Rat inside C28

[tatoweb]

Hello all. I noticed what looks like rat poop here and there inside the boat. Then noticed the front cushion in V-Berth is bitten. Photo attached. Does anyone knows where it could have get in?. Have this happened to someone?. I’m taking care right now because of cables, etc.

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[bob daily]

This has been a problem on ships / boats since the beginning of time. Rat guards on mooring lines, traps, position etc. If all else fails maybe a big cat! Ask any farmer how to keep rats / mice out of the barn, the same will work on a boat.
Good luck Bob

 

[Kim and Ed]

Rodents can easily get into the cabin via the gap under the gunwales in the cockpit. Then just follow the wiring, piping etc into the cabin behind the cabinets. You need to react quickly as you well know how much damage they can do to hard to access components and cables. The most effective trap that I have used is a 5 gallon pail one third full of water, a small length of doweling, a pop can, a 1x2 ramp and a dollop of peanut butter. Nothing works faster or more effectively.
Ed/

 

[YukonRon]

Otters, squirrels, rats etc can get in through the gaps under the gunwales, between the outer hull and inner cockpit shell. Once they get into the bilge they can come up into the boat from behind the cupboards. I saw the mess otters can make when I was boat shopping on a R25. I'll never forget that smell! You can't block off the gaps because it is critical for air intake for the engine. So for our boat I bought 1/4" galvanized mesh and cut and fit it into all the gaps around the cockpit. We were parking the boat on a trailer in our yard and there were lots of squirrels around. The screens seemed to do a good job of keeping the squirrels out. Now that our boat sits in the marina I have seen otter prints along the gunwales, but so far none have found there way inside.

 

[Boatdreamer]

We had mice and rats in our attic many years ago and the best way we found to get rid of them is large rat traps and a small piece of a Slim Jim on it, fast and easy. I also sealed up any areas that they could enter but I don’t think that’s possible on a Ranger Tug. If you’re in a storage area on the hard you might ask the marina what their pest control plan is and make them aware of your problem because if the rats are on your boat chances are other boats are having the same issue. I would also look hard at all the wiring you can get to because they like that too, I know we had to replace our alarm wiring because they destroyed it while they were in the attic. Good luck.

Tim
Gratitude

 

[bob daily]

Thought you would like to see what I found in my boat last summer!
I had left the bait box in the boat when I returned from salmon fishing, yes we have these critters too!
Was bigger than the barn cat..