Chicago, Rats and Feral Cats

 Its almost as though the news is following me!

A cat looks out of its pen at the Humane Rescue Alliance shelter on 19 June, 2019 in Washington, DC

(AFP via Getty Images)

A charity in Chicago has released hundreds of feral cats into neighbourhoods around the city in an attempt to conquer the area’s historic rat problems.

The Tree House Humane’s society’s “Cats at Work” programme has released more than 1,000 furry felines into residential or commercial settings to hunt the pesky rodents, WGN9 first reported.

Working cats hunt pests for the small fee of food, water, shelter, and wellness from their sponsors and often become “beloved members of the family,” the humane society says.

The organisation explains the hunters are feral cats who can’t live in a home or shelter environment. “By placing them in Cats at Work colonies, we’re able to make sure they’re living their best lives.”

The project is a “green” humane solution that removes sterilized and vaccinated feral cats from hostile environments and avoids the use of rat poison and dangerous traps.

According to Tree House, such chemical and mechanical methods are “ineffective short-term solutions” that can be “dangerous to children, pets and the environment.”

“We’ve had a lot of our clients tell us that before they had cats, they would step outside their house and rats would actually run across their feet,” Sarah Liss of Tree House Humane Society told WGN.

The cats’ mere presence in the neighbourhood alone repels the rodents, Ms Liss explained, spurring them to leave the predators’ territory.

“They are actually deterring them with their pheromones,” she told the broadcaster. “That’s enough to keep the rats away.”

While the cats will hunt and catch rodents on occasion, they won’t usually eat them as long as they are fed in line with the programme’s guidelines.

Chicago has long been infamous for its hard to tackle rat infestations, with the city having been named the “rattiest city” for six years in a row.

In 1977, a $1 bounty was offered for rats in the city as part of a “war on rats” after a borough official estimated that the rat population in one constituency outnumbered its 85,000 human population,The New York Times reported.

Now, residents are seeing a further spike in suburban rat populations as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Forced closures of restaurants in urban areas cut off rodents’ food supplies and forced them to search further afield for sustenance, with many even resorting to cannibalism.

So, Let's Talk About Rats

 I have seen on Face Book today someone stating they have rats. Theresponsewas to put a plate of baked beans outside with poison in them. The other suggestion was to put coca cola out as "rats can't burp so they explode" -now that is village idiot level advice.

If you have rats in the house you can drive them off as there are sonic devices you can plug in and you cannot hear the sound but the rats and mice can and it drives them mental and they leave. I've used these for two years now because of mice and altghough you might hear them rarely they are soon gone.  You can buy plug in ones or ones that operate by battery such as this one...

I have lived in an area with rats and I have had them in the spaces between walls so totalling up all those years comes to 30+? The sonic devices sorted out the problem.

Better Homes offers this advice:

https://www.bhg.com.au/how-to-get-rid-of-rats-in-your-garden

It may be tempting to use traps or poison, but they can pose a risk for dogs, children and native wildlife. It's better to employ methods that deter rats and offer a permanent solution.

Here are six ways to rid your garden of pesky rats for good.

1. Peppermint oil

Rats hate the smell of peppermint oil, so it’s an effective way to drive them away. Moisten some cotton balls with 100 per cent pure peppermint oil and place them in various spots around the garden, including the garage and shed. Reapply the oil a couple of times a week. 

2. Catnip

Get some catnip from a garden centre and plant it in several spots around the garden. Be strategic with your planting and look for signs of rat activity like nests and pellet droppings.

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3. Remove food and water sources

Rats will seek out any sources of food or water in your garden. Make sure your taps aren’t dripping and don’t use a bird bath. Remove bowls of pet food or water at night. If you like to compost, keep it secure and bury any organic material deep in the bin. Make sure lids are tightly closed on bins and don’t leave garbage bags outside for long periods.

4. Keep your garden clean

You can deter rats by keeping your garden clean and tidy. Remove piles of wood and garden clippings; pick up any fallen fruit, berries or vegetables, and cut back overgrown areas.

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5. Soil netting

If you want to protect a new garden from rats, lay a piece of netting just under the soil. This will prevent rats from burrowing and eating roots and bulbs. Determined rats may chew through the netting, so keep an eye out for it. 

6. Sealing gaps

Rats will try to enter your home through any gaps or cracks in external walls. Use an appropriate sealant to block any nooks and crannies. 

Now you may laugh at the Peppermint poil suggestion -I did- but it works. During fine weather in 2020 we had a female rat keep coming under the fence from neighbours and we had two oils to hand (or my sister did); peppermint and citronella.  I thought I'd try the citronella first so covered some cotton wool in it and put it at each of the entry points the rat used. It appeared. Sniffed. Went away. That was it.  A week later the best rat deterrent/killer you can have (the cat next door) took care of one there. Foxes will also take rats as part of their natural diet.

My neighbour asked for advice one day. The builders next door to her aged aunt had dug up drains and were making a lot of noise. While upstairs putting things away she noticed rats had chewed a big hole in a bedroom floor (the age aunt slept downstairs) and found traces of rat in the kitchen.  I gave her a bottle of citronella and she put drops down the holes she had found and also wiped over areas of the kitchen with it. A week later I was told that there were no fresh rat signs and a month after that still no sign. I wish I had known this worked years ago!

Putting commercially purchased rat and mice poison from stores should be illegal and this is because, firstly, the rat poisons used are inhumane despite what pest controllers might tell you. However, the biggest problem is that mis-use by people of these poisons kill many species each year.

Baked beans, bread or other food will be eaten by hedgehogs which are a critically endangered species and it will kill them in a very nasty way. Foxes will take the free meal. Cats will lick at the tomato sauce. Next door's dog gets out -free food! You explain in court why you put poison out where animals could get it and pay the costs financially. Birds will also peck at such food and I have known a number of magpies and crows killed because they ate rat poison. 

Go the natural route and if you are not keen on cats there is one guaranteed killer of rats.  A Jack Russel terrier. Any rat or mouse shows its head then the dog will kill it. 

Oh and That's Farming offered further advice: https://thatsfarming.com/farming-news/farm-hacks-deter-rats/

Farm Hacks – How to deter Rats using home remedies

Many farmers have reported an increase in rat sightings around their farmyards in recent weeks, due in part to feed supplies been kept there.

Using rodenticides on a farm, especially where there are smaller and pet animals, can prove extremely dangerous. This is why many farmers are now seeking other alternative methods of ridding rodents from their property. Check out the number of different home remedy rat deterrents below!

1 – Dried Urea – Did you know that Cow dung is a natural rat repellent? When ingested by the rats, they become extremely ill and begin to vomit, eventually resulting in death. To keep rats away, simply place an old cow ‘pat’ near where some recent rat droppings have been discovered.

2 – Mothballs – Mothballs are actually useful in keeping both rats and mice away. They are poisonous not only to the rodent but also humans, therefore be careful when using Mothballs. Again when using this method, simply place moth balls near any area where rats may be located on your farm.

3- Peppermint – Seeing as rats have a highly sensitive sense of smell, using fragrant plants, herbs and oils are a good way of keeping them away. One such smell which they despise is peppermint. Like the previous methods, Peppermint oil (On cotton balls) or tablets should be placed near where rats have previously been seen or where you know they reside.

This should push them out and keep them away as peppermint will instantly affect the lungs of the rat, killing them in the process. Minty toothpaste is also another option, while others have used other fragrant oils such as caster oil, clove oil and other fragrant products such as toilet cakes. Another option is pepper from the kitchen which produces a pungent aroma which rats detest and once they inhale it into their lungs they die.

4 – Bay Leaves – Rats are attracted to the sweet smell of bay leaves, which is what makes them the perfect trap as Bay leaves are highly toxic to rats. Once ingested they will die. Like all of the other methods, placing bay leaves in areas where rats frequent will help keep them away and at “bay”.

5 – Vegetables – Certain vegetables can also be used effectively to keep rats away. Onions are one such vegetable which have a pungent smell and one which rats and mice hate a lot. They will instantly run away from the smell, making it an effective method.

Peppers are another vegetable which can prove effective as it contains Capsaicin, which is the compound that gives peppers their heat. This heat is also a natural rat deterrent.

6 – Ammonia cleaning products – Sticking with the sense of smell theme, ammonia cleaning agents make for excellent rat repellents. To use, mix 2 cups of ammonia with 200mls of water and 2-3 spoons of detergent and place in a bowl near locations where rats are commonly found.

Ammonia is a super cleaning agent, but it acts as an excellent repelling agent to the rodents.

7 – Owls Feathers – A natural predator of rodents, using owl feathers which have been placed all over your farm will ensure rats and mice do not want to stay there long. Using human hair is also another useful option, as rats and mice tend to stay away from predators.

Other Options – There are many other options available, such as catch and release traps, electric shock traps and much more.

Some farmers also use sound as an effective repellent. Sharp sounds are hated by rats and rodents, causing death on most occasions. Another two options one could use is Baby powder and baking soda. These can both be sprinkled in areas where rats reside, though are not as effective.

One final method used by some is Plaster of Paris. When you mix 100gms of plaster of Paris with 100gms of cornmeal, you created a homemade rodenticide.
There you have it, there are plenty of options available to farmers to help keep rats and mice at bay. No need to jump for the rat traps quite just yet.

DO NOT BE A POISONING IDIOT!

What We Are Now Learning About Urban Foxes

 

Photo Alan Seymour

 There is unique information on urban fox behaviour that you do not read about in the books. This is because 99% of them are dedicated to the wild foxes and so repeat, cut n paste and repeat again old material.

Why? Because no one has seriously studied them. They are "just foxes".

Urban foxes and fox feeders are not mentioned in any of the text books up to or after 1990 that I have. The reason for this is simple. As wild canids foxes used to raid the old dustbins for scraps of food and this was also done by domestic cats and domestic dogs....not to mention the occasional tramp!

In 1976 there were no known fox feeders. Most people had no idea that a fox might be skulking around their gardens. Certainly they would not be deliberately buying food for foxes. Some might be putting food out for hedhehogs as they were (unlike up to the early 1900s when there was a bounty on killing them) "the gardeners helper" -taking care of slugs.

Even up until the 1980s I had never heard of fox feeders only of naturalists counting the number of rats or mice the foxes were estimated to kill each week (one farmer-naturalist did this by counting the number of rat tails he found; the only part foxes did not consume). Sadly, poisons put out for rats almost certainly killed many hedgehogs and foxes.

It appears that some time in the late 1980s, and certainly by 1994/1995, people had started to secretly feed foxes coming into their gardens. Often left overs but later on chicken, fruit and eggs. Some people even started keeping recordes of the foxes that visited them and can trace some foxes in 2021 being descendents of ones they began feeding in the 1990s.

In 1994/1995 a major outbreak of mange was estimated to have killed off so many foxes in Bristol (with the largest urban fox population outside of London) that only around 6% survived. It was this point in history that feeders wanted to stop the suffering and treatments were found for mange from homeopathic (for early stages) to more chemical meds for worse cases.

This meant that not only were foxes becoming habituated to humans -NOT a good idea since it makes them easy victims for the anti-fox people- but they were getting well fed -way about the 100 cal or so they need per day. It also meant that they were denning in gardens or close to the feeders. Cubs still die but their chances of survival are greater now than at any other time. Many foxes -from what I have learnt and can estimated (and it is a "guesstimate")- around 200+ per year in the UK are treated for mange and survive it and go on to create new generations.

It is VERY STRONGLY advised that feeders never coax wild foxes into their homes as this could be disasterous (for the fox) in the future.

My very first sighting of an urban fox in Bristol was as I was walking along Pennywell Road in Bristol at about 0630 hrs one summer morning. I heard the fast padding behind me and thought a dog had gotten loose. Then a fox rushed by looking as though it was running for its life and it was a largish dog fox. I turned to see a VERY determined looking big tom cat in pursuit of the fox. How it ended I have no idea but the fox was faster!

I wondered about fox-domestic cat interaction after that. I can say that from 1976-2021 the only genuine incident of a fox with a dead cat in its mouth I have heard of involved a cat killed by a car and it was in the gutter over 24 hours. Foxes eat road-kill, Its convenient food and some feeders do look for dead birds and other road-kill to feed foxes.

What many people see are not dead cats carried off by foxes but cubs being moved to another location -natural fox behaviour. There have been claims of "two foxes killed my cat and tore it to pieces" and "I have the fox killing my cat on CCTV" but questions pop up straight away such as WHY the person stood there watching their cat being attacked and ripped up by foxes? Or; WHERE is the cctv footage? Challenged, those making the posts either delete them or are not heard of again and their social media accounts are very basic or are connected to hunt groups.

Recently, someone posted that foxes were trying to kill his cats. Then it was his three legged cat. Then it became focussed on the three legged cat which froze as foxes approached (its front leg was ripped off by a dog years ago we were told). The only food in the garden were bird feeders. Did the poster have any video footage that could be studied so that we could see what was going on -was the interaction the foxes trying to play with the cat (plenty of videos of that) and it was misconstrued as "attempting to kill" the cat? If two adult foxes were brave enough to they would have. The poster just said he'd go somewhere else for advice and that was it. It seems almost fox hunt trolling especially when viewing the poster's social media (lack of) profile. Why did he not respond to advice or requests for him to video or submit any video footage he had so that we could offer more appropriate advice?

Foxes are well fed -rather like feral cats- if not deliberately then from stealing left out cat food or food left for hedgehogs. There is also plenty offootage of foxes who visit feeders killing rats and also mice. Foxes are well fed and to risk injury by attacking a cat makes no sense and there is really no evidence for such a thing and even scientific surveys have shown that a cat being killed by a fox is at the bottom of the list and really only included "in case" -all other threats tend to be disease or human related.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of urban foxes is that feeders do not see unusual fur patterns or colours just a fox. Feeders have inadvertently supplied so much information that it will take a while to sort through but totally over turns all previous data on British foxes.

Even reportsfrom Bristol have surprised me. Either "a fox is a fox" meant everyone just assumed that meant the"little red dog" and we have always had the variations noted or something major has happened to the British fox population from Scotland down to the very south of England.

Without funding the work is slow but it is oming together.

Should You Keep Your Foxy Visitor A Secret?

 Photographer unknown

Hi, All.

There was a bit of a discussion about why people hide the fact that they have foxes visiting their gardens. Now those conversations tend to get a little heated so, as someone who has studied foxes and their history since 1977 and written a book on them I hope that I can make some points to clarify the situation.

Firstly, the only reason not to keep a location secret is if you sight a black fox (silver fox). These are purely bred to be domestic pets and they do not have the savvy of wild red foxes. They tend not to survive long because of this and fall prey to shooters and even snarers (I will refrain from saying what I think about them) -a couple months ago an escaped silver fox lost part of its front leg because of a snare. They do not survive long so if you do see one you should report it to Black Foxes UK who can try to catch and return it to its owners or rehouse it with a qualified wildlife or rescue group. The sooner a black fox can be rescued the better.

When it comes to wild foxes and even urban foxes there are still problems. From 1977-2013 I was an exotic wildlife advisor to UK police forces and this meant that I also had the opportunity to see what was going on around the country with wildlife. In the late 1990s in Birmingham there were gangs using dead cats as bait to catch foxes to stage "city hunts" and these took place in parks. As far as I am aware that stopped but there are people who snare and kill foxes for their fur and make a good bit of money from it. They have operated around towns and villages where they know foxes are active.

There are people who love to shoot anything and they feel like big game hunters when they can pose for a photo holding up a small fox they have shot.

There are people associated with hunts who spend the cubbing part of the year trying to find and snatch cubs. I had one snoop around my garden one night but foxes do not reside in my garden and I put the word out to people.

So there is no excuse not to report a silver fox (a photo will show if it is a pet or wild black fox) because reporting it will save its life £a few have also been killed by traffic because they do not have the fox savvy).

There is a need to keep foxes in your garden and its location quiet, though the fox may be visiting other gardens.

For my work I need to know where a fox was photographed as I need to put everything on a private map to chart distribution of certain fox types, etc. I work with no one else so if anyone contacts you and says they do -let me know and block them. What I ask is simple: date, how long foxes have been coming to your garden and location. I never ever ask "What street?" All I need to know is the area so "South London"/"Bournemouth" or even just the county so that it is a large area and does not say exactly where you are.

My work aims to try to get foxes recognised as important parts of the eco system and some form of protection and is NOT for any official body (especially not DEFRA).

Unless you know what is going on re foxes (and sadly badger baiting is still going on and I will not say what I think of that).

So when someone asks "Why keep the locations a secret?" there is a reason so please just explain to them so that they understand and PLEASE keep a cool head. The more people know the score the more we can work together to keep foxes safe.

Thank You

For The Foxes sake -The British Fox Study

 

I cannot say that I am surprised and nor can I say that I am not disappointed regarding the feedback for the study.

I know people want to protect the fox they watch/feed.  That is only natural since there are still many threats to them in the town and city including snares laid down for them and stealing cubs. However, the secrecy is creating a big problem,

 We know foxes are not a danger or threat to humans or pet cats. That is just pro hunt fake story telling to demonize the animal. We know that foxes are being poisoned in some areas –along with cats, hedgehogs and other animals. The secrecy is is allowing this type of thing to go on. If people are not educated about foxes and the dirty tricks being used by fur snarers and hunts then how can they act and help protect them? Someone sees two men hanging around near a neighbours home are more likely to think “possible house breakers” –their knowing a fox goes into that garden just does not fit into their equation because they wouldn’t be there for the fox, right? If they know of this danger they may tell you about those two men and that could be a fox saving warning.

There are hundreds of people out there around the UK who watch local foxes and some feed them. Most take photographs of them. Those photographs are valuable to a naturalist when looking at foxes in 2021. After months of scouring hundreds of photos from around the UK I have distinguished two prominent types of fox and fox morphology (colouration). Only ten (10) sets of photographs have come from fox watchers the rest I had to scour FB group photos then see which photos were taken where.

In fact, that scouring of photographs has achieved something (excluding the eye strain); it has helped me find what we might have considered at one time very rare fox colourations and some were eye-popping. Some were firsts for me after decades of work.

I started The Fox Study in 1977 and since that time, as with my work running the Exotic Animals Register (EAR), one thing has been paramount and that is the safety of the animal(s) in question. There was a motto: “By no word of mouth or deed to put any animal in danger” –when DEFRA insisted that I needed to turn over my exotics data to continue as part of the Partners Against Wild Life Crimes I refused and in the end they kicked me out. I could have stayed on the list of experts and made some money but not at the risk of exposing animals to DEFRAs “eradication protocol”.

At a time when I really needed money I was offered substantial amounts by two British newspapers who wanted to get maps and locations from what they called “Britain’s Big Cat Detective”. I refused. I knew why they wanted it and that was so they could pay a hunter to go out and “snag” a ‘big cat’. I decided poor was better.

Since 1977 I have never disclosed the name of any reportee wishing to remain anonymous, nor their location. The current look at foxes required this information:

1)      Photographs of the foxes watched/fed

2)      Name of the photographer (confidential but needed to prevent hoax/fraud)

3)      Location non-specific. In other words say, for Bristol the BS number so BS3, BS4 or BS16 etc which gives me a city area but no exact location (that is contained in the last three digits so I NEVER ask for those). In other areas just “London”, “Hove”, “Dartmouth”,”Glasgow” and so on because that gives me a geographic area NOT the exact location.

4)      How long have the foxes visited your garden and (if years) have you noticed any changes in their fur colour such as darkening, spotting or even black fur?

That is it. That information allows me to see whether foxes in different parts of the country have varied coat colours, whether they are smaller in one area compared to another. It helps us understand foxes in 2021 and that can ultimately help protect any at risk from hunters.

The Study is private and certainly not funded by any government department (such as DEFRA which hates me) or institution because, honestly, they do not care about foxes and fox studies do not bring in big donations for universities. This is NOT some type of tracking program in case rabies hits the UK. Firstly, it is very unlikely that rabies will hit the UK mainland and, secondly, no one has access to my data most of which is not kept on computer so hacking would be no good.

If you submit information you can either PM me on Face Book or email me at blacktowercg@hotmail.com and that’s it. Unless you have a very unusual or rare colour morph in which case I would like to learn more I do not pester with follow-ups. The four items listed above are all I am interested in.

There are foxes out there that have survived mange, serious injuries and more but are alive today because people have helped them and given them the chance to survive. Taking part in this study will hopefully do something towards protecting foxes and that is as important as the fight to protect badgers and the endangered hedgehog –both of whom feed alongside or near foxes with little or no conflict.

PLEASE if you can help –do.

Thank You

The Fox Study and NARF Implications

 

Above: The North American Red Fox

 If you have not read The Red Paper: Canids then it is very unlikely that you know the true story of British foxes. What we see today can easily be categorised as New Foxes as opposed to Old Fox types. The Red Paper: Canids was described as "explosive" and "totally rewrites the history of the fox in the UK".

The follow up will certainly carry on that tradition. Bit-by-bit I have pieced together that really should shake natural history in the UK to the core. 

We have irrefutable evidence that coyotes, wolves and jackals were released by British fox hunts.  This along with the importation of foxes from Europe as well as breeding foxes for future hunts is something it has taken a good few years to unearth and the information comes directly from the hunts.

I have clearly identified two fox types that seem typical of those found around the country. One of these is quite obviously of North American Red Fox (NARF) or Vulpes fulvus. 

In recent years wehave seen an extraordinary number of cases of escapes of Silver foxes as well as other exotic pet foxes. In fact the evidence leads to the suspicion that hunt groups are releasing NARF as something larger and more spectacular to hunt. It is also possible that the intention in some areas (such as Wales) is to breed something bigger with a "better fur" that can be caught in snares for the hiome grown British fur trade. The evidence speaks for itself.

Hayley de Ronde notes that in some areas the NARF has hybridised with or overtaken the number of British Red foxes.  This raises the concern that they will eventually replace the current British fox. She believes that the NARF were released following WW 2 and the eventual end of fur farming.

The Fox Study which I began in 1977 was able to make significant breakthroughs in tracing the history of UK foxes. The current work is designed to try to identify fox types in the UK and note how far and wide certain types are.

There are important points to make.

1. This work is not going to be completed quickly. There is absolutely no funding so things can take a while as everything comes out of my pocket.

2. This is a private research project aimed at giving us a better understanding of UK foxes. There is no governmental involvement, funding and there is no private access to core data given to any government department or agency working with one. People deal with me and no one else. 

3. From 1977-2013 I was an exotic animals advisor to UK police forces and it that time absolutely no witness identification or location data was ever given out. Confidential is confidential and protection of the animals involved is paramount.

4. What I ask for from people who want to help out is simple; 

(a)how long have the foxes been coming to your garden/area? 

(b)Have the foxes always looked the same -no stranger colourations to coats? 

(c)Basic location info.  In Bristol I simply ask for the post code area such as BS2 or BS 11. Outside of the City & County of Bristol I simply ask for the town, city or village. This is to help me see what types are in what areas.

(d) Photographs. People may love their foxy visitors but they take them to be "just foxes". With a photograph or series of photos I can see a lot more and that information helps greatly.

(e) If you have a name for the fox(es) that visit please note that with photos because if there is something unique spotted at least I can say which fox I'm talking about.  All photos/videoes are logged with the photographers Name and Town or area. I do not claim any rights to the photographs or video clips received so please do not be concerned that these will be used widely or without your permission.

From all of this I can hopefully produce something useful to people interested in foxes.

If you can help then please email me at:  blacktowercg@hotmail.com

If you see a black fox it may well be an escaped pet and those have been killed in road accidents, shot and even snared in the past as they are domesticated pets and not capable of living in the wild. The best people to contact (if you can get a photo it helps) are Black Foxes UK and their contact info can be found here: 

https://www.blackfoxes.co.uk/contact-us.php

THANK YOU

Hedgehog