Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Rats, rabbits, and parachuting spiders, oh my!

Goodness, I always knew there were rats in the neighborhood, but I did not expect to get seven eight of the vermin in the snap traps in one week. The dogs have been giving us fits, wanting to get out at all hours of the night and run the rats along the fence rails, chasing them all over, and trying to root around under the back deck to dig them out.  It's annoying and disrupts what little sleep I get, so it was time to wage war on the rats.  Snap traps are a lot safer with kids and pets around, than poisons, so we don't use poison in the back.  In case you're wondering I use these traps.  They work well.

Victor Quick Set Power Kill Rat Trap

I have also been seeing a lot of rabbits around lately.  Rather large ones, fat and healthy looking really.  I imagine they'd be tasty, if one was so inclined.  I've only ever hunted rabbits down as a kid when they were chomping on Mom's roses.  With the rotund rabbits around here, I am thinking the forecast of a harsh winter for the USA may be correct.

And today was parachuting spider day!  DH noted the hunks of spider web parachute floating on the wind today, especially as he was out riding his bike to work and back.  If you look around the trees, and on car antennas, you can see these long strands of spider web everywhere.  There's even a hunk of it globbed onto one of the van tires.  DH told me to watch out for the arachno-fallschirmjaegers and he was right--we saw them all over town.  I have not seen the spiders attached to these web-chutes, but maybe that's a good thing!  There's a video on youtube, showing these web-chutes.  You won't see any spiders on it, but if you hate arachnids, don't look at the suggested videos that youtube will offer up if you watch this clip.  http://youtu.be/m2XQw0C7GsQ

Heck, we even made the Drudge Report and local media, with this! 


7 comments:

  1. Well that's one video I will skip - I don't like spiders! They have been crazy here too - I have a post scheduled for tomorrow about them.

    Yikes, that's crazy about all the rats.

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  2. Ooo, spider video. Will definitely watch. I don't mind them at all.. well outside in the garden where they belong. Only 2 of the venomous kind exist here in Oregon. The Hobo and the Brown Recluse, but i've never seen either.

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  3. Won't be able to watch that video - not really afraid of spiders, but the thought of flying spiders is just too much... :)

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  4. Aye-Yi-Yi!!!
    Harsh Winter, you say??
    Spiders parachuting in, Rabbits getting ready AND - RATS???


    yeppers, I'm gonna join you in that morning cupa joe - and allow the world to settle before i head out again . . .

    Love to YOU!!!

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  5. We live in SE Georgia way out in the country. So far, rats & mice haven't been a problem (maybe because of our resident Red Shoulder Hawks and Bald Eagles?) but we are having difficulties with armadillos. Or, as we call them, Possum On The Half-shell. [ha ha] Both the "possum" and the rabbits are an easy fix for us. Shoot 'em and fire up the grill. :) Our spiders are weaving webs everywhere too. So annoying. Hope they're not jumpers! YUCK! ~:)

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  6. Rats, we hates them precious, we hates them! Filthy things.. eats our collars they do.. Hates them!
    My thy count increase! But not to much.. because then
    you would have a real problem.

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  7. Ah, my young Padawan has increased our trap totals, to 3 traps now, and already this is yielding new vermin for the pit! That makes 9 as of tonight.

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