What animals do rats kill?

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Although rats have a very bad reputation, they actually aren't known to kill that many other animals. They aren't the largest creature in the world, so they wouldn't stand a chance against medium to large-sized animals. Although the average cat or small dog might get struck with a nasty wound after conflict with a rat, anything bigger than that will usually come out of the situation as the winner.



Lots of animals prey on rats, both in the air and on the ground. From an on-the-ground perspective, rats are preyed on by raccoons, skunks, opossums, coyotes, wolves, stray and feral cats, weasels, foxes, and snakes. Plenty of snakes eat rats. Almost all of them, in fact, and that's just one more reason why a rat infestation is not a pleasant thing to allow in your home. Rats will always bring bigger predators, and we're sure that you'd rather not have a snake in your home, or an opossum, skunk, raccoon, or any other creature that rats are well-known to attract.

In the air, rats are regularly preyed upon by hawks, eagles, owls, and other birds.

Rats and other rodents are regularly preyed upon, and that is perhaps just one reason why they are prolific breeders. They are a source of food for so many other predators, they need a way to reproduce quickly in order to ensure the species survive. With so many animals above them on the food chain, humans being the biggest threat and the most innovative with their rat-catching ways, without this fast breeding habit, the animal would have been hunted to extinction a long time ago.

The animals that rats do kill include smaller rats, rat babies, mice, birds, insects, bird eggs, and small amphibians. They will feast on the carcasses of lager prey, once they have been abandoned by the animal that killed them, but they won't attempt to overpower an animal that is considerably larger than they are.



For more information, you may want to click on one of these guides that I wrote:
How much does rat removal cost? - get the lowdown on prices.
How to get rid of rats - my main rat removal info guide.
Example rat trapping photographs - get do-it-yourself ideas.
Rat job blog - learn from great examples of rat jobs I've done.
rats in the attic - the steps to get them out.
Rats in the walls - what to do to solve the problem.