Rat in engine of my car

lazeedaisy

Ok guys,

Just realised I have a rat in the engine of my car.

I am as scared as he s,

How do I get rid of it.

Any advice

allroad

I might have something living under the bonnet as well. Insulation appears damaged and a pile of what look like sycamore seeds gathered up in one corner. Maybe a baited trap left overnight would be worthwhile trying.
How did you find out - open the bonnet and there it was, or did you notice anything beforehand?

Interslice

Shotgun!

Interslice

Or a new cat!

bazz26

Are you sure it's not just the engine's hamster having a break?

corktina

is it in the carburateur?

Interslice

Shotgun!

greasepalm

start car up and drive it any more horsepower/ratpower,or loud blast on car horn.

lazeedaisy

My dogs tried to climb up under the car.

Last time that happened there was a cat on the engine. Himself opened the engine and jumped a mile,

We both went out Laurel and hardy style, the rat eventually jumped out, was starting to make a nest with veg peelings, which we cleared, I cut some dog hair and left it on engine, is open now to make it colder.

Have not moved the car in 2 days.

Was afraid to turn it on in case It did more damage,

Panic over for now, our little terrier is black now,

king_of_inismac

Happened to my sister recently.

1. Put down rat poison (safely) for as many nights as it takes for the poison to stop being eaten.

2. Next get any damage repaired under insurance (its covered by comprehensive insurance).

3. If the rat got in the car get it professionally valeted.

lazeedaisy

Thanks for the advice,

Looks like nothing was touched, will check in daylight tomorrow, will have proper look inside car too, will let dog in to check,

It was just a shock, and so many websites tell you how to avoid getting them in first place. Never thought of the horn, tried a brush and banging it,

The dogs are great for spotting things like that,

It was making a nest, will ensure I keep an eye now, will move car too,

Just a shock for us I suppose, got the heart working though

bazz26

I'd be concerned about what they would do to the electrics especially wiring looms. Rats can chew their way through most things. Was going to suggest investing in a cat as they are great at keeping rodents away but your dogs may not like the idea of a cat in their domain.

Bpmull

If the car has a proper sump gaurd/ engine under tray and wheel arch liners then the engine area would be fairly well sealed up I would have thought that would make it hard for a rat to get up into it. Although plenty of engines don't have under trays.

bazz26

You'd be surprised where rats can get into.

Froshtbit

Is this common? Never heard of rats getting comfortable in an engine bay before!

bazz26

The heat and dryness from the engine bay attracts them at this time of year.

dieselbug

Horrible bast***s, I hate them with a passion. Yes it's the warmth and shelter and nice hideing place that attracts them.

They will chew everything, wiring, rubber, insulation.

I had a friend who had a dead rat in the heater box on a Avensis, first he knew was when the smell came from the heater, yuch.

Desolation Of Smug

Burn the car with fire. It gets them out 100%.

dgt

Bastards the lot of them. They chewed seats and carpets in several cars here :mad:

I'll be waiting with the shotgun someday...

*Kol*

lazeedaisy wrote: »

My dogs tried to climb up under the car.

Last time that happened there was a cat on the engine. Himself opened the engine and jumped a mile,

We both went out Laurel and hardy style, the rat eventually jumped out, was starting to make a nest with veg peelings, which we cleared, I cut some dog hair and left it on engine, is open now to make it colder.

Have not moved the car in 2 days.

Was afraid to turn it on in case It did more damage,

Panic over for now, our little terrier is black now,

I would be worried that they would get into the house. Did you check??

obplayer

pa990

Desolation Of Smug wrote: »

Burn the car with fire. It gets them out 100%.

Fire.... burn with.... uhhh.

Me cave man




.
.... how else u burn.... ugh..

CJ Haughey

Burn it claim it on insurance.

Oyva bigwan

Cover the distributor with plastic bag and power wash the bastrd

Zimmerframe

CJ Haughey

Oyva bigwan wrote: »

Cover the distributor with plastic bag and power wash the bastrd

Rats love water.

blindsider

OP - what make is the car?

Heard some bad stories re Toyota recently.

Also heard that the insurance will insist on getting a complete disinfection done - Weil's disease etc

StereoSound

Our dog killed a sewer rat a few months back. Big black dirty thing with yellow teeth. Never seen anything like it.

Abit of rat poison is all you can do really, it dries out their organs and they panic and go in search of water but too late for the little beggars.

Hachiko

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS0fXQN6zrI

corktina

dgt wrote: »

Bastards the lot of them. They chewed seats and carpets in several cars here :mad:

I'll be waiting with the shotgun someday...

hairy japanese bastards?

Gmaximum

If you know someone with ferrets get them in at the rat. They'll have him flushed out in seconds

spiggotpaddy

If it's an Irish registered VW or Toyota you can use the shotgun method.I'm fairly sure I've read on boards they're bulletproof.But to be certain you should first check with a man in the pub.

lazeedaisy

Thanks guys,

It's an old Golf,

We did have a rat in tHe house for ten seconds before our terrier realised what he was, ughhh..... Had to disinfect and clean everything,

We had them chew away outside until the insulation beads were pouring out of the house, filled all possible entrances, filled them up and put down traps, only took a full day, got rid thank god, that was about 2 1/2 weeks ago. Was only saying to himself we had seen none around since, (the fox got the last of our hens about the same time so we no longer have food out).

I know you never can get rid, but you can control them in some way. But the car.....

It was funny because we were both scared....

We have 2 great dogs, the terrer in particular can be great, and I did freak when they caught Roland.

We used to see them gnawing at the hens food, and are clearing ditches around, so I know they are always close.

The only thing that truely scares the bejasus out of me is a rat, and I know it's a constant battle with them.

Thanks again for the responses, had no idea how to deal wih it. It was a very cold night and the engine of the car is ideal for them, I will go out today in it and park her someplace else,

Melodeon

Make sure your rat is dealt with and the car cleaned/washed before you let the terrier have unsupervised access to it.
The damage a rat might do to the wiring/insulation will pale into insignificance compared to the damage a terrier will do trying to get at the rat.

Noccy_Mondy

Bpmull wrote: »

If the car has a proper sump gaurd/ engine under tray and wheel arch liners then the engine area would be fairly well sealed up I would have thought that would make it hard for a rat to get up into it. Although plenty of engines don't have under trays.

A mouse can fit into a hole the size of diameter of a pencil, so thats what, 4 or 5 mm? Obviously a rat is much bigger, but not so big that can't find a small gap

Tearin It Up

Don't put rat poison down if you have a dog. Its very toxic to dogs if they ingest it.

Rat poison makes a rat bleed to death. Can also happen to your pets if they accidentally ingest it.

The best way to get rid of rats is to remove all food sources from outside, if you feed your dog outside, feed him inside. Remove bin bags.

Rats hate the smell of cats and their urine. Get a cat. Or ask a friend if you can borrow their cat's litter tray for the scent of their piss. They also apparently hate the smell of peppermint oil.

dieselbug

Tearin It Up wrote: »

Don't put rat poison down if you have a dog. Its very toxic to dogs if they ingest it.

Rat poison makes a rat bleed to death. Can also happen to your pets if they accidentally ingest it.

The best way to get rid of rats is to remove all food sources from outside, if you feed your dog outside, feed him inside. Remove bin bags.

Rats hate the smell of cats and their urine. Get a cat. Or ask a friend if you can borrow their cat's litter tray for the scent of their piss. They also apparently hate the smell of peppermint oil.

+1 on the feeding dogs etc and another source of food that attracts them is bird feeders.

For cleaning, get the garden sprayer and fill it with hot water and disinfectent, spray generously, the steam will carry the disinfectent in to the awkard places.