Raticator Max Rodent Trap

History: I had a group of DC subway rats chew through my foundation and take up residence in the ceiling of my basement. I have 6 cats and these rats only ever entered the rooms where the cats do not patrol. Previously used methods: I tried snap traps with cheese, bacon, cat treats, peanut butter, blueberry jam...no success. They knew how to spring the traps, take the food and run. They were also quite bold and would stroll into the kitchen right in front of me, but too fast or too large for the BB gun to take them down. Tried the water bucket trap, still no dice. 100+ sticky traps, still nothing. Know your enemy: I spent countless hours researching rat extermination methods and every source mentioned how smart rats are, that they are quite shy of new objects, and how quickly they learn to avoid the types of traps they know to be deadly. My chances of success seemed brutally grim, while the costs kept rising. They had chewed through the drainage hose from my dishwasher for water, made holes in my floors and walls. They also brought fleas (and potentially spreading diseases to my cats) into my house, which was the final insult. In desperation, I ordered this trap, which was pricey at 80$, but now that I know how well it works, it was worth it and then some. I also used a 99$ ryobi snake inspection camera to identify their paths of travel. I closed off all entry points to the kitchen except for one with diamond plate steel sheets. I waited until I heard one in the kitchen and then sealed off that last exit by sliding the steel plate over the hole like a guillotine. Once I had the first one localized I removed all potential sources of food except the bait. I even put my canned good into the refrigerator. This way, he couldn't leave the kitchen and go die in my walls somewhere, and the others couldn't identify (and subsequently avoid) the new deadly trap. I used the cat treats they had been feeding on and added bits of coconut and white chocolate chips. Critical points for success: 1) always wear thick (dishwashing) gloves when handling the trap so it doesn't smell like you. The same applies for the bait. 2) put the batteries in, turn it on to test them (light flashes once) and then turn it off. Once they go inside and it is familiar to them, you want to move it as little as possible so put the batteries in ahead of time. 3) give them one free meal. Leave the trap off until they eat that first bait. Once they've been into it and eaten unharmed, they will assume it is safe, and it will be marked with their scent. This may take a couple of days, but be patient. After the first bait is eaten, add more bait to the far end of the trap, flip the switch to 'on', and wait. It took about two days for the first rat to gather the courage or get hungry enough to take the first bait. Once that happened, I turned the trap on, went to work, and came home to find the first dead rat. No blood, no gore, just dead. Turned it off, disposed of the body, added more bait, turned it on, removed the steel sheet covering the access/ entry point, waited until I heard the next one in the kitchen, and repeated the process until I killed off every last one. Rat problem - solved! Note: these rats were enormous, at least 10 inches long from the tip of the nose to the butt, not including the tail. Weighed at least as much as a 15.5 oz can of kidney beans. Utterly disgusting and very very clever, but no match for the Raticator!