Critters: a follow up posting from April 14th 2013

Critters 2.

So, having heard the patter of tiny feet in my attic, I summoned the handyman at the Glen Oaks Ridge Association (GORA) to my home. His name is Larry.

Larry came to my home on April 16^th and set up a “sticky trap” in the attic.

On April 17^th he discovered that some smart rat or other had simply flipped the sticky trap over.

So he tried again on April 17^7h - by re-setting the sticky trap and adding a spring loaded trap which he baited with a goodly amount of peanut butter.

But my rats are smart.  One of them had managed to trip the spring loaded trap, and eat the peanut butter without being trapped.

So on Friday April 19^th Larry reset the traps, and secured them to the attic floor with very strong sticky tape.

When he returned to my home on Monday April 22^nd he inspected the attic traps and found nothing..

Both he and I were frustrated.

Yesterday morning - (April 23rd) - at about 5:45 a.m.)  I heard a great kerfuffle from my hall  way.

Then Junior Cat Adelaide came rushing thro’ my home with a rat in her jaws. . She had captured it in the kitchen closet where I keep a trash can.

Senior cat Ada and Penne tried to join in the fray, but I cut them off at the pass to prevent what might have been mayhem (two cats and a dog chasing one rat?)

Luckily Adelaide, rat in mouth ran into the lanai, where I was able to isolate them from the rest of the house.  About an hour later there was one proud cat and one dead rat.

I lavished praise on Adelaide and gave her a much appreciated reward:  I allowed her to go outside and hunt for a while - flouting the GORA rules.

Larry reports that he was able to trap a mouse in the home two door away in the triplex. 

He also went into the middle home, where the owner told him that she had seen rats running around.  (Larry said that the home was a perfect breeding place for rodents, and I was not surprised.)  

The pictures below of the outside of that home will give you a clue as to what mess might well be inside.

I saw Larry today, and he reported that three rats had been trapped next door.

He’s also sealed any possible  place on the perimeter of the triplex which might have provided an entrance hole for rats and mice.

Not very clear picture of Adelaide and the rat (taken through the sliding doors to the Lanai)

One not quite dead rat - it was twitching when I took this picture

"Killer"

Neighbour's car port 1

Neighbour's car port 2

Neighbour's car port 3

The GORA Board has repeatedly demanded that my neighbour should "keep the rules" and clean up this area, but to no avail.  She could be fined by the GORA Board but that would not be helpful for under Florida's Condo. laws there is no provision for  Condo. Associations to enforce and collect those fines.  So if any owner chooses not to pay a fine "thare ain't much we can do about it". (Of course the Florida laws  are designed to protect owners from arbitrary, capricious or "revenge" fining by Condo. Boards)

This is the hole in the drywall of the storage closet through which the rat made entry. I suspect that it was created by a plumber some time ago (before I moved in) so that she/he could work on the water pipe.  I am not planning to seal it for a while - cos if there are rats still in the attic I want this hole to be a red carpet for their entrance, and a fine hunting space for Adelaide.