working at a dealership and we have an exterminator man who puts out glue traps and bait stations, but they still come and eat my cable. The latest was a couple of fiber runs — very expensive. I have threatened my boss with a cat for the server room (my office), going so far as to cruise the local Humane Society's website and eye-balling a nice Ragdoll-Siamese mix. Even if I do feel like dealing with a litter box, cat hair in the equipment and pouncings on my keyboards (and I'm not sure I do), that only covers the server room. We have multiple buildings on the campus which get locked up to prevent theft, but it isn't secure enough to keep out the critters and the latest chew spot was in the ceiling. Any ideas?"
Terrier dog (Score:4, Interesting)
there's a breed called the rat terrier, not as common as it once was, but probably other terriers could do for this work. Possibly you can deal better with typical dog behaviors better than cat behaviors.
Go Wireless (Score:5, Interesting)
One of the great reasons why wireless networking and phone technology is popular in Africa is that the copper thieves can't steal the wires. One area I visited often, many years back, had a 25 mile long telephone cable to a phone that never worked. By the time the installation crew finished the installation the first half of the line would be gone and they'd wait for the next year's budget and start all over again...
Battle Stations!!! (Score:5, Interesting)
Clearly, you need to deploy one or more Rat Zapper Battle Stations [ratzapper.com]
They work great. Rats die humanely. Things that eat rats, don't.
I mean to say, things that eat them don't die, not that they die horrible, lingering deaths.
Well, of course they will die, eventually. But not from this.
I mean, unless they're other rats.
Victor Electronic Rat Trap (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Cats ? (Score:3, Interesting)
Interest is much different from killing, though.
I used to have two hampsters and three cats. Occassionally, the hampsters would get out. The cats were *great* at helping me locate them, "ooh, little ball of fluff, what's it doing?" but the cats never attacked the hampsters at all. In fact, the cats rarely, if ever, got within 2 feet of the hampsters. (The hampsters, however, were much more brazen, even walking up TO the cats, wherein our trusty felis domesticus would retreat...)
Those poor cats were in hell when I bought those little rodents the balls.
These weren't obese cats either. Slightly overweight, common for indoor cats, but very active.
Re:Three options (Score:4, Interesting)
Really, my friend bought a car on his American Express while in college
My sister did this (but it was Visa).
Her car died, and she needed a new one. My dad checked out a Hyundai at the local dealer (this was back in the '80s when they had just come to the US), and told her to get one -- He figured she'd finance it and he'd send her a check (didn't believe in credit).
Instead, she put it on his Visa card (it was the minimal $4995 model). My dad paid it off in full, but had a bit of a surprise there.
TPC? (Score:3, Interesting)
I spent some time in Alabama and have a clear recollection of seeing the phone company out to paint some kind of substance on the above-ground wires. It seems that the red squirrels in that area like to chew on the insulation, and this causes problems. I asked the foreman if the stuff was poisonous, and he replied no. "It just burns the hell out of their little feet." Don't know what the stuff was or if it would be suitable for indoor cables.
I also agree that you need to talk management into expanding your exterminating budget. Rats are unhealthy for the human inhabitants of your facility.
Re:Three options (Score:5, Interesting)
Rats and mice don't eat cables...They chew the insulation off to make their nests...or if it happens to be in their way. So your best be it to figure out what the hell they're eating, and shut down their food supply. They'll move on shortly thereafter.
I'll add to what you just wrote.
First, it's true that rats don't eat cables and instead use the insulation to make their nests, but it's worth pointing out that rats will eat almost anything, and what they don't eat they tend to chew up to make their nests. If you have just cables, consider yourself lucky. The typical homeowner with rats in the garage will see his papers, books, and furniture destroyed.
Second, what rats don't eat or chew on will be likely be covered in shit and urine. Rats do this on the move (no stopping for a private piss in the corner for them) so expect everything to be dirtied, if not damaged.
Third, what isn't eaten, chewed, shit on, or pissed on may be salvageable, but that may not be good enough. Rats carry all sorts of diseases (as do their fleas), but their leftovers (saliva, urine, droppings, etc.) are similarly problematic. Hantavirus, for example, is common enough in the US, and breathing in dust from a rat infestation should be considered a real risk.
As for "moving on", yes, they'll move on, but they tend to stay until they decide to do so. It's not unlike ants. Leave some food unattended for a day, and you'll have ant problems for weeks. Do it again, and they'll calculate the moving average in their little brains, and you'll have ant problems for far longer than you'd think. Female rats, IIRC, will go into heat every few days, and will mate with anyone (incest is no problem). The little fuckers reach sexual maturity after a few few weeks of being born. That suggests that once you have a rat problem, you will continue to have a rat problem.
I have a neighbour who is the kind of woman you see on the local news from time to time: too many cats to count. She also has lots of fruit trees. The rats come for the fruit and cat food, but the cats are too well fed to be of any use, so the rats end up in my garage. Occassionally, they dig through the drywayll and end up in my kitchen.
Killing them with poison is, regrettably, the best approach. In a rural or farm environment, cats, terriers and owls tend to keep their populations in check.
Re:Three options (Score:3, Interesting)
Interesting. I automatically assumed an IBM Dealership.
Re:Three options (Score:3, Interesting)
His fault for trusting someone else with his card details.
Re:Cats ? (Score:3, Interesting)
Good point, and entirely true. Cats generally need to learn that something is food before they will eat it, though they may find out by accident. And although a cat's killing maneuver (the neck-bite) is instinctual and doesn't need to be learned, learning the stalking and pouncing behavior specific to each prey species makes a cat a much more effective hunter.
I saw the same sort of behavior from my cats and guinea pig, which wasn't afraid of the cats at all. In fact, it seemed to realize that cats only sweat from their pads, and therefore their pads are salty, which guinea pigs love. The guinea pig would waddle up to the cats and attempt to eat their toes, which confused and upset the cats terribly, but they still wouldn't so much as whack the guinea pig with claws retracted.
Rats can chew through concrete, go steel (Score:5, Interesting)
Rats can go right through concrete.
You should look at ruggedized stainless steel fiber for you expensive short haul fiber and maybe switch to air gap laser or MMDS wireless for long haul or switch it around.
Both of those are rat proof. check it out http://www.timbercon.com/SS-Cables/index.html [timbercon.com]
Re:Deer repellent/hot pepper spray (capsaicin) (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Three options (Score:5, Interesting)
Most of the farms I'm familiar with have a colony of cats living in each barn. Each colony gets a fixed ration of food each day, and no, none of the cats have ever been "fixed". Those cats will chase anything they think they can eat.
Re:Deer repellent/hot pepper spray (capsaicin) (Score:3, Interesting)
Did that with our apartment. Between pepper+vinegar (seemed to work better than water) and boric acid we only get the occasional flying pest and spider and we're a ground floor apartment in central florida.
Re:Cats kill rats just fine (Score:5, Interesting)
> Barn bred cats are the ninja's of the cat world.
Absolutely. My grandfather had barnyard cats, and I watched one of them make a habit of stalking squirrels like a pro. She knew that the squirrel would dash for the nearest tree, and would line herself up behind the tree so that the squirrel actually ran *towards* her when startled, allowing for a quick swipe of the paw. Then, she knew how to grab the neck to avoid getting bitten. As spastic and clever as squirrels are, rats are in serious trouble from a feline hunter like that.
Re:Tobasco (Score:4, Interesting)
My brothers dog used to chew on the piano.
So we went and tried the whole hot sauce trick.
We watched until he tried the chewing on the piano leg again (didn't take long).
He recoiled and gave it one of those tilted head looks for a sec, then instead of just nibbling on it like he had been he started chewing on it full force like he'd finally found the ultimate food.
Mycroft
Re:Three options (Score:4, Interesting)
It was in her name (secondary card).
It wasn't a problem, it was just a good laugh -- "She bought her car on the Visa".
To be honest, a few years back, I tried the same thing -- was going to buy a car on my home equity line, didn't have the checks with me, but the dealer wouldn't let me put more than $5K on the home equity Visa.
Re:Cats kill rats just fine (Score:2, Interesting)
I can attest to this.
One night I woke up with a rat in my room. After thinking about what to do in a cold sweet hiding under my covers for about 2 minutes I realised I should probably just get one of our cats to sort it out.
First cat I found was Bella who we had got from a pet store several years ago, I took her to my room and watched to see how she reacted. She smelt the rat and went closer to investigate. She found where it was hiding she pretty much chased it and clawed at it. I gave her a few minutes but she did a pretty pathetic job and eradicating it.
By this time Dante a cat who came to use after being abandon by its owner and surviving on its own few several weeks had been woken up and came to see what the fuss was. He pretty much took one pounce at it grabbing it around the neck. Problem solved.
Get a terrier - they're good ratters (Score:3, Interesting)
Juicyfruit Gum (Score:1, Interesting)
They LOVE it, They can't digest it, and they die.
Cable Insulation contains dextrose... (Score:1, Interesting)
Often cable insulation contains dextrose, so the vermin is attract by it...
Re:Three options (Score:3, Interesting)
At which point they have violated the Visa/MasterCard merchant agreement.
And eventually, with enough reported violations, can't accept Visa or MasterCard.
I never said it was illegal for them to require it, it is just a violation of the contract they signed to be able to accept Visa/MasterCard.
Re:Cats kill rats just fine (Score:1, Interesting)
Maybe a ways OT, but the best rodent control I ever had was a pair of Scottie dogs. Those things handled it all. Rats and mice, of course. Yes, bunny rabbits (had a garden, and I actually GOT most of the tubers I planted). Moles. A (luckily) stray cat. One night, they even cornered a damn raccoon on the porch (I called them off and phoned pest patrol before they could finish the job). The really cool thing about them is that they were patient. They'd sniff the vermin to an entry or exit point, and sit down and wait. For hours. They'd wait until the critter came back and crawled into sight -- then, bam, dead rodent. With moles, they'd pick a likely location, and again, wait. Then, BOOM, they'd notice the ground moving and start digging, and more often than not, they'd come up with a very surprised varmint (the moles were doing enough damage on their own that I was more than happy to pour a little dirt and seed into the uprooted spots in return for fewer surprise potholes). One of the two even had a fortunate tendency not to eat everything she killed (for some reason, she liked to eat locusts, though...)
It DOES mean regular de-worming and regular vaccinations, along with training, exercise, and other care, but I've never witnessed a more efficient home pest hunter. I DO recommend getting females; they're still tenacious hunters, but they're less aggressive to other dogs and strangers.
Re:Deer repellent/hot pepper spray (capsaicin) (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Three options (Score:4, Interesting)
No. It isn't true. Instinct is indeed to chase pretty much anything that moves, that isn't a 'friend'.
I've had multiple cats that we adopted from kittens ( as young as 6 weeks, having to nurse via eye-dropper ) that would hunt too damned much. We didn't have a #&$((@ mouse problem until one particular bastard of a cat started bring (live!) mice in from the field 'for later'.
Ah, I miss that cat.
Re:Three options (Score:1, Interesting)
My experience is that rats will eat plastic much more readily than mice.
Mine, too.
I once had a rat that I never did see. I kept bird seed in covered coffee cans near the back door -- the rat got to it and chewed through the plastic lid. The lower teeth scarred the metal can pretty well, too.
Later, when I got a couple of new cats, I used to keep their dry food in the garage. When the rat got to it, I got a pretty tough plastic garbage can to store it in. The rat actually chewed along the sculpture lines in the heavy plastic lid. I then started keeping the food bags in a galvanized 20-gallon garbage can. No problem since then.
However, during the rat's tenure in the garage, it also wrecked a 50 foot roll of 4 mil plastic sheeting by chewing all of the part of the roll closest to the floor. It also chomped away at a plastic bag of those red beer cups I had out here.
At least there's been no sign of the little monster since I got the cat food into a metal can.
Re:Three options (Score:3, Interesting)