Ratthew has been taking 1–5 tomatoes from my garden every single night this season. He’s outsmarted me at every turn.
He’s chewed through fruit bags, broken through fences, shrugged off cayenne pepper and peppermint oil… nothing could stop him. Each morning I’d find fresh bite marks, empty stems, or entire tomatoes missing. The legend grew.
But today… he’s finally been captured.
He’s smart, and he’s actually quite cute. And as much as he’s been my nemesis, I have great respect for him. A worthy opponent, at last defeated. I don’t know yet what his fate will be, but I’ll never forget the summer of Ratthew.
by IndependentSkirt9
32 Comments
Look at Ratthew’s eyes….he feels no remorse for his crimes!!!
Please don’t kill him
After you drop him in your least favorite neighbor’s garden in the middle of the night, keep us informed about his future exploits
I like how you think there is just one.
How does that cage contain him?!?
He’s so cute, please don’t hurt him
I thought my beets were being eaten by a mouse or two. I got some traps and in my second week of putting them out I’ve caught 33.
Wait until you meet Ratthew Jr. and his very many aunts, uncles, siblings, and by now, grandchildren.
I mean, way to go!
Where there’s one there’s 30
Old school wooden rat traps w/ peanut butter & sunflower seeds , game changer
https://preview.redd.it/21z7r5613nhf1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4d654b39a94aa0f8a36992fd8adc40e84348252d
You need one of these hanging around.
Go watch Mouse Hunt. It’s a great movie.
Congrats. You caught the dumb one lol.
Head on a stake to send a msg. There are more
smuckers natural peanut butter gets them and squirrels everytime
Rabbits and rats used to be my problem. A few feral cats took up residence in my area. They turned out to be neighborhood heroes.
My neighbors no longer complain about mice in garages or missing vegetables. We trapped and neutered a few. Cayenne pepper and coffee grounds have kept them from using my gardens as litter boxes.
New pet. Ratthew seems well-mannered and honest. Forgive his crimes of poverty and give him shelter.
To be replaced by a dozen chipmunk henchmen
Rathews*
How did you catch him? Did you use bait, and where did you place the trap?
Free Ratatouille! ✊✊✊
If you think hanging your pest in your garden as a sacrifice to ward off other pests think again.. it’s just the main course and your veggies are the appetizers…
We keep stray cats on the back porch for this reason lol. They bring us gifts all the time
I had a similar issue, but I bought a pellet gun and after one headshot they are MIA. There must have been a witness.
Ratthew is innocent of all crimes.
An epic saga for the records for sure.
If you are setting him free make sure it is ridiculously far away from your house.
Worth checking if he us a native species- if not- well you got yourself a new garbage disposal 🙂
I got 4. They kept on coming back. When I got the 5th I left the body in the trap for others to see. Haven’t seen one in 3 weeks.
He has buddies just an FYI
PSA: Norway rats (commonly found in colder climates) & Roof rats (more common in coastal areas) are invasive, plague carrying pests in North America. It’s recommended that you do your community a solid & swiftly & humanely end their life when caught. PPE is recommended; check your city for proper disposal measures. Their decomposing bodies get REAL STINKY if you don’t bag ‘em properly. Rats are social creatures. If you caught a small one, this is just the beginning. 😂😭
We’re currently waging war on a rat colony that’s destroyed a couple of my metal raised garden beds. We’ve caught & disposed of 7 rats in 2.5 weeks. The last one—who has evaded our traps—is a HUUUGE CHONK. The small ones are almost always caught first (they’re the youngest & most inexperienced). You’ve got to catch your way up to the big ones if you want to do some damage to the colony. Rats usually travel in pairs or more. Their colonies can range in size from 6-30, so catching one & releasing it elsewhere is not going to solve your problem. The entire colony knows about your garden & your tasty tomatoes. They’ll just keep hitting up the same spots…unless they’re dead. They also reproduce like crazy, so if you want to preserve your sanity & help out the ecosystem, lethal measures are recommended. Wouldn’t rec poison though. Takes too long, you can’t see results, & predators can die if they eat rats who ingested poison.
Good luck!! May the rat bastards leave us tf alone!!
Are you aware that live trapped animals, when released in a new location have a 90% mortality rate within the first 24 hours of release? It is very stressful on the animal to be captured and then released into an unknown environment. The most humane thing you could’ve done would be to snap trap the critters they die a quick and stress-free death