If I play screech owl calls will I scare away the real owls?

I have the problem again this year of rats at the bird feeder. Last year I tried traps (they sniffed the peanut butter but went around them anyway); I only put seed out in the morning (the rats became day rats -- day-o, day-o, day rats come and they won' go home); I stopped feeding the birds (the rats started eating natural food in the garden like seeds). Finally, I came home one night and could hear screech owls making the biggest raucous. The rats were gone for a couple of weeks.

I saw two day rats yesterday. I was thinking that I'd take my laptop out tonight and play screech owl calls to see if I could scare them away. My question is will that scare away the real owls like a territorial thing? What about the birds that are nesting around here? How badly am I going to freak them out? Any other suggestions? I don't want to poison my dogs and so far there are no rats in the house or attic.

Pic from last year eating seeds.

This message was edited May 16, 2008 11:30 AM

That's a very interesting question, hopefully someone who knows will chime in soon.... I had never thought that my bird feeders could attract rats! I'm freaking out now!

They can attract rats--I had a problem with some rats when I first bought this house, and the exterminator told me to get rid of my birdfeeders (or at least move them farther away from the house) since it would attract them.

Sorry I don't know about the screech owls--I think owls have pretty sensitive hearing so I think they'd be able to distinguish between a recording and the real thing but I don't really know. But if it keeps the rats away, do you really care? I think it's worth experimenting.

What I'd really like is for the real owls to come and eat the rats! Maybe the calls will attract them. Problem is that the rats are day rats now, so I don't even know if they are out at night to be eaten. A friend of mine thinks he can catch a big snake for me. That might work!

I might take the rats over the big snake! LOL

Argh! If there is one thing that makes me panic, it's rats! Sorry little birds, the feeder is going down tomorrow!

Lots of people have feeders and never see a rat including my parents who live in the woods. My brother, however, lives in southern California and he took his down b/c of rats. Maybe it's an urban thing. Weather seems to be a factor too. Yesterday a cold front came through and I didn't see a single rat. There were no mosquitoes either. A few days before when it was hot and humid and I was painting the potting shed, there were so many mosquitoes that they were actually flying in my eyes. I really started a gross thread! Sorry. I wasn't able to try the owl calls last night, but I'll try it tonight.

Having a feeder doesn't guarantee you're going to have a rat problem, but if they're in the area anyway it may attract them closer to your house than they would have come otherwise. So if you know there are rats in the vicinity then it's probably worthwhile taking it down or moving it farther from the house, but if you've never had trouble with them then there's no need to panic that you're going to get rats just because you have the bird feeder.

Yep, it has been a problem before! It could definitely be an urban thing.

I have had feeders for years and have never had rats, I live in the woods though, with owls and snakes, foxes and even a few stray cats so rats don't have a chance.

Let's see I would try a repellent, that could be put around the feeders like Rat A Way.

As for the owls, I know that if you can mimic the mating calls they will answer back lol, did that last year with a barred owl and it will bring it to your yard. So if you have owls in your area I think I would try to get a recording of a mating call and see if you can bring them there, who knows maybe you can get lucky and they will meet up, mate and live in your area and eat the rats! Good luck!

I actually got really lucky. The night that I was going to try to play internet recordings of the owls, real screech owls showed up. I didn't see them, but I heard them. Haven't seen a rat since. I don't know if the owls actually caught them or if when a rat hears an owl, it decides to live somewhere else. Seems like screech owls are kind of small to eat rats, but the rats sure seem to be afraid of them.

if I saw a rat, I think I would just move.

LOL! I've had four developers ask me if I wanted to sell my house just this year even during this supposed housing crisis. Bad news is that the tax assessors have raised my appraisal property value by 24% this year, and I was already paying more than everyone on my block for no reason what-so-ever except that the system is totally unfair. That's my beef for the day! I'd move, but I love my garden too much! Plus, I've seen rats in every part of Houston. Lots of animals thrive in this lush climate including some disgusting ones! At least there is food for the owls.

Yep, I freak out too! Mind you, after this thread, my bird feeder has been empty! Yuk