Rats!

[Islander]

I live in a very urban area - my housing co-op is a little oasis in the middle of the city. This spring there's been a lot of construction happening around us, and I think the rats have been displaced - I've seen more rats running through the back yard than ever before in the 30 years I've been here. You can imagine what this does to Gus when he is on patrol at the back sliding glass door. When outside this week he's just been hunting, sniffing, poking into all the crevices in the rock walls where the rats either are or were....

I have read about and seen photos of Cairns killing moles, groundhogs, lizards, etc. on this forum, but I'm a little squeamish about the prospect of a Gus/rat encounter. Could he chase one down? Or more likely to dig it out of a hidey-hole? Has anyone heard of a rat biting a dog? I am a bit scared to let him go after one but I really hate having them so close to my house. Does anyone know if his scent or marking would deter rat settlement?

Rat stories please!

[hheldorfer]

I'd think that rats would be perfect prey for a Cairn. They're relatively small and tend to hide out in the types of places in which Cairns were bred to hunt. I've seen small terriers dispatch rabbits, squirrels and mice with ease, although all Buffy has done is trot around with a live mouse hanging out of her mouth. That being said, the results of this type of encounter would depend on the prowess of the dog. It seems that a dog who doesn't immediately go for the kill would have the greatest risk of being bitten. I don't know if the standard vaccinations cover everything that can be carried by rats.

I'm interested in hearing other comments on this subject.

[2littleterrors]

Kenzie killed a full sized raccoon herself. When I called the vet about it, she said the only this to watch for would be infections from puncture wounds. She's also dispatched a woodchuck.

I think it just depends on how much your Cairn wants to hunt. But unless they're NYC sewer rat sized, I don't think I would be too worried. That's what these dogs were originally bred for, and I can still see that attitude in my girls.

[SARpartner]

After Katrina we saw our fair share of rats. Dusty quickly dispatches them. He seems to have no problem catching or killing them. One did nip him once, no real damage. But boy did Dusty get mad! That rat was terminated with prejudice.

[Hawkeye]

I don't have any experience with the hunting aspect the worst thing mine ever killed was a chipmunk and I was mortified. I guess my biggest concern would be the diseases rats can carry.

[Dempsy's Mom]

We have rats under our grain bins. Dempsy loves to check out their holes. Last summer he did have one in his mouth. I assumed that he killed it, but I wonder because Demps has no aggression towards small creatures other than play. I didn't much like the thought of a rat in Dempsy's mouth. Pooie.I don't think rats are much of an issue for Cairns as far as killing them, but I think about whether or not they have been poisoned. I wouldn't want poisoned rats around.

[Islander]

It seems to be good entertainment value anyway to let him hunt for them in the backyard. He has totally forgotten that he likes to interfere with my watering!

Here he is wondering where the heck that rat went!

[SARpartner]

Dusty kills the rats but has never tried to consume one. Of course the fact that I trade chicken jerky for a rat/mouse carcass may be why he doesn't try. Believe it or not, when he kills them there usually isn't a puncture wound to be found. I think he just hits them so hard that they die from the impact breaking the spine.

[hheldorfer]

Come to think of it, I haven't noticed any mice in the back yard in the past year or so. I'd always spot them foraging under the bird feeder but haven't seen one in ages. Maybe Buffy *is* doing her job!

[Idaho Cairns]

Will a Cairn take care of rodents? Oh your betcha! That's what they were designed for and that is what they will do. I have watched mine stand for hours with their heads cocked and ears focused on holes in the ground, listening to whatever sounds mice make. Sammi has located some behind the siding on our garage and will simply stare at the siding, listening. Here are my two on top of Casper Mountain making life miserable for some field mice that had a colony there.

[tomatosandwich]

All those cute Cairn pics, oh my!

Divot is obsessed with the chipmunk holes in our back yard. I love watching him sniff and follow some underground tunnel system. I feel like he's a James Bond dog--capable of discovering the enemy's secret underground lair and planning an amazing sneak attack, all while looking dashing. Divot Dangerous 007.

[janis]

My DH raises coon hounds. He says a full grown raccoon can kill a large coon hound. So, if a Cairn can take out a raccoon, I'd say they can take on anything. Islander, you sure take great pictures! Idaho, also great picture! very intense doggies aren't they!

[Idaho Cairns]

I have a question about a Cairn being able to handle a full grown Coon myself. I used to hunt coons as a youth and have seen very large coon hounds absolutely mauled in the process of the hunt--especially in a one on one situation. Now if you had several coon hounds it was something else again. My only experience with a Cairn and a coon was one night several years ago when I awoke to hear my wife screaming at the top of her lungs--a large coon had pinned our rescue, Tootsie, on the deck, was astraddle her back and was biting her on the neck. At that time we left the bedroom slider open so the dogs could go relieve themselves in the night and apparently this coon, plus a companion had wandered up on the deck and Toots had confronted them. Fortunately, the companion coon had retreated to the tree off the deck and was hanging upside down watching the bout and not participating. I managed to rush out on the deck, shouting which caused the coon to release Toots and all we had to deal with were some pretty significant puncture wounds on the back of her neck for a week or so. Toots was a smaller Cairn but from what I saw and know, I don't think even Sammi could handle a full grown raccoon, even as aggressive as she is and as stout as she is.

Coons are smart and if cornered, are vicious as the dickens. I would not advise any Cairn owner to allow a confrontation between their dog and a coon under any circumstances.

[bradl]

Yeah, raccoons make me a little nervous too. A Cairn breeder posted on one of the lists some years ago that one of her older dogs had just been fatally disemboweled by a raccoon in her own back yard. That was sobering. I think Cairns are meant to be bold and aggravating, but smart enough to stick to bolting or holding most quarry, not suicidally engaging it. I'm not sure where raccoons are supposed to fit along the continuum, but being a natural-born chicken myself, I'd be happier if our crew just gave raccoons a pass. It just seems to be one of those things ... once it's gone wrong, it's usually too late to undo.

We do have raccoons in our back yard sometimes and we can definitely tell the "critter alert bark" from the "black lab next door alert" bark. If we don't know what they've found though, I tend to bring them in rather than let them keep digging at it. It's quieter that way, too, this being suburbia and all.

[pkcrossley]

you can think back to the early days of terrier breeding (before cairns were cairns), when the breeding stock was selected by its ability to survive a to-the-death fight with some formidable vermin (badgers, most likely). our terriers today are descended from the winners in those contests. but plenty of their unlucky brothers and sisters ended up in the ditch.

rats are prime terrier fodder. on our farm, when i was small, the leader of the pack could find rats in the walls, force them out, and give them the death shake before anybody else even got their feet moving. if your dog is fast, fierce and lucky, he will always snap the rats before they can fight back. rats are pretty formidable themselves, and they will try their hardest to bite. the chances are, they will bite your dog's ears or jaws and not his eyes. cairns have their hairy faces to protect themselves from scrappy enemies. so, chances are that your dog will be fine. but there is always the chance of bad luck. take precautions.

[Islander]

I am also very wary of raccoons - our urban co-dwellers are extremely wily and fierce. They have killed cats in our 'hood and even broken into rabbit hutches.

As for the rats, Gus is maintaining daily Rat Patrol all along the perimeter rock walls in my garden. He is incredibly focused, sniffing and exploring every crevice. We'll see what happens if he ever has a close encounter. I would be just as pleased if his scent kept the rats away.

Thanks for all the good advice.

[dianer]

Cassie has killed her weight in rats but I don't let her keep her prize because there is a chance they may have taken rodent bait, an anticoagulant, which is deadly. We also have large woodrats, moles, gophers and deer mice. Once I was unable to get her to give me half a gopher (or was it a woodrat?), so they must be delectible. Leo got a squirrel once, which was impressive, since we have large squirrels here. No injuries or illnesses so far.

[2littleterrors]

I didn't "let" Kenzie kill the coon. Didn't even know it was there until my son came in and told me there was something dead in the backyard. Went out and found Kenzie laying next to the body of the dead coon. Not sure how she did it, but there it was.

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Funny that I worried over a tiny mouse! ;-)

A couple weeks ago we were so proud of Mac for catching what we believe was his first mouse at the camp. He was such a good boy, when I asked him to drop it, he did.

He got lots of pats and Charlie Bear Treats!

We spotted another mouse later that night, which they cornered, I grabbed and disposed of. Bailey was quite happy to be part of the hunting party. Good doggies!

One worry we've had at the lake is an encounter with a mink. It is my understanding that mink can be very nasty and even though a Cairn might win the fight, the victor might not survive it.

Thankfully our mink decided to move along to safer shores after toying with Mac on several occasions. They are so fast! LOL.

[Tracy A.]

You'd be surprised how quickly they kill their prey. And to be honest, I don't think you can turn off the prey drive in these little dogs when they are in full hunt mode. I learned that when trying to drag the boys off a hole a few days ago. When the boys hunt garter snakes, they know to grab it by the tail and shake it quickly.... I am assuming they have gotten bite, or just know to grab the tail.... Make sure you boy is up on his flea meds, and let him have at the back yard! You might need to get a little fill dirt for the holes. And trust me, you do not want a mouse or rat in the house... it makes for a crazed Cairn Terrier scartching on walls.

[BetsyNoodle]

Betsy Noodle was our little wheaten Cairn mix who LIVED to hunt. If it moved, she went after it. Possums, rats, mice, birds, moles, squirrels, lizzards, even houseflies. One day, the Noodle had been enjoying a lovely, cool October afternoon in our fenced backyard when suddenly I heard her scratching at the door to be let in. I opened the door, and she ran quickly past me with something odd trailing behind her. I caught up with her, and when my my dear husband heard my scream, he thought an intruder had entered the house. Well...YES. Seems the Noodle had her jaws clamped down on one of the biggest rats we had ever seen. And he was still alive. His writhing, long tail is what I had glimpsed trailing in the wind beside her as she dashed into the house!

Well, DH rescued the rat and me, and Betsy was pretty nonplussed that her Dad wouldn't let her play with her prey!

Betsy had no rat bites on her, but, then again, she was extremely light on her feet and faster than lightning!

We sure miss that little girl.

[Meggie]

So odd, this is one of the cairn traits Hubble has none of yet is the primary function of the breed.

Our dog park is down by the East River here in NY and there are rats bounding around....Hubble has no interest in any animal other than to be its friend. He'll lay down and be submissive if he sees a squirrel.

No prey drive whatsoever! He won't even join in when the other dogs are trying to chase one (they never get them).

But I'm glad because I love all animals...even the nasty ones