Rats!!!

Hello all,

I currently am feeding two or three cats outside in my shed. I do have a camera in my shed so that I can see who is eating. The cats come in at different times during the night. I have noticed that I am now getting rats invading my shed and eating the cat food. I have tried not leaving food in there all day, and only feeding at night. But the cats don't come in on any schedule.

I do not want to stop feeding the cats, but i don't want to be feeding the rats. Anyone else gone through this problem ? What have you done ?

Good question. I suppose this problem is rather common. And thus, experiences and solutions are much welcome!



One of the reasons people got angry at the cat feeders leaving food in the neighboorhood... Or why you shall not just throw out food hoping birds will find it. There is always a risk if birds dont find it, the rats will.


The main recipe is probably to try to teach the cats the food is there at some decided time. Say twice a day, evening and at morning. It lessens the risks...

Second. If you can actually observe the place, (or you do see it afterwards?),
there must be a way to rig up some sonic equipment.
Optimal is something ultra sound which rats hear - and feel as much unpleasant, but humans dont hear.
And you set it on when you see the rats. It istn necessary you do it every time they are there. They will learn soon it it often very unpleasant to be guests there... So they will avoid the place anyway.
If you dont have such supersonic devices, a common loudly something should also do... A loudly electric door bell feks. Easy to rig up too.

Good luck!

A coworker told me several minutes ago, mices dont like the garlic smell.
She believed rats doesnt like it either.

Perhaps worth a try?

Although I had read rats dont like the smell of cat urine. Yet they are eating cats food...

Perhaps try with some cat urine too???

I cleaned out the shed today. I had hay inside that during the winter the cats would curl up inside. Got rid of the hay, it smelled like urine. The rats have chewed holes in the walls and floor of the shed. It's made of wood, and in the back corner of the yard, away from the house. I hung everything up so that there are no places to hide around.

When the two females lived in the shed, they would always leave me dead mice, or rats. I ended up bringing both the females inside. The males don't stay in the shed, they just stop by in the middle of the night and eat, along with a couple raccoons and a possum.

I liked having the dried cat food, so that they could just come in and eat. I would also give them a can of wet cat food at night. In the winter I would give them two cans, so that they kept fat for the winter.

I can't stop feeding the cats, but i hate rats. Going to go to home depot and look for some electronic thingy. I can't use poison because of the other animals, and the rats will take the poison other places, and my not too smart dogs might eat it.

While you're at home depot, get some 1/4th" hardware cloth to patch the holes with and staple around the bottom the shed where the rats are likely to chew again. It could help some. If this shed is even remotely near your home, I suggest you thoroughly inspect the outside of your home for even the tiniest of holes.

I don't know about using anything that makes sound. Cats have very good hearing, in fact cats hear within ~45-64,000Hz and rats ~200-76,000Hz so you have to make sure its not within the range a cat can hear.

We put the food out at regular times. The cats will figure it out.

You could also build a table with a "skirt" that prevents the rats from accessing it. It would also stop the raccoons and possums, but it would not stop the cats. This is the basic idea - though this same thing can be constructed with four inset legs:

I just did something like that. I had an outdoor patio table. I placed this in the shed. and placed the food on the table. I'm thinking that it has hight slick legs and a lip, so that if a rat did climb up they would not be able to get to the food.

I re-arranged my camera and will keep an eye on it. I was just wondering if the cats will be able to see in the dark and jump up to the table, or do i need to put a small night light in the shed for them ?

They should be able to smell it, but a nightlight wouldn't hurt.

Well I put the table in the shed. I even put a 25watt light with a timer, so it goes on when it gets dark.

Last night a gray and white cat came in, looked at the table, but did not jump up.
Snowball came into the shed today, looked around and left. I went talked to him, told him where his food was. He came back into the shed, and sat in the doorway waiting for me to come out with his food. I finally ended up just putting his food down on the ground and then picking it up and putting it back on the table.

This wouldn't be a problem to go an pick it back up, but they don't come at a certain time. Most of the time they come late at night, when I am sleeping.

Any thoughts on how to get them to jump up to the table, I was thinking about putting some cat nip up there. What do you think ?

I have a cat on the TABLE !!! I put some cat nip up there and the light. Now I just need snowball to figure this out.

Yup, I was going to suggest a particularly stinky food.... but catnip was a good idea. They SHOULD catch on.... we didn't have a problem with the ferals getting it....

Someone mentioned garlic, but I believe that is toxic to cats. Don't put that out.

Originally Posted by blueyedgirl5946

Someone mentioned garlic, but I believe that is toxic to cats. Don't put that out.

Click to expand...

With garlic I meaned of course the smell to get away the rats and mices.
I was not talking about food for the cats.



And yes, garlic like all onions is supposed to be poisonous for cats.
Although I wonder HOW poisonous. There is actually quality cat food with garlic in it (flavor?). Surely only traces, but anyway.

Well one of the cats jumps on the table and eats. Snowball will not jump up on the table. He is looking a little thin, and it makes me worry.

I was thinking of making a semi tall stand that has a skirt, so that the rats could not climb up it. Although i do not know how tall to make it. Anyone know how far rats can jump ??

Is the table solid & on level ground? If it rocks slightly, that will make the cats less likely to jump up on it.

The table is solid. I have been feeding him in the shed for the last two years. I know cats don't like change, but he doesn't even look up at the table. He just walks into the shed and see's there is no food on the ground and leaves.

That is why I was thinking of going to the hardware store this weekend and making a two foot high table. That would be half the height of the current table, and he might jump up on that.

I had a problem with raccoons getting to my food. I figured since cats are mostly nocturnal (technically crepuscular), I should leave it out at night when they can come when they want... but then one night, getting a snack, I saw a raccoon snarfing it down!
I now bring in the food at night. Put it out first thing in the morning, and take it away after sunset when it starts getting dark enough that humans can't see very well (aka - when raccoons start coming out).
HOWEVER! I noticed the food bowl lately would be cleaned out in only a couple hours after I put it out.. say, around noon time. I figured "boy, these cats are hungry!". Well, after filling up the dish again, I decided to do some quick garden work. I then saw a squirrel snarfing it down! AURGH! So now I have the food up on top of a plastic storage bin (18 gallon tote), and the only critters getting to it now are the cats and magpie birds... not sure how to get the latter to quit taking it, though.

Anyhoo... the cats know the food is there. Try leaving it out just during the day, and if possible, just don't be around the shed except when you really need to (unless your ferals are used to you being around... mine come around when I'm gardening and obviously not paying attention to them)