Last summer we had Roof Rats, somehow they got up through a tiny hole where my husband had added our porch and ended up under the sink. They ate through a water pipe, so that was nice to have fixed. I was freaking out, we set traps and caught a whole bunch, I was scared to use bait in case they died "in public" and one of the cats or dogs got them. We did the steel wool in every possible place and I am still freaked out. 15 years here and I have never had a rat in my house.
I was told by one of the exterminators I called in desperation that there has been a huge increase, I guess again because of all the new construction. I don't hear the coyotes singing like we used to, I haven't seen a desert tortoise ambling through the yard for years (not how long the tortoise took, the time since I've seen one..
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Not even any snakes and even the scorpions seem to have taken off to somewhere else. I had only ever seen 2 snakes in our yard, probably the same one, a red racer. One day MrLK was outside working by a Joshua and one fell out of the tree onto him. Never heard a man scream like that, he will never live it down!
This spring our one remaining dog caught two little roof rats outside, she is an excellent hunter for being a mid size dog. Thanks Abby!
The thing I have noticed a massive increase in is the rabbit population, cotton tails, not jackrabbits and also squirrels. Our environment is certainly changing.
Still I would rather see all these critters than the nasty graffiti that is popping up on every sign, now those pests I wish would vanish.
Susan
