We knew our backyard provided a lot of tree and ground cover for our little wildlife friends, and we enhanced that by providing tons of birdseed and squirrel food. For quite awhile we enjoyed identifying the various birds that visited the feeders, and it was such fun to watch them and the squirrels argue over rights to the food.

But one day in late fall while I was sitting at the kitchen table, out of the corner of my eye I detected a flash of ‘something’. So I held very still and focused on the area next to the tall wooden feeder. In almost no time another flash occurred, scurrying across the ground from the heavy bushes, to the feeder, then back to the bushes. I thought I was imagining things. But, no, out the furry critter came again, and oh, my gosh, it couldn’t be . . . a RAT! But it was. And to my horror, another rat ran across the scene and into the bushes while the first one was still out gathering seeds.

I grabbed my camera so I could show Don that I really had seen the little varmints, and this is one of several short movies starring one of the rats. In all, over a period of one afternoon, we counted FIVE different rats roaming about in our hedges. The horror of it! And the little (!) guys began to venture closer and closer to the shrubs right next to the house.

All of this happened just prior to all the heavy snow we received in late December and early January. By that time we had discontinued feeding the birds in an effort to encourage the rats to move on. I haven’t seen them since the snowstorm, so maybe the absence of an easy meal did the trick. Or just maybe that HAWK that had been perching in our trees from time to time was able to have a tasty dinner. Since we had decided we had to trap them, I do hope the hawk was able to catch them. Better they become hawk food than just end up dead in our garbage.

Here is a little video proof of the rats. I never have the camera ready when the hawk shows up, but I’m still hoping to get one of him one of these days.