I have never seen that, but maybe I dont have any rodents. I do have lots of rabbits, but they dont seem interested. They just eat the grass.

Krazyjorge, that was my experience. I grow over 100 roses. I put down alfala pellets on all of them. On two different mornings, my cats presented me with a dead rat on my front porch. I had never seen a rat anywhere near my home until then. I never put any more pellets down, and I haven't seen anymore rats. I definitely think the pellets attracted them. Someone said to bury the pellets in the ground at the base of each bush. However, that is a little too much work for me! I just water frequently and occasionally put down some rose plant food. Hope this helps. Vicki

I use alfalfa pellets and have noticed no increased varmit activities. My neighborhood bunny ignores them, as far as I can see, maybe because it delights in chewing off large larkspur stalks which are often laying on the ground in the morning.

I spread the pellets, lightly dig them in, water with a hard spray so that they break down into "meal" in a few minutes, and cover with several inches of mulch--so maybe that keeps the varmits away. Just a guess.

Kate

The problem is that in my neighborhood the neighbors cook outside and leave food crumbs everywhere but they wont put rat poison because they have dogs, soo since I dont have dogs I put the poison out, but that isnt enough so from time to time a mice a rat appears running through the fence. NASTY!!!

I use alfalfa meal and always work it into the soil. It begins to break down faster after being buried. It also stays moist which helps it break down.

I use the pellets, just scratch them in - try to do it just ahead of a rain. I haven't noticed an increase in rodents, but my neighbor's dog really likes them.

Now when I use fish meal, the cats get real interested.

Jody, your cats sound like my Mom's dogs. A few years ago, my Dad got some fish emulsion for my Mom to put around her flowers. They had heard that it would do wonders for them. So, they worked all afternoon spreading it in all the beds. It wasn't long before the dogs (a beagle and an eskie) discovered that it smelled and tasted wonderful! They went nuts eating dirt! LOL

I don't remember what they did to take care of it--- maybe watered it in thoroughly.. Anyway, now I'm afraid to even try it in my yard.

I'm pretty sure rats, mice, voles, and rabbits will all eat alfalfa if it is available, and regular use of alfalfa might increase the rodent populations in the garden. If the pellets are dissolved into meal and mixed with the soil it should certainly be less attractive.

There are alflafa meals and pellets, and there are alfalfa meal and pellets with grains added intended for complete animal feed. Rodents will tunnel and nest in alfalfa bales but in my experence, it is grain they seek for feed.

funny rat story. Last year DH tried to grow tomatoes in containers on our deck (he's too lazy to go out and water in the yard). As soon as we had some fruit and it began to ripen, something would be nibbling on it and ruining it. We examined the scat, and sure enough it was a rat.

This year, we planted the tomatoes in a freshly tilled bed. Of course our cats thought it was a great spot for a new litter box! So they've been going there. DH was upset, but so far, no rats! I bet the odor is keeping them away. And one of my guys did leave a dead rat in the bedroom as a present.

If anyone who uses poison has seen a animal die from poison on Animal Planet you would not ever use it again. What alot of people don't know is that possums are natural RAT predators. We used to have a rat or two show up around here..until a mama possum wintered over in our wood pile and had her babies. No more rats

So it's much nicer for humans to get bitten & diseased by rats???

Some people don't have possums.

I also want to add that while watching Animal Planet you can also see horrific ways animals kill & eat other animals. Disgusting example below (skip if sensitive):
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I once watched a kimodo dragon on AP eating some sort of wildebeast alive. It was the most horrific thing I've ever seen. I still remember the look on the victim's face.

Interesting responses to the original question. In my less than humid climate, I put down a handful of pellets per bush, water them, and scratch them in the next day or two. The water causes the pellets to break apart, so that bunnies aren't interested. Besides, the rabbits are much more eager to eat the blooms off my verbenas and snapdragons.

Buford, your present reminded me of the Siamese we had many years ago. She caught a mouse in our apartment in the middle of the night. She placed it, half eaten, in my hand while I was asleep, then woke me up. I flushed it. Whew! She was so mad that she marched down the hall, plopped herself with her back to me, and wouldn't speak to me for several days. But offering her liver wooed her back!

Years ago, alfalfa was the primary ingredient in vitamins because of its high vitamin content. I don't know about alfalfa pellets, but too much raw alfalfa fed to barnyard animals is a no-no for several reasons. Bloating severe enough to require surgery on cattle is one of the reasons. Wonder if alfalfa would work the same way on mice and rats?

For a long time I thought mice were eating some of my strawberries, and later, ripe tomatoes a foot or more off the ground. But then DW said it was probably the squirrels.

Gary

I wouldn't put poison out. You never know who or what is going to eat it. Some guy in the last place we lived in put traps and poison out for squirrels. I let the one squirrel out and threw away the poison out.

I also can't watch any nature shows. I had take valaium the last time I watched one and a baby kangaroo was mauled.

Buford, you are sensitive like me. Meh, true I have never had a huge rat infestitation. I also saw on animal planet a dog who had huge bites from rats in NY. But for most of us the few rats we get are minimal. Poison is just a no-no for me because I don't want to kill the neighborhood cats and animals. Also, we are generally scared by snakes. Snakes are great for killing rats. We should not kill a snake until we know it is going to hurt us..of corse there are exceptions to that rule. I had a male friend who thought the only good snake was a dead snake. My best friend in Tucson now is not afraid of the bull snakes that show up in her yard. She and hubby only kill rattlers. Also many many people HATE possums..and think they are ugly. Well I love them. They are the janitors of the forest..and quite harmless unless you corner them.

Seems to me as a culture we have used way to much poison and killed way to many animals for no reason. There is a balance to life here on this Earth and I think we should respect it more.