Oh, Rats! Part Deux

In December 2008 we reported on some additions to our sea shipment when it arrived.  Well, our next installment regarding rats is currently unfolding.  It all began Monday when our cook, Mrs. Pinto, went looking for her aprons that she had left on the washing machine to be cleaned.  After much searching, Sharanama, the house keeper, looked behind said washing machine.  Viola! There they were.  Well, being as how both of these women are five feet tall, no ones arms were long enough to retrieve the aprons; so, daddy long arms was called in to help.

Upon retrieval of the aprons, we noticed they were all chewed up, which begat a search under the washing machine, and that is when we discovered another addition to household.  A rat, hopefully only one, had crawled up through the floor drain under the washing machine and into the house.  Now, I either did not know of that particular drain, or I had forgotten about it.  Never the less, the drain cover was miss placed and the pipe was open. [As a note to the mechanical engineers who might read this, India does not have "P" traps in its plumbing.  With floor drains, it's just a "T" to the pipe, and off it goes, which makes for mighty fine rat raceways, eh?]

So, I pulled the machine out of the way, and Sharanama cleaned up the drippings and droppings and shredded apron leavings.  I replaced the drain cover, putting two naphthalene pellets on it, and put the machine back into place.  I should report that naphthalene is not a rodent deterrent.

Today, at 1pm, Sharanama calls me into the back room where the washing machine is, and she pointed out to me that we had a fresh pellet.  Sure enough, I pulled the machine out, and the drain cover was out of place.  I replaced the drain cover to it proper position, and I made a mental note to affix the drain cover more rigidly later when Sharanama was done doing the wash.

At 4pm today I went into the back room to affix the drain cover, and upon removal of the washing machine I discovered that between 1pm and 4pm our visitor had come back as the drain cover was now out of place again.  So, like in the cartoons when the loser boards up the door with lots of boards and nails, I got out some concrete nails (the drain is in the floor, and there is no soft tissue surrounding it), and I nailed the cover into place.  Hopefully, that will provide sufficient deterrent to the rodentia in residence.

Coincidentally, an exterminator employed by the PMOA (association), stopped by to inform me that I should sign the ledger for rat control.  I have not seen this service before, and I took an ironic note regarding the arrival timing of this guy.  I told him we have had a rat, and if he wanted me to sign his ledger (to get paid by the PMOA), he had better poison something - I wanted to see scaly tails nailed to the back fence.

Time will tell if the exterminator got the dirty rat, or if my nailing down the drain cover deterred it from entry, or if it simply walked up the pipe a bit and comes into the house via another drain (the house has several).  The rat should take notice, however, that all the other drains in the house are protected by cats.  The boys have been a bit bored recently, and I am certain they would love to give chase; however, I do hope they don't actually catch it as I am certain the dirty rat is just that.

However, that begs the question - how do you dispatch a dirty rat?  Maybe I'll finally have to get the blow gun out and huff and puff and snuff the rat out.