Cob: rats?

Thu Apr 3 15:34:20 CST 2003

Mice are a nuisance, but rats are a health hazard. There is a big difference between the two--like the differrence between a hamster and an opossum in size. They rarely occur in the average domestic situation, but they can be a problem in rural areas and near rivers, docks, livestock, and chicken houses. Anyone who has seen a real rat never forgets it! Rats can be killed with anti-coagulants but the best way to get rid of them is with a .22 rifle--either with regular rounds or if you're not that good of a shot with rat shot that is more like a shotgun round. Also, if you see adult rats you should do your best to find their nest and kill the young. If they are small enough this can be done with a good stomp of the bootheel. Repulsive? Yes, it is, but not nearly as repulsive as the rats themselves or the danger that they put people in. Rats can and will chew through metal and other materials that mice do not. Maybe the reason they don't chew through steel wool, if in fact they do not, is because it is in slivers that will damage their insides--then again it may be the chemicals that the wool is saturated with. 

Rats can and do bite people and have been known to feast on the toes, fingers, and faces of those who cannot get away from them such as babies in cribs, or people who have lost feeling in their extremities as sometimes happens with illnesses such as diabetes. This is a fact and not an urban legend. Anyone here remember how in the past rats were put into metal pipes that were placed against the bellies of the enemy then heated, causing the rats to chew their way out through the belly of the victim? As for chewing through cob--that would not surprise me in the least. You just have to keep an eye out for them--stay on your toes and be ruthless in destroying them. Do not--repeat, do not--ask them if it is ok for you to do so. They will not understand you and if they do understand you I am sure they will ask you to let them stay. Don't even consider their well-being as you "meditate" at your proposed site. ROFL! [Also not too good an idea to free the poor little grubs that you come across while building. You will regret it as their offspring burrow around your precious tomato plants later and cut them off at ground level!]

I was reading a FoxFire book and it said that the big problem with using mud chinking instead of concrete was that bees bore tunnels through it. This may be something to look out for with cob homes also.
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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Mice are a nuisance, but rats are a health hazard. 
There is a big difference between the two--like the differrence between a 
hamster and an opossum in size. They rarely occur in the average domestic 
situation, but they can be a problem in rural areas and near rivers, docks, 
livestock, and chicken houses. Anyone who has seen a real rat never forgets 
it! Rats can be killed with anti-coagulants but the best way to get rid of them 
is with a .22 rifle--either with regular rounds or if you're not that good of a 
shot with rat shot that is more like a shotgun round. Also, if you see adult 
rats you should do your best to find their nest and kill the young. If they are 
small enough this can be done with a good stomp of the bootheel. Repulsive? Yes, 
it is, but not nearly as repulsive as the rats themselves or the danger that 
they put people in. </FONT><FONT face=Arial size=2>Rats can and will chew 
through metal and other materials that mice do not. Maybe the reason they don't 
chew through steel wool, if in fact they do not, is because it is in slivers 
that will damage their insides--then again it may be the chemicals that the wool 
is saturated with. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Rats can and do bite people and have been known to 
feast on the toes, fingers, and faces of those who cannot get away from them 
such as babies in cribs, or people who have lost feeling in their extremities as 
sometimes happens with illnesses such as diabetes. This is a fact and not an 
urban legend. Anyone here remember how in the past rats were put into metal 
pipes that were placed against the bellies of the enemy then heated, causing the 
rats to chew their way out through the belly of the victim? As for chewing 
through cob--that would not surprise me in the least. You just have to keep an 
eye out for them--stay on your toes and be ruthless in destroying them. Do 
not--repeat, do not--ask them if it is ok for you to do so. They will not 
understand you and if they do understand you I am sure they will ask you to let 
them stay. Don't even consider their well-being as you "meditate" at your 
proposed site. ROFL! [Also not too good an idea to free the poor little grubs 
that you come across while building. You will regret it as their offspring 
burrow around your precious tomato plants later and cut them off at ground 
level!]</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I was reading a FoxFire book and it said that the 
big problem with using mud chinking instead of concrete was that bees bore 
tunnels through it. This may be something to look out for with cob homes 
also.</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>

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