Yes, we bought the expensive Havaheart traps and made a good faith attempt to use them.
The rats ignored the trap for a long time. Finally, one was caught.
Jack, the man who does yard work for us, had in the meantime expressed his amused contempt for this whole exercise, pointing out that if we ever succeeded in catching a rat and releasing it, it was likely to simply take up residence in someone else's house. (He also made the point that we aren't vegetarians.)
N. still thought the trap was worthwhile (if it would ever catch any damned rats) because even if he didn't drive many miles and release the creatures, at least he would have avoided killing them in the horrible way traps can sometimes do. (Usually, a standard trap means instant death, but sometimes they are awful.)
So, having at last succeeded with his Havaheart, N. decided that he wouldn't drive to some remote wilderness area, he would simply drown the rat he'd caught-- this being the 'humane' method recommended by Jack.
So he immersed the trap in a big bucket of water, and the door to the trap sprung open, and the rat escaped by running up his arm and over his shoulder and down via his back to the ground. |
