Rats! [Part 3]

Ah ha. Some of you thought the rat journey was over. Not just yet, my friends.

The fun continues.

Before I pick up where I last let off, let me explain why I am writing a multi-part rat series on my running blog. When something like this happens, at first you're mad/frustrated/in tears...your choice of emotion. But after that passes, you need to find a fix. A plan of attack. And where better a place to look than Google, your local hardware store or rodent removal employee? These all seemed like logical places to look. Some gave great advice. Many gave quite poor advice. Throughout the last six weeks of last year, I just wanted someone, something, somewhere to give me the solution. The one set of actions that could, for once and all, make the rat stop eatting my car.

With that said, let me pick up where I last left off. As I recall, I was at my wits-end and had emailed my alderman, complete with pictures of the rat nest. I wasn't sure what the alderman could do. I just wanted him to know this was happening. 

Much to my surprise, I received a reply from his office less than a day later. The email informed me that the office had shared my issue with Streets & Sanitation and someone would be in contact with me in a few days. I was so surprised to receive such a quick reply that I never thought I'd receive the same from Streets & San. Sure enough, by the end of the workweek, a Streets & San truck rolled up to my alley. Dan had come to the rescue.

He assured me that his team would take a look at the property and surrounding area and provide me with updates. I told him he could call me as much as he wanted if it meant finding an end to the rat. Later that morning, after I had talked to Dan several times, I talked to Bill from the Rodents Department. 

Dan and Bill confirmed that my alley had a serious rat infestation. Add to it the drop in temperatures before Thanksgiving, and you had many rats looking for a warm place to live. From the City's side, they could only do so much - they would elevate my area on the service list to bait and trap for the next few months. They said they would then inspect their work weekly to ensure it was working. 

Then, they provided a few pointers that my property could take to be less rat appealing. 

• Rats apparently find dog feces delicious. So though you might not have a dog or are a responsible dog owner, that lazy person who isn't is leaving a rat buffet by your back door. Literally.

• There was a compost bin on the far side of our property. The bin in itself wasn't a problem, but the bottom of the unit had broken down and rats had chewed holes through the bottom of it, allowing for an easy food source nearby. Streets & San recommended that we remove it.

• Lastly, and honestly it was the most obvious yet overlooked, our dumpsters. My building has two large dumpsters which sit against the building, less than a car length from where I park. I hadn't noticed, nor had anyone else for that matter, that both of the dumpsters were rotting out on the bottoms. Rats were able to climb in and out through the bottom of the units. Once Dan and Bill mentioned this, I came to realize that most of the time I was seeing rats they were running away from our dumpsters. Between our building's management company and I, our scavenger service supplied new bins around the holidays.

So, to conclude my saga (or at least for the time being), here's what I learned:

1. If a rat wants to live in your car, it will. They do not discriminate by make or model. A rat can fit through an 1" hole and all vehicles have that.

2.Apparently newer cars are made with more soy based products which, when heated, can smell like food for rats. 

3. A good recommendation (if you live in a rural or suburban area) is to get a cat. The Treehouse Cat Shelter in Chicago has a feral cat program where you can adopt cats just for needs like mine. A few people told me about the program and it's one to look into if you can provide some basic needs for the cat.

4. Though it might not be your mess, you have to be diligent about removing trash, dog poop and anything else that could be a food source in the surrounding area.

5. Moth Balls, Critter Ridder, and whatever else in spray or dry form that Home Depot sells in their Rodents section does not work. Remember, if we had a nuclear melt down, only two things would survive: cockroaches and rats. Some residential-grade gardening tool isn't likely to phase them. Or at least not for long.

6. The best strategy to get rid of rats is to first find why they are attracted to your area. Remove the item(s) they are attracted to. Hire a private exterminator to assess and treat your property if needed to provide a steady plan. If your issue is in the public way as mine was, contact your village, city, ward, etc. to find the right person/department who deals with rodents on a daily basis. 

Dan and Bill are the unsung heroes of my story. They provided invaluable information which hopefully now means rat-free car operation for myself and all my neighbors. However, if we ever have an issue again, you better believe I saved both of their numbers.

For the time being (and hopefully forever), this concludes my rat story. I hope it helps someone, somewhere find their way out of their rat hell. 

And now we'll resume normal programming (running and yoga posts).

Rats! [Part 2]

Life was good in late November. The Thanksgiving holiday added a few extra days onto the weekend. The rodents were gone going on ten days now. My plan of attack of Critter Ridder & Moth Balls had worked.

All was good until that Sunday morning.  Earlier in the morning, I had run some errands. I came back to shower and prepare to meet some friends for brunch. We walked out to my car around 11.

I started up the car as Nick put some items in the trunk. Then I heard and felt a thud from the front of the car. Puzzled, I looked in my rear view mirror where I could see Nick's face. Nick had a look of shock on his face. He then yelled for me. I rolled down the window so I could hear him. "It was a rat, this big..." he said, distancing the palms of his hands more than a foot apart.

I screamed and then turned off the car. We stood at the hood of the car and discussed what to do. We needed to open the hood. We knew that's what we need to do, but didn't know what to expect once we opened it. I grabbed two pair of gloves, a Jewel bag, a spray bottle of all-purpose cleaner (to clean up or stun a rat, potentially) and a stick.

We regrouped at the car and planned our strategy. I popped the hood and then chickened out. I looked to Nick to unlatch the hood and open it. As he opened the hood, we saw something similar to what we'd seen online -

A rat was trying to make it's forever home in my car. Again.

We cleared the nest the rat had created from the hood liner of my car to see damage (once again) to my engine wires.

Luckily, we had caught the rat in the act and scared it away before it caused any serious damage. As we continued to assess the damage, I began crying. Why does this happen? Why was this happening to my car?

More internet research followed. We now knew what we could only guess before - the culprit was, in fact, a rat. We had thought it was a rat from seeing them in my alley, but others had suggested a squirrel or mouse could be responsible.

I read up on rats nesting habits and it sounded like I was in trouble. Until the rat(s) who found comfort under my hood died, they were likely to come back to my car, again and again. Like other animals, rats leave their scent where ever they go, and so, my car had been marked.

I started parking my car out on a the street and few blocks away from my condo (and hopefully out of range of the rats who lived in my alley).

I went back to Home Depot and purchased two more rodent deterrent products - amonia and Repels-All. Repels-All main ingredient is '"animal blood" and man, does it stink. This seemed like a reasonable thing to buy as a few friends had suggested other animal liquids to keep the rats away.

Not throughly convinced my new rodent deterrent products would work with zero error, I decided to keep parking my car on the street, rotating it's location each day.

I called 311 again. I emailed 311. I asked all my neighbors to email 311. I emailed my alderman. I couldn't help but tell everyone about the rat who was eating my car.

I waited and hoped someone, anyone could help.

Rats! [Part 1]

Normally, I write about running, training or yoga.

Lately, my focus has changed over to the official animal of the City of Chicago and everyone's enemy, the rat.

Why would I talk about rats? Rats are gross.

Exactly.

A few weeks ago, I was driving my relatively-new, barely-driven car. I noticed it was running rough. I dismissed the hard idle to the cold temperatures that morning. Later that day, I drove my car to yoga. That's when my check engine light went on and the car's issues became more pronounced.

I called roadside and had the car towed to a nearby dealership. Puzzled, I called my Dad and told him what was going on. He thought the car's on-board computer might be on the fritz.

The next day, the service department called me with an update on my car. "The good news is, we know what's wrong with your car." The service man said. "The bad news is, it's not covered under warranty."

The service man then went on to explain that some sort of rodent - a squirrel, mouse or rat, had chewed through three of the four fuel injector lines. It could be fixed, but parts and labor would be $400. I authorized him to perform the work.

Shortly after, I began googling rodents in car engine and saw images like this -

What the....? This happens to people? Why are they choosing my car? What can I do to prevent it?

I continue reading sites and ask my Facebook friends for advice.

On the day that I picked my car up from the dealership, I immediately head to Home Depot. I talk to an employee who refers me to the rodent control section of the store. I purchase moth balls and Critter Ridder.

I drive home and park in my parking space and grab a pair of surgical gloves from the kitchen.

I distribute the Critter Ridder power along the parameter of my parking spot, creating a first line of defense.

I then cut down an old box and use duct tape construction for a moth ball tray to slide underneath my car.

Satisfied with my Google education and Home Depot purchases, I begin to feel more at ease knowing I've taken measures to prevent future attacks.

Even if my car now smelled like moth balls and pepper.