If you live in the Southwestern U.S. odds are you are going to have to deal with Pack Rats. These destructive critters love to chew on wiring, and when we returned this fall we found an electronic mess. No phones, computer cables chomped (a predilection for USB was noted), even lamp plugs were missing. There’s a maritime connection here.

The closest we have ever come to losing a boat was rat induced, although we did not know it at the time. One of the hoses that connected the hot water heater to the engine had been partially chewed. As we were standing off the entrance to Knysna Lagoon off the coast of South Africa the engine started to overheat. This was in calm weather, with the current flooding into the narrow pass, that was at that moment breaking with l arge seas across the entrance.

We managed to gain offing (with a great deal of luck). It took six more weeks to discover the cause and rid ourselves of two large Norwegian rats. We’ve since had two other incidents, both resolved quickly without damage.

Back to our landborn problem. We were advised to contact Mr Pack Rat, yes there is a business here devoted exclusively to these pesky rodents. Chris came out to assess our problem, commented that our damage tally was the all time record, and proceeded to educate us in the fine art of derodentification.

Some basic points which apply to trapping rodents:

• Place traps at right angles to walls, with the baited trigger closest to the wall.
• Peanut butter is the optimal bait.
• Use a tiny amount of the peanut butter (we had been using way to much).
• Poisons rarely work as they attract additional rodents.

We’ll add a couple of maritime caveats:

• Never leave garbage or other food stuff on deck where it will attract attention (that is what started our South African problem).
• Rats are great chewers and can easily gnaw through timber and plastic, Use metal screens if you are looking for protection.
• They can squeeze through tiny openings, a fraction of their body size.
• Docks and wharves in the tropics often have Copra Rat populations. Avoid them if possible.
• Carry an inventory of large and small traps.
• We hear that roasted rat tastes just like chicken (for more on this culinary subject see King Rat by James Clavell.

We would like to end on a light note but the reality is that rodents can be terribly destructive on a yacht.