Giant Rat

Galwayguy35 · 28-03-2014 05:56PM

Obliq wrote: »

My cat eats everything except the liver on most small rodents, but restricts himself to the rat brain, clearly leaving the rest for my nutritious breakfast. He stands there looking as if he's wondering why I don't cook it up immediately.

He's just a mass of muscle, that cat. Would give any of your grandfather's terriers a run for their money for sure. Took him to the vet a few weeks ago for an abscessed paw and he busted out of the plastic cat carry box, which was a good one with a double lock on it. Luckily I had my mother in the car at the time - we had to pull over and swap drivers while I grappled with the cat. Like wrestling a lion, so it was.

I used to always think the Tom cats were not as good a hunters as the females but it seems I was wrong.

2 of our cats killed one of those grey crows once, it was a team effort!

kowloon · 28-03-2014 06:11PM

ScumLord wrote: »

I heard somewhere before that some people reckon large cities wouldn't work without rats moving around the sewers and eating up any waste they come across. Despite being seen as dirty creatures they're actually keeping places clean from food waste. Maybe replacing with their poo but at least that can be fertilizer to something.

I shoot them but admire them at the same time, it's a shame they have to be killed, but they'll go for feed, bird feeders, fallen apples and compost heaps. I've had them jump at me when I accidentally cornered them, and they can sometimes go for my birds when they're nesting, but the majority of the time they avoid conflict.
They've a very keen sense of navigation and they'll get to know an area really well with more than one escape route. Change anything, move anything around and they'll notice and be very careful until they've acclimatised to the new layout.

Obliq · 28-03-2014 06:21PM

Galwayguy35 wrote: »

I used to always think the Tom cats were not as good a hunters as the females but it seems I was wrong.

2 of our cats killed one of those grey crows once, it was a team effort!

Well this fella is neutered, but doesn't know it tbh. He gets urges and has a go at the other cats (all male). Usually females are the better hunters (instinct, or something - feeding kittens and all that...), I think you're right. This fella is a bit too thick to be afraid of anything though, so won't back down from a rat.

I have a bird hunter as well, unfortunately. I only thanked him the time he brought back an entire family of young magpies, one by one (they were new to flying).

Reiketsu · 28-03-2014 08:23PM

ScumLord wrote: »

There's probably a rat of that size within a 100 metres of you right now. It doesn't matter what part of the country or world you live in there's rats of that size around.

That's me leaving this planet then.

kowloon · 28-03-2014 08:47PM

Reiketsu wrote: »

That's me leaving this planet then.

Wouldn't head to the Moon, I gather giant pink woollen rats called Clangers live there.

Gyalist · 28-03-2014 10:58PM

metroburgers wrote: »

Nice story there Mr. Dahl!

We later found out that he had done a runner after owing the Revenue a very large amount in VAT. The business was there trading normally on the Saturday and on the following Monday it was gone.

harry Bailey esq · 29-03-2014 11:12PM

is there not already an active thread about john gilligan

tallus · 29-03-2014 11:24PM

Gyalist wrote: »

I've seen rats that size and much larger in Dublin city centre. A few years ago I worked next door to premises that had formerly traded as a pet shop before the owner disappeared suddenly under mysterious circumstances. After a few weeks I began to consider leasing the next door shop to expand my business so I approached the landlord to view the property. As he knew me well he gave me a set of keys to the property to have a look around on my own.

What I found in the dark basement of that shop I will never forget. The previous tenant had left large sacks of pet food and bird seed piled high downstairs and they were being devoured by giant rats that had come up from the sewers and had become so fat that they could hardly move when I disturbed them. I called the Corporation and they sent out an Environmental Health Officer the next day and I took her to see what was going on. When we went down to the basement and she turned on her flashlight and saw the monsters, she screamed and ran out of the building!

Anyway, the Corporation threatened the landlord with some sort of enforcement action so he sent two of his property maintenance men to set rat poison in the basement. The day after the poison was set I went back to have a look and more than 60 giant rats had been poisoned - most of them were much larger than the average domestic cat. They were using spades to put them in bags and most of the rats were about twice the width of the spades. We had to put up with a few weeks of dreadful smells as some of the rats died in inaccessible places where the maintenance men couldn't find them.

Was that premises on South Great George's street by any chance ?
I remember going downstairs in the pet shop there shortly before it closed, and there were scarily big rats coming up from the sewers.

Teyla Emmagan · 29-03-2014 11:55PM

Obliq wrote: »

I have a bird hunter as well, unfortunately. I only thanked him the time he brought back an entire family of young magpies, one by one (they were new to flying).

My mam came home last year to find a rabbit's head and four paws laid out on the front door step. And the cat sitting beside them, waiting to have his efforts acknowledged.

Ann Landers · 30-03-2014 12:00AM

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

I give you... the Capybara:

https://www.google.ie/search?q=capybara&espv=210&es_sm=93&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=_Vo0U6yuGcLd7QasvYCAAw&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ&biw=1280&bih=724#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=TeTr4N3vDcp3IM%253A%3BdAHtKoZa9dvrqM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fimg4.wikia.nocookie.net%252F__cb20130802192230%252Fwhatever-you-want%252Fimages%252F2%252F2a%252FO-CAPYBARA-HUGS-CAT-facebook.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwhatever-you-want.wikia.com%252Fwiki%252FFile%253AO-CAPYBARA-HUGS-CAT-facebook.jpg%3B1536%3B1021

They have those at Fota Island, they just stroll around the place. The cuties.

Giant Rat

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