How do you kill a rat or chipmunk without poisons?
Question:We have dogs and dont want any chance of poisoning them. Is a hard wire trap the only solution?
Answers:
I'm not saying it is humane, but it doesn't involve poison. Fill a five gallon bucket 3/4 full of water. Pour some bird seed like black sunflower seed in the water; it will float. Lay a board from the ground to the top of the bucket, making a ramp for the rodents to walk up. They will look in the bucket thinking it is full of seed and jump in. They don't swim so well, if you know what I mean.
Let the dogs do the job
Regarding rats, Wikipedia has an excellent article on rodenticides at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/rat_poison. Please note that most rodenticides may also harm your dogs.
Chipmunks are difficult to poison; they are picky eaters. There are commercial chipmunk repellents you can purchase. Read about chipmunk control at http://www.bugspray.com/articles98/chipm... (I know, some people say mothballs. They don't work!)
Please be aware, also regarding chipmunks, although they are not protected by federal law, some states may require a permit or may even prohibit killing chipmunks. Search for "[your state] law chipmunks."
Regarding both rats and chipmunks, eliminating their food source and habitat is the first step in controlling them. You can poison them or repel them, but if there's shelter and food, more may take their place.
Read about chipmunks' habitats at http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/nreos/wild/pdf/w...
Read about rats' habitats at http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/rats...
I rid my yard of rats by removing a firewood pile a former owner had accumulated. Once the rats lost their "home" they went elsewhere.
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