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TIL my backyard compost pile was attracting rats because I was adding the wrong kitchen scraps
I was tossing citrus peels and onion scraps in there for months until my neighbor in Austin pointed out the rat droppings last week, and switching to just veggie peels and coffee grounds fixed the problem in three days anyone else had to tweak their composting habits after a wildlife issue?
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murphy.mason6d ago
@allen.kai nailed it, same thing happened with my pile and garlic scraps.
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allen.kai6d ago
Fixed the problem in three days" - that's probably because the rats were too busy vomiting from all the citrus peels you were feeding them. I swear, my compost pile turned into a five-star rat restaurant before I figured out they hate anything that doesn't smell like a rotting fruit salad. At least you didn't have to explain to the Austin health department why your backyard turned into a rodent nightclub.
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rowan_thomas846d ago
Gotta push back a little here. In my experience, rats are actually pretty adaptable, they'll eat citrus if they're hungry enough, just might take them a bit longer to get used to the smell. I've seen piles with nothing but coffee grounds and veggie peels turn into rodent hotels because the rats just wanted the moisture or the grubs that showed up. The quick fix might have been more about you disturbing the pile and changing the habitat rather than the specific scraps. Your mileage may vary, but I'd keep an eye on it for a few more weeks before calling it solved.
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