Neighbour complaining over rats

[K93o 10]

Hi, my neighbour keeps complaining over rats and blames it on me because my dog does its business in my garden which I do clean up by the way! Anyway I have never seen a rat but every time my neighbour see them they are in her garden only but it's still my fault. Clearly if it was my fault wouldn't there be rats in my garden as well? My other neighbour has never seen these rats ether just her, but she keeps calling the rat control people and they saw that there was some dog muck on my garden and told her that if it's still there he would report me!? He's supposed to be calling back to her house some time this week to check what ever rat traps he's put down I think, not entirely sure. What am I supposed to do also she has admitted to me a few times that she feeds the birds! So to me the bird food that she puts in her garden will attract rats more than a bit of dog muck! But I'm not around every time she get the rat people to come out! What am I supposed to do with this one???? Thank you all!

[Gamston 10]

If the lady is feeding the birds , then that is more likely to have attracted the rats than anything your dog has done .

[RonJeremy 10]

If the lady is feeding the birds , then that is more likely to have attracted the rats than anything your dog has done .

 

I agree. But you cant escape rats really. They are everywhere.

[K93o 10]

I've never seen any rats to be honest and if there was rats about surely my dog would notice them when it's out late at night or during the day as it's always in the days when she sees them...

[Gamston 10]

I've never seen any rats to be honest and if there was rats about surely my dog would notice them when it's out late at night or during the day as it's always in the days when she sees them...

 

To be fair she is more likely to notice them during the day . Has there been any new building work nearby recently ?

 

If I was you, I would have a friendly word with the lady and enquire about what the pest control people have done . You should be concerned if poison is being used for the safety of your own dog . Also remind her about the fact feeding the birds also attracts unwanted visitors .

 

---------- Post added 01-02-2016 at 09:32 ----------

 

I agree. But you cant escape rats really. They are everywhere.

I saw some rats in an Asda car park recently

[K93o 10]

No new building work but i do live behind a church which has a lot of over grown weeds and that. Every time she speaks to me she just makes out like its me that causes it even though I've never seen one and I've been livin here for a year! Plus there always in her garden no body else's

[swede1973 10]

I live at the back of a farm and now and then we see rats, this wont go down well but we use melted chocolate and broken glass to get rid of them, they eat the chocolate with smashed up glass and the rest is well one dead rat. Before anyone condones this we have children who play in the garden and we dont want rats all over, rather the rat get it than my kids been bitten. As for your neighbour complaining nothing you can do about them apart from kill them with traps poison or whatever.

[999tigger 10]

Why dont you ring enviironmental health and take their advice? That woudl pre empt your neighbour and help you identify if this claim was true as well as giving you some guidance on what you need to do about it. Presumably if there are rats then you would like to minimise the risk and if you are assisting them , then you would like to do something about it as much for you as her? It may be to do with both of you or neither of you. Just find out first to prevent it getting into a blame game.

[Gamston 10]

Why dont you ring enviironmental health and take their advice? That woudl pre empt your neighbour and help you identify if this claim was true as well as giving you some guidance on what you need to do about it. Presumably if there are rats then you would like to minimise the risk and if you are assisting them , then you would like to do something about it as much for you as her? It may be to do with both of you or neither of you. Just find out first to prevent it getting into a blame game.

Common sense tells me the bird feeder is more likely to be the person to blame than the dog keeper .

 

I agree with your good common sense advice about ringing the environmental health department .

[K93o 10]

Personally I don't think there are any rats there as myself or my other neighbour have never seen them also there is nothing on my garden to encourage rats

[neeeeeeeeeek 10]

There are rats everywhere, and if she is feeding birds that will bring them in.

Either traps or poison... I'm not keen on killing any animals but they are a massive problem and they breed at an incredible rate.

[999tigger 10]

Personally I don't think there are any rats there as myself or my other neighbour have never seen them also there is nothing on my garden to encourage rats

 

Missing the point.

 

Are there rats? If there are , then are you interested in finding out where they come from and whats attarcting them to her property? There may or may not be and you may or may not be assisting them.

 

The people who will investigate will be environmental health, so talking to them for advice off your own bat is also a way of protecting yourself as you come across as a pro active neighbour who wnats to solve a problem rather than one who is causing it.

 

If EE say no problem then you have no problem and can say that to your neighbour.

If EE say there is , then you can take their advice and sort it out.

 

Isnt it better finding out either way, then sorting it out?