Wily rats making Livermore residents highly uncomfortable

DEAR JOAN >> We have rats in the walls of our house. We have trapped several outside over the past months, but cannot get these.

My husband saw a large one go behind the refrigerator. Since then we’ve cleaned up and stuffed steel wool where they were coming in.

We have tried trapping on several occasions, but they aren’t going for it. We don’t know what to do. I don’t like being in the family room when it gets dark.

Any suggestions are appreciated. We are working on trimming trees and such, but we have dogs so it is harder to trap.

— Linda, Livermore

DEAR LINDA >> There are few sounds that create as many chills as the sound of rats scratching on the walls. In fact, I had to take a break from writing that sentence to calm myself down.

As the rats are on the inside, you should focus your trapping there. The rats might be living in the walls, but it’s just as likely that they are nesting in the attic and just using the walls as highways.

I know some people are opposed to killing rats, but if that’s the path you’ve taken, I want you to do it as safely and humanely as possible. If you’re using traditional snap traps, try baiting them with half a shelled walnut and either gluing the nut to the trigger or tying it on with dental floss. Rats that repeatedly take the bait and avoid getting caught have it figured out, so you need to force them to tug at the walnut, which activates the trap.

Rat zappers — batteryoperated traps that instantly electrocute the rat — are highly effective indoors.

Place traps in the attic along the walls. Outdoors, put them under a box with a small opening cut in the side, big enough for the rat and not most other creatures. You also can buy rat trap boxes. These will make it safer to use traps around your pets.

DEAR JOAN >> I have a 2-acre fenced yard. Occasionally when I go into the yard early mornings, I find the entrails of a small animal. No fur, feathers or blood. Just small organs and intestines, perfectly clean and laid out in the grass without any damage.

I have a good amount of rabbits, groundhogs and squirrels. This happens mostly in summertime. The only predators I know of are hawks, a rare fox and a feral cat or two. What predator can do this with such absolute surgical precision and does not eat the organs? I’ve ruled out the Chupacabra and aliens. Any idea of an animal in this region capable of doing this? — Everett Lewis, Center Moriches, N.Y.

DEAR EVERETT >> Jackrabbit the Ripper? Actually, that is the unique behavior of the red-tailed hawk, which is the most common hawk in the country.

Lovable dog awaits

Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation in Walnut Creek is hoping someone out there will give 11-year- old Kirk a good home. The poor boy loves to cuddle and take strolls and is great with other, larger sized dogs, but because he’s a senior, he’s not attracting much attention at the shelter.

Check out Kirk’s details and arrange a meeting by going to the website at www.arflife.org. His adoption fee already has been paid.